Marketing in many B2B firms is often lackadaisical at best. However, B2B marketing should not be halfhearted, especially in today’s digital, customer-driven marketing environment. B2B companies that achieve marketing excellence often outperform competitors because they put customers first, create strategic alliances, and are value and outcome-driven.
“Because the purpose of business is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two–and only two–basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and innovation produce results; all the rest are costs.” – Peter Drucker
What is Marketing Excellence?
Reaching excellence in marketing is a process of implementing marketing best practices where the firm delivers exceptional value to customers, vendors, and other stakeholders. The Marketing Excellence Review chart below shows the best practices for achieving excellence in marketing. The table also identifies two different marketing performance areas that a B2B company may fall within, poor and good marketing practice.
According to Phillip Kotler, considered the father of modern marketing, organizational management must examine their marketing processes in relation to the review chart. They create a marketing profile based on determining where they think the business stands on each review list line. In areas where the company falls short of excellence, the business leaders can make changes that help the firm become an outstanding player in their industry.
Poor
Good
Excellent
Product driven
Market Driven
Market Driving
Mass-market oriented
Segment-oriented
Niche-oriented and customer-oriented
Product offer
Augmented product offer
Customer solutions offer
Average product quality
Better than average product quality
Legendary product quality
Average service quality
Better than average service quality
Legendary service quality
End-product oriented
Core-product oriented
Core-competency oriented
Function oriented
Process oriented
Outcome oriented
Reacting to competitiors
Benchmarking competitiors
Leapfrogging competitors
Supplier exploitation
Supplier preference
Supplier partnership
Dealer exploitation
Dealer support
Dealer partnership
Price driven
Quality driven
Value driven
Average speed
Better than average speed
Legendary speed
Hierarchy
Network
Teamwork
Vertically integrated
Flattened organization
Strategic alliance
Stockholder driven
Stakeholder driven
Societally driven
Summary
Achieving excellence is an achievable goal. It requires management to understand where they currently are in marketing proficiency, identify areas for improvement, then develop and execute a strategy to reach excellence.
Peter Drucker, the father of modern management, stated, “Because the purpose of business is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two–and only two–basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and innovation produce results; all the rest are costs.” If you are not marketing and not innovating, your competitors will eventually outpace you.
https://i0.wp.com/marketingbinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Marketing-Excellence-Review-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=18001200Allen Staffordhttp://marketingbinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Marketing-Binder-Digital-Marketign-Agency-Logo.pngAllen Stafford2021-03-06 17:42:502021-07-12 17:51:14Does Your B2B Company Measure up to Marketing Excellence?
According to eMarketer, B2B buyers are switching from their current suppliers to new suppliers amid COVID-19. The top reason for the switch is that existing suppliers are unable to offer delivery. The pandemic has placed a strain not only on suppliers but on the supply chain as well.
Additionally, B2B customers switched suppliers because the supplier is out of stock; their existing supplier cannot offer online ordering and a limited product range with the current supplier.
COVID-19 has exposed operational vulnerabilities within B2B firms. Many firms cannot react quickly to the crisis and lack effective contingency plans to manage such a shock to their business operations and industry.
Looking ahead, to keep B2B Buyers, companies need to create plans that include contingencies in managing unexpected surges in demand, sudden stock shortages, restocking delays, and employee shortages due to illness or fear of catching the virus.
The solution is not simple. However, suppose B2B firms want to reduce the impact of COVID-19 or any other potential industry crippling event. In that case, they need effective processes and procedures to manage some of the suggestions noted above. Marketers may also need to adapt to the new “normal” and acquire new post-COVID skills to thrive.
https://i0.wp.com/marketingbinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Event-Budgets.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=18011200Allen Staffordhttp://marketingbinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Marketing-Binder-Digital-Marketign-Agency-Logo.pngAllen Stafford2020-04-13 10:39:352021-07-13 10:55:26Top Reasons Why B2B Buyers are Switching from Their Suppliers During COVID-19
According to this Psychology Today article, setting goals is linked to self-confidence, motivation, and autonomy. Additionally, psychologist Gail Matthews conducted a 2015 study on goal setting. She learned that you are 42% more likely to complete goals by just writing them down
SMART goals first emerged in 1981 when George T. Doran, a consultant and former Director of Corporate Planning for Washington Water Power Company, published a paper titled “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives.” In his writing, Doran writes,
“‘How do you write meaningful objectives?’- that is, frame a statement of results to be achieved, Managers are confused by all the verbal from seminars, books, magazines, consultants, and so on. Let me suggest therefore, that when it comes to writing effective objectives, corporate officers, managers, and supervisors just have to think of the acronym SMART. Ideally speaking, each corporate, department and section objective should be: (SMART).”
Doran’s original definition identified five criteria, which he noted that not every objective would make use of all five measures.
Specific: target a particular area for improvement.
Measurable: quantify, or at least suggest, an indicator of progress.
Assignable: specify who will do it.
Realistic: state what results can realistically be achieved given available resources.
Time-related: determine when the result can be achieved.
Over the years, the S.M.A.R.T goal criteria have changed to adapt to meet specific objectives. To write S.M.A.R.T. marketing goals, I modified a few of the requirements to meet the expectations of what is expected from a marketing goal: achievable and results-oriented.
SMART MARKETING GOALS
Without realistic, time-bound goals, it becomes a challenge to achieve your desired results, regardless of your discipline. Imagine navigating a ship in the ocean without a navigational system; you’re bound to wander aimlessly and eventually run out of resources. The same can be said if you try to achieve results – at work, school, or personal life – without a plan. Thus, developing sound marketing goals is essential to managing the performance of your marketing initiatives.
When setting goals, it is best to use the SMART goal writing process. The acronym S.M.A.R.T. refers to:
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Results-focused
Time-bound
The key to setting and writing goals is the more specific and realistic you are about your goals, the better you can manage the goals and their outcomes.
However, before I dive into each SMART goal component’s meaning, I want to share a few examples of SMART marketing goals.
Example Marketing Goals (Objectives)
The following marketing goals are similar to what you may find in a typical marketing plan:
to increase sales of (specific) product/brand X by 15% over the next 18 months
to increase market share for product/brand X by 7 percent (in a particular region) over the next 12 months
to generate 200 new leads via the website each month
to increase distribution of product X (in a specific region/territory) from 15% to 30% within 12 months
Notice that the above marketing objectives already follow the SMART goals format; they are specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and time-bound.
How to Apply Each Letter of the SMART Goal
In the following copy, I will explain the different parts of the SMART goal and provide you an example in terms of writing SMART marketing goals. Again, remember that you can use the SMART goal process for any goal setting initiative, such as personal, work, or school.
Specific:
A marketing goal should define what you are going to do. The Specific in the S.M.A.R.T. model answers the What, Why, and How of the plan.
Example:
The automotive parts division will increase car battery sales by 10% over the next 12 months using cross-selling, up-selling, and direct marketing strategies to increase revenue to hire a new counter salesperson.
Explanation:
What = Automotive parts division will increase sales of car batteries by 10%.
How = By using cross-selling, up-selling, and direct marketing strategies.
Why = To increase revenue to hire a new employee, a counter salesperson.
Measurable
There should be concrete evidence that you have accomplished your marketing goal or objective. Typically, the entire goal statement is a measurement for the project.
Example:
The automotive parts division will increase car battery sales by 10% over the next 12 months using cross-selling, up-selling, and direct marketing strategies to increase revenue to hire a new counter salesperson.
Explanation:
The measurable metric is whether the parts department increased sales by 10% within the 12 months.
Achievable
Marketing goals should be achievable. The goal should challenge you, yet be defined enough so that it is achievable. To be feasible, you must have the proper resources: skills, personnel, and finances.
Almost all realistic goals can are achievable when you plan each step and establish a timeline. By following steps, you can achieve marketing goals that seemed impossible. On the other hand, if you develop impossible goals, you may never reach them.
Example:
The automotive parts division will increase car battery sales by 10% over the next 12 months using cross-selling, up-selling, and direct marketing strategies to increase revenue to hire a new counter salesperson.
Explanation:
To achieve this marketing objective, you must have a skill-set in selling and direct marketing techniques. Without these skills, you will not be able to accomplish these goals.
Results-focused
Marketing goals should measure outcomes, not activities. Hence, goals are result-focused.
Example:
The automotive parts division will increase car battery sales by 10% over the next 12 months using cross-selling, up-selling, and direct marketing strategies to increase revenue to hire a new counter salesperson.
Explanation:
The result of this marketing goal is the ability to hire a new counter salesperson and to increase revenue over the past years’ performance.
Time-bound
The marketing goal should link to a time-frame that creates a practical sense of urgency.
Example:
The automotive parts division will increase car battery sales by 10% over the next 12 months using cross-selling, up-selling, and direct marketing strategies to increase revenue to hire a new counter salesperson.
Explanation:
The next 12 months provides a time-bound deadline. The marketing goal can still be more specific by offering a precise end date.
Summary
Writing goals is essential for your success. Specifically, writing marketing goals is critical to the success of any business navigating the marketing environment. Using the SMART goal methodology can help ensure that goals are realistic and achievable on time. These lead to a focused, intentional, and methodical approach toward reaching personal, academic, or business success.
https://i0.wp.com/marketingbinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Writing-SMART-Goals-for-Marketing.jpg?fit=1280%2C853&ssl=18531280Allen Staffordhttp://marketingbinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Marketing-Binder-Digital-Marketign-Agency-Logo.pngAllen Stafford2020-01-01 12:59:162021-07-12 13:17:19Writing SMART Goals for Marketing
Reaching excellence in marketing is a process of implementing marketing best practices where the firm delivers exceptional value to customers, vendors, and other stakeholders. The Marketing Excellence Review chart below shows the best practices for achieving excellence in marketing. The table also identifies two different marketing performance areas that a B2B company may fall within, poor and good marketing practice.
Doran’s original definition identified five criteria, which he noted that not every objective would make use of all five measures.
There should be concrete evidence that you have accomplished your marketing goal or objective. Typically, the entire goal statement is a measurement for the project.
Time-bound