|
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK Mid-year check-ins when you’re the customer!
A couple of weeks ago I published a thought for the week on doing mid-year check-ins with your customers. But, aren’t you a customer of someone as well? Have you considered checking in with them?
Buyers often describe their most valuable relationships as partnerships and isn’t that what we’re seeking when we’re the customer?
As B2B marketers we invest in a number of things intended to support our operations and goals. Remember those budget meetings and the expectations, the return on investment, that you identified? You are the buyer when it comes to martech, conferences, tradeshows, social media platforms, outsourced marketing services and more.
I’d like to focus on the partnerships you have with media organizations and publishers.
Whether you invest in paid advertising or earned media, you should expect more than the placement of your content in front of a circulation or contact list. I get it! You see your full-page ad in an industry publication, pass it around at a marketing and sales meeting, and everyone is impressed. But was that really the only goal you had in mind?
Modern publishers are media companies, content experts, technology platforms, and marketing consultants all rolled into one. The good ones are anyway! And as a paid advertiser, you should expect more than clicks and opens, which are probably wrong anyway. Bots don’t make purchasing decisions.
Here’s some advice for a mid-year check in.
1. Schedule a call with the media company you’re advertising with.
2. Go back and review the original goals you had for working with them.
3. Review the reports they already sent you. *Yes, you should have gotten some metrics from them by now.
4. Are you making progress toward your goals?
5. What can be done differently in the second half of the year for better results?
After the check-in, score them on a scale of 1-10. One is someone who takes your money to place your content in front of a circulation that is unreliable. Ten is someone who understands your business and is engaged in helping you achieve your goals through more effective marketing and sales.
And when you develop next year’s marketing budget, refer to the score card.
I hope you have a great week!
--Perry
Visit us at follow your buyer for more.
![]()
Perry Rearick
Chief Editor | Follow Your Buyer
prearick@followyourbuyer.com
|
