Tech Marketers And Tech Buyers Not Reading The Same Script
The third in a study series of tech marketers and buyers, recently released by KnowledgeStorm, follows content and
registration with the lead follow-up process, including the comparisons of buyer experience with seller perceptions.
For instance, in the mismatch between vendor follow-ups reported and
those received, 26% of marketers say they "always" use sales calls and 42% always use courtesy calls for initial follow-up. But, 26% of buyers say they "never" receive a
sales call and 23% say they never receive a courtesy call for initial follow-up.
In defense of the seller, technology buyers say that they provide valid phone numbers just 38% of
the time. With the lower percentage of registrations containing valid phone numbers, many calls may be attempted, but are never received.
In the previous two "Connecting
Through Content" studies, B2B marketers and business and technology buyers weighed in on the most desirable and influential types of content, where they post or look for content, how
they use the content in various phases of the buying cycle and what types of content prospects are most likely to register for. This final study in the series examines what happens once
that registration has been submitted-the critical point of the program's success or failure.
Despite some disconnects between marketers and buyers, the study found that there are
opportunities for marketers including:
- Ensuring that follow-up on registrations is not just timely, but delivered in ways most appealing to prospects
- Greater
involvement with sales to ensure early stage leads don't become missed revenue opportunities
- Posting content more broadly to achieve maximum visibility with
buyers at all stages of the buying cycle
Of the marketers surveyed:
- 40% hold the title of CMO, VP or Director of Marketing
- 37% are
Marketing or Product Managers
The technology buyers' demographic profiles include the facts that:
- 52% are business professionals
- 48%
are IT professionals
- 46% are involved with their company's technology at a strategic level
- 30% authorize IT purchases or have a major influence on
purchases
Though the study offers insights and suggestions for performance, the bottom line is that when marketers first receive a registration, nearly half enter new registration
information immediately into CRM systems for tracking, and 73% say that their companies follow-up within two days. However, the majority of buyers say that they receive follow-up just
half the time or less. Technology buyers are not seeing the activity that marketers report conducting.
Summary of Key Findings:
- 95% of marketers use their own Websites
as their primary or secondary source for generating registrations or leads, but 84% of technology buyers consider IT directories their primary or secondary source of content
that requires registration.
- Seventy-two percent of marketers state that the quality of registrations from their own sites is "very good" or "excellent",
while only 30% rated other sources as high. However, 53% of technology buyers say they provide equally valid registration information regardless of site. Notably, 47% of
buyers are less likely to provide valid information on sites in which they lack confidence, and the lowest ranking among these are vendor sites and online IT
publications.
- Sixty-five percent of technology buyers say they receive follow-up from vendors half of the time or less when they submit registration information. Of
those buyers who do receive follow-up, 54% of them receive it within two days, while 73% of marketers report that their company follows up on registrations within one to two days.
- The discrepancy is largest with sales calls, where 79% of marketers say that they "always" or "sometimes" make sales calls, yet technology buyers state
that they receive such calls "always" or "sometimes" just 37% of the time.
- Finally, the report concludes that marketers must ensure that timely and
appropriate follow-up occurs. 73% of technology buyers say that the timeliness of a vendor's follow-up at least moderately affects their perception. However, only 38%
of marketers follow-up with prospects within one business day. Another 35% follow-up within two business days.
- In addition, 53% of buyers always prefer to receive a
courtesy email and 53% said they never prefer to receive a sales call as initial follow-up. The study found that buyers tend to give a valid email address more often than
any other piece of registration information.
And there's more, lots more... to access the report and learn
more about KnowledgeStorm and MarketingSherpa, a partner in the study, please visit here.