So , what can marketing do , and where are its limits ? Here ’ s a short list of what you can and should expect from your marketing efforts .
REPLACE COLD PROSPECTING
Great marketing can drive inbound leads of people who have a serious interest in buying or are at least open to the idea of a conversation . Even with all the available marketing media and strategies today , some companies still stupidly rely on salespeople to sift , sort , and trudge through an ice-cold list of names in search of a gold needle in a haystack . This is the fastest way to lose a great sales professional through burnout . Salespeople don ’ t get burned out from selling — they get burned out , tired , and frustrated from prospecting . When you finally get a marketing plan producing and you ’ ve built a great list of unconverted leads in the process of getting ready to buy , selling gets a lot more productive and easier because you let your marketing systems find , qualify , and cultivate buyers .
MAKE A GOOD SALESPERSON GREAT
Following on the previous , a good salesperson should spend the majority of their time talking to prospects who have some level of willingness and ability to buy what you ’ re selling . Really great marketing can presell and predispose a prospect to want to do business with your organization by answering frequently asked questions , building trust , demonstrating differential value and USP ( unique selling proposition ), and creating urgency to buy . Great marketing can provide client testimonials and case studies to demonstrate competence , introduce risk-reducing guarantees and proof , reduce or eliminate fee resistance , and educate the prospect on what “ good ” is and what to look for when buying what you ’ re selling , which makes you the obvious choice regardless of price . All of this makes the actual process of selling easier .
Recently , I hired a top salesperson from a very well-known and well-run organization local to Franklin , where we have our offices . I was delighted to actually recruit their rock star and had great expectations for his performance .
However , it quickly became apparent that he didn ’ t know how to sell at all . I was actually shocked at how abysmal he was in his ability to have a consultative conversation , ask good questions , and listen . As you might imagine , he didn ’ t last long . So , what went wrong ? To my estimation , the company he previously worked for was so well-known and great at marketing that he only had to take orders , not sell . When he came to our team , we grilled him on good sales processes , which he was unable to grasp , so I never felt comfortable putting him on the phone with a prospect of ours .
This is a very common scenario to be aware of when hiring salespeople . Many can be great if sufficient marketing props them up . If you don ’ t have strong name recognition and a
" IN MANY CASES , MARKETING IS BLAMED FOR THE FAILINGS OF THE SALES TEAM ."
powerful brand to support the sales effort , someone who was a rock star in another organization that has those marketing assets may turn out to be a terrible rep for you . Of course , if you build that level of marketing power , you have the advantage of hiring average people and getting them to perform brilliantly .
REPEL WRONG-FIT PROSPECTS
Most businesses don ’ t give much thought to who they don ’ t want as a customer , often because they ’ re starved for business to the point where they ’ ll take almost anyone . Big mistake . If your target market is “ anyone ,” you don ’ t have a target market — and part of communicating who is a right fit is communicating who the wrong fit is .
In my business , I make it abundantly clear that we aren ’ t selling instant rice . Success in marketing requires a commitment to doing the work and sticking with a strategy long enough to get it to work . That is the extreme opposite of what many other marketing “ gurus ” will tell you . They ’ re selling easy buttons and quick fixes because those have universal appeal . Who doesn ’ t want a four-hour workweek or seven-minute abs ? It ’ s hard to sell “ homework ” that will produce results over time . However , I know our best client isn ’ t one created with quick fixes and shortcuts . They want a real business and marketing plan that will actually sustain them and deliver consistent success , not a Happy Meal with a cheap prize in the box .
Robin Robins is the IT industry ’ s most in-demand marketing consultant , sales trainer , and direct response marketing consultant who specializes in developing strategic marketing , sales and lead generation systems for MSPs , VARs and IT services companies .
Robin is the Founder of Technology Marketing Toolkit , MSP Success Magazine and Big Red Media . To date , her organization has coached , trained and consulted with over 10,000 IT business owners from all over the US and in 37 different countries . She currently runs the largest C-level peer group in the IT services channel for MSPs and her annual event , the IT Sales and Marketing Boot Camp , attracts over 1,600 attendees every year and is sponsored by the IT industry ’ s leading vendors .
This vast experience has given Robin a broad knowledge of hundreds of marketing and sales tactics used by some of the most successful , sales driven organizations in the world .
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