Joshua Nite

Break Free B2B Marketing: Julie Brown of Johnson Controls on Proving the EBIT of Your Marketing

Joshua Nite on Jun 2nd, 2020
B2B Marketing

For decades, marketers have measured success differently than the rest of the organization. We raise awareness, increase share of voice, generate impressions, deliver MQLs to sales.

Meanwhile, the success of the business itself is measured in….well, money. Revenue. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT).

But this disparity is changing as marketers are becoming more data-driven — and being increasingly accountable for their direct contribution to revenue. It’s not enough to show a return on investment; it’s not enough for marketing to not be a cost center. The marketing department needs to be a powerful engine for generating revenue.

Break Free B2B Marketing: Julie Brown of Johnson Controls on Proving the EBIT of Your Marketing

20 Marketing Jokes for Marketers Working from Home

I’m not here to lie to you: Sheltering in place is getting pretty old.

I do count my blessings, of course. My family and I are healthy. My wife and I both can work from home; our kids are pretty great; we actually enjoy each others’ company.

Still. There are only so many loaves of bread you can bake, puzzles you can solve, board games you can play before the ennui sets in.

If you’re like me, you could use a laugh right now. And I need to exercise my comedy muscles before they atrophy.

And in a world where people are still writing articles called, “Should You Include Humor in Your B2B Content,” we need constant reminders that people like jokes. People like to laugh. Laughter brings you closer to your audience and creates a connection.

20 Marketing Jokes for Marketers Working from Home

Break Free B2B Marketing: Latane Conant of 6sense on Reinventing the CMO Role

Joshua Nite on May 19th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Online Marketing

What’s in a job title? In my tenure as a marketer, I’ve met gurus who don’t live on mountaintops, ninjas who don’t know martial arts, and evangelists who don’t preach on Sunday.

At worst, these creative job titles are pure puffery. But at best, they serve as a statement of purpose. I’m thinking of titles like Shep Hyken’s Chief Amazement Officer, or Ann Handley as Chief Content Officer: They tell us something about what the person — and their organization — values.

Latane Conant from 6sense has a subtly unusual job title: Chief Market Officer. She dropped the ‘ing’ from ‘Marketing,’ and that tiny change signals a major shift in the way she approaches her job. Instead of focusing on the verb of marketing — what tactics to deploy to reach an audience — her job is to deeply understand the market, the people her brand is trying to reach.

Break Free B2B Marketing: Latane Conant of 6sense on Reinventing the CMO Role

Break Free B2B Marketing: Danny Nail of SAP on Creating a Global ABM Platform

Joshua Nite on May 12th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Video Interviews

I wrote a special song just for you:

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday, dear reader of the TopRank blog,

Happy birthday to you

Are you emotionally moved or impressed by my effort? Probably not. Even if I used a little tech wizardry to insert your name in there, you likely wouldn’t be blown away by the level of customization. It’s just filling in a template, not creating something new.

In theory, account-based marketing (ABM) should mean delivering hyper-relevant, custom content to your most relevant accounts. In practice, however, it tends to mean coming up with ever-more intricate Mad Libs. We end up templatizing everything to scale up our efforts, losing the immediacy and relevance that makes ABM work.

Break Free B2B Marketing: Danny Nail of SAP on Creating a Global ABM Platform

Break Free B2B Marketing: Lisa Sharapata of 6sense on the End of the MQL

Joshua Nite on May 5th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Online Marketing

What do we mean when we talk about a transformation in marketing?

Let me put it this way. The switch from horses to cars was a transformation. It was a fundamental rethinking of the way that humans move. We went from, “Find an animal that can go further and faster than you can and ride on it,” to “Burn fuel and use the energy to turn a motor that transfers the power to wheels.”

Every improvement since then — from V8 engines to power steering — has just been an iteration on the theme. A little faster, a little more efficient, a little safer, but iteration, not transformation.

Break Free B2B Marketing: Lisa Sharapata of 6sense on the End of the MQL

Break Free B2B Marketing: Sruthi Kumar on Creating Memorable Experiences

Joshua Nite on Apr 21st, 2020
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, Online Marketing

Marketers are in the business of attracting attention. All of our tactics, our strategies, our goals boil down to: Did we get someone’s attention and inspire them to take action?

The key to modern marketing is that we have to earn that attention. There will always be someone on who is louder, funnier, more talented, or just less shameless than your brand is willing to be. The only way to truly capture and sustain someone’s focus is to earn the right to their time.

How do you earn attention? By providing remarkable experiences. By showing you care about your audience, you know who they are, and that your brand is here to help and to entertain them.

Break Free B2B Marketing: Sruthi Kumar on Creating Memorable Experiences

6 Unconventional Social Channels for B2B Marketing

Joshua Nite on Apr 9th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Social Media

This just in: B2B doesn’t have to be boring! People who are on B2B buying committees like to be entertained just as much as everyone else. They use the same social media sites as B2C consumers do, too.

Sorry to drop so many knowledge bombs in one paragraph. Take a minute to let it all sink in.

Okay, so maybe self-isolation is making me more snarky than usual. I’m glad that we don’t have to constantly explain why B2B marketing not only can be, but must be relatable and creative.

But there’s one mental obstacle most of us are still struggling with: The idea that social media marketing (outside of LinkedIn) is mostly for our B2C colleagues. We’ve accepted that we should have a Twitter account or a Facebook page, but that’s where a lot of organizations draw the line.

6 Unconventional Social Channels for B2B Marketing

5 Ways SEO Can Shine a Light on Your Unseen B2B Content

Joshua Nite on Apr 2nd, 2020
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, SEO

“Look, marketers. Everywhere the light touches is content beloved by customers.”

“But what about that shadowy place over there?”

“That’s our unseen content. We worked hard to create it, but nobody ever visits it.”

“That’s really depressing.”

“That’s life.”

Okay, sorry to bring the room down. And I’m also sorry to say that it gets worse. A recent study found that 69% of all web content is not seen by consumers.

The remaining 31% is our kingdom.

Fortunately, there are many ways to create content that beats the odds. For example, you can co-create with influencers, or experiment with interactive content that inspires social media sharing. But what about the content you have already created? The really good stuff that never caught on with an audience?

5 Ways SEO Can Shine a Light on Your Unseen B2B Content

Optimizing ABM with Influencer Marketing at #B2BMX

Joshua Nite on Feb 27th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

Account based marketing (ABM) is the hybrid sales/marketing/revenue discipline that is shaking up the status quo for marketers and sales pros alike. There are as many definitions of ABM as there are accounts to target, but I’m partial to this one from LinkedIn’s Megan Golden:

“ABM is a strategy that directs marketing resources to engaging a specific set of target accounts. Instead of casting a wide net with their lead-generation efforts, marketers using ABM work closely with sales to identify key prospects and then tailor customized programs and messages to the buying team within target accounts.” Megan Golden, Group Manager, Global Content & Social Media Marketing, LinkedIn*

Optimizing ABM with Influencer Marketing at #B2BMX

The B2B Marketer’s Journey To Experiential Content at #B2BMX

Joshua Nite on Feb 26th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, Interactive Marketing

What makes an experience an…

Full disclosure: I am not on the design team at TopRank Marketing.

But you know what I mean. You’ve eaten dinner at dozens, if not hundreds of restaurants in your lifetime. But there are likely one or two that stick out in your memory. What makes them memorable?

That question drove an intriguing presentation at B2B Marketing Exchange, led by four expert marketers:

Ryan Brown, Ceros
Darius Eslami, Carbon Black
Paige Gildner, Bluecore
Sharon Shapiro, Bluecore

Short answer: What makes experiences different and memorable is if they’re really good… or really bad. Anything in the middle tends to blur together in our recollection. Only the extremes stand out.

The B2B Marketer’s Journey To Experiential Content at #B2BMX

5 Ways to Humanize B2B Content Marketing

Joshua Nite on Feb 13th, 2020
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

“You’ve really got to put yourself out there. Don’t be too stiff.”

“Be honest and sincere!”

“Be vulnerable and relatable… and it doesn’t hurt if you can make ‘em laugh.”

Is this advice for a middle-aged man trying online dating for the first time? Or is it advice for B2B marketers?

Given the proximity to Valentine’s Day, can’t it be both?

The point is, as good as this advice may be for marketers, it’s as vague as it is omnipresent. We talk about “person-to-person” marketing and “humanizing the brand.” But what does it really mean to humanize a brand?

Yes, these were the original Michelin Tire mascots.

In some cases, apparently, it means high-octane nightmare fuel. So, maybe don’t try and make an adorable mascot for your software-as-a-service solution.

5 Ways to Humanize B2B Content Marketing