Relationships and social media are key to reseller marketing success, says Darryl Brick
Tightening the purse strings
At a time when economic conditions remain fragile and budgets continue to be shaved, IT resellers need to balance time and resources to make the most effective decisions when it comes to marketing.
Traditionally, resellers have had limited access to marketing resources able to greatly improve their reach and perception, not to mention their competitiveness. For resellers who want to make an impact, but may be on a tight budget when it comes to marketing, building and strengthening relationships with distributors has never been so important. Similarly, social media is a cost-effective tool that can help create new opportunities to win customers and better serve existing ones.
Effective targeting
Before rolling out any marketing campaign, it is important to identify what your objective is - essentially, what you are trying to achieve - and who you are trying to reach. Your objective could be to build greater awareness, accelerate lead generation or strengthen customer loyalty; however, if you do not know who you are targeting or understand where those people typically go to get information, your campaign won’t generate optimal results.
The key is to understand your audience, the type of information they want and how they like to consume it, then create the content that appeals to them most.
Today there are many different channels your customers use to get information, both on- and off-line. On a limited budget, you really need to do your research and identify which channels are going to be the most beneficial and cost-effective for your campaign. For instance, you may be able to reach a more targeted audience through LinkedIn or Twitter at a fraction of the cost of more traditional direct mail methods.
Socialising your network
LinkedIn is the largest professional network on the internet, so consider the size of the opportunity. It is worth investing some time to explore the various groups connected to the UK’s IT channel, specifically the type of contacts, the groups they’re part of and the questions they ask. Consider whether it is worth joining the group and integrating yourself within the community by answering questions and initiating conversations to provide help to potential customers. This is a great way to build relationships and gradually position yourself and your company as an ‘expert’.
Likewise, you could start your own LinkedIn group and invite current customers and partners to join it, as well as prospects. Here you can create a community forum which provides potential customers with the information they need, and elevate your company’s profile at the same time. However, starting your own group is a big commitment. Daily interaction with the group is essential to building loyalty, and it does take time. Nonetheless, the relationships you form can be extremely valuable and fruitful.
Likewise, many of your target customers may be communicating on Twitter, and if they are, it is very easy to find them, observe what they’re talking about and join the discussion at appropriate times. Building a profile on Twitter either as a company or as an individual, requires an investment of time to look for the right people to follow and to monitor conversations, but can reap dividends if a prospect shortlists potential vendors based on who they know and their reputation. Twitter, if used effectively, can be a way to build or maintain a company’s profile.
Supporting customers on the go
Customers are constantly on the move and it’s important that they get the information they want, whenever they want it, and on whatever device they are using. Juniper Networks feels that resellers should be getting more from vendors, and so we recently launched an initiative to help our resellers connect better with their customers. We developed a mobile application for the iPad as part of our new Marketing Concierge Platform which has transformed how our partners interact with customers. This app enables partners to provide real-time content such as data sheets, videos, images and case studies, so they are fully prepared wherever they may be.
Juniper Networks also offer a marketing programme for resellers to allow them to communicate with marketing experts, share best practice and tools to help them look at new ways to drive demand for their business. Called InnoVAR, we invite channel partners to regular events and social media discussions about important topics in order to complement their current marketing campaigns.
Persistence
My overall advice is to “be consistent, be persistent.” Know your main objectives and who you’re trying to be and keep to them. Always, always follow-up immediately with a customer or a new lead and find out how they heard about you. It is easy, polite and something that is forgotten a lot these days, but very important in the fast world of social media. This sort of follow-up can pay dividends because the prospect or customer feels valued – they’ll keep buying from you for as long as you maintain a strong, personal relationship with them.
Darryl Brick is partner director at Juniper Networks
