B2B AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT - INTEGRATED MARKETING

Moving the model from campaign to conversation

We have talked before about the fact that marketing has changed from monologue to dialogue, but what does this mean in reality? In the past brands have been used to one-way-traffic where they communicated what they wanted, how and when they wanted.

Today marketing is real-time, with audiences expecting information and engagement on demand.

These conversations have a number of key characteristics:

• They are personal, human, with empathy for needs, wants and wishes.
• It’s a dialogue where actions and information depend on the others’ response.
• They are truly engaged with a common goal.
• The interaction is about the exchange of perspectives and ideas, not just information.
• They are maintained and adjusted as the relationship develops.
• The conversations are integrated online and off.

For some this change will be a huge step. Brands that are not doing any kind of segmentation by function, industry or profile are going to have a steep learning curve in the move to B2ME.

Key for brands to learn from these engaged conversations is to adjust and grow their marketing content according to these interactions. Don’t keep repeating the same old material just because it is what you have always done.

The channels and media types available are many and varied. Use them based on what your audiences demand.