Step 10: Clearly articulate the co-creation of a shared vision with key accounts
Why do we need to start thinking differently?
I use to tell people that marketing has transformed from the traditional methods of outbound marketing to the new methods of inbound marketing. It has spawned a different type of engagement. However, the traditional means of marketing still reside within most organizations. They still hire people based on the look and feel of inbound marketing and the deliverables.
Many organizations are still struggling with that type of thinking, the idea of marketing as a process. Even with the success of successful marketing consultancies such as Sales Force, Hubspot, and Marketo, companies that deliver a process, they still think about deliverables.
With the advent of the sharing economy, it is quickly obsoleting the process thinkers of the world. In fact, if your marketing has not yet become a process, it might be better suited just to skip it and start with the current thinking. This new thinking opens a new space outside of demographics and psychographics and segmentation. It is a space that is not intuitively obvious or structurally predictable. It is a space that strategy once resided. It has been replaced with a marketing perspective that is more aligned with the sales process versus the old marketing process. It is driven by actions and tactics.
“With tactics in the driver’s seat, everything changes: long-term vs. short-term becomes meaningless; prediction is still possible as an activity, but probably futile in its results; action beats analyzing-, correctable replaces dependable. The one thing that we know is that it’s in the learning rather than the deciding.” The Death of Strategy – Forbes.com
As I have said in a previous message: “In the Funnel of Opportunity, we think about marketing in the reverse order. We start with our core customer and core value proposition. When we start our marketing with core customers; things begin to change. We create better relationships and a higher level of learning opportunities. Thus, we can communicate more effectively across more channels and/or people within our customers, develop more business development opportunities and connect with influencers. You must be willing to dig deep to understand customers. It becomes all about engagement and building effective feedback loops. These loops become our method of learning. We use this learning to provide more value to our customers and participate with them at the relevant edges of the use of our products/services.”
This is why Amazon and Google may be leapfrogging Apple soon; it is becoming less about innovation and more about learning. Data is a big part of it, but it is also about older methods such as Laddering, Scientific Thinking and new discussions around Jobs-to-be-Done. I call it playing in your customer’s playground.
“If we can keep competitors focused on us while we stay focused on customers, we’ll turn out all right.” —@JeffBezos
YouTube Video on Groups: https://youtu.be/keBMZsJzFDY?
YouTube Video w/ Gary Klein: https://youtu.be/21IJkavFaQs
In the PDF, I give you an outline for an exercise for your sales team. I think it helps opening up the thinking process and encourage you to try it.
PDF: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bz5yH-7cFo5MeVZrdHJ6cGEtVkk
I like to stay very basic and away from technology. I believe in the USA principle; Understand, Simplify, Automate. This is often accomplished by doing it long-hand first then finding software to do your job. Often finding the software first will force you to adapt your process to the software first instead of the needed process. I think is a good time before we take the next step, to sit back and see where technology may be taking us. An article worth reading: https://martechtoday.com/forrester-marketers-need-say-goodbye-campaigns-hello-ai-driven-conversations-customers-190951. An excerpt from it:
There are five each in three categories: technologies that foster engagement to improve the ability to reach and serve customers, ones that encourage insight to turn data into action and ones that support the ability to become connected and fast. Hopkins said the 5/5/5 division just happened and wasn’t planned that way.
The five engagement technologies:
- Internet of Things (IoT) software and solutions
- Intelligent agents, such as robotic process automation
- Personal identify and data management, including personal data lockers, authorization management tools
- Real-time interaction management, like customer recognition, offer arbitration and delivery, measurement/optimization
- Augmented Reality (AR)/Virtual Reality (VR)
The five insight technologies:
- AI/cognitive tech, such as deep learning and natural language processing
- Customer journey analytics
- Insight platforms, such as new business analytics tools;
- IoT analytics
- Spatial analytics, including in-store analytics, location analytics, sensors
The five supporting technologies:
- Security automation and orchestration, such as incident response and threat intelligence
- Containers and container management. For example, Docker or cloud container management
- Edge computing, where processing power resides throughout a network rather than in a central location
- Cloud native application platforms, such Platform-as-a-Service and API management
- Hybrid wireless connectivity, where “chips and software […] translate between wireless protocols on same device”
The OODA Loop will emphasize that we live in a dynamic environment. We must continually evolve with changes by committing to perfect one new aspect of client engagement on a regular basis.
Funnel of Opportunity AI & Klein PDF Download: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bz5yH-7cFo5MeVZrdHJ6cGEtVkk
Begining: Funnel of Opportunity Introduction
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