Content Marketing and Sales Effectiveness Survey

Content Marketing & Sales Effectiveness Survey

Executive Summary

Copyright © 2013 Richardson. All rights reserved.

Overview of Findings

• Sales reps do not understand your company’s content marketing strategy• Your sales reps and managers are reading and reviewing your content, but are struggling to find value that

is easily transferrable to your customers• Your content’s purpose is not meeting the objectives and initiatives of your sales team• Although thought provoking, your content is not assisting sales reps and managers throughout the selling

process• Sales reps and managers are looking for content that is relevant and applicable to the solutions your

company sells

We have outlined additional detail in the following pages of this report. As you consider your content marketing strategy, we encourage you to think from the perspective of your sales team and your marketing team, in hopes of more closely aligning the two to generate more opportunities.


Recommendations

• Establish a two-way communication stream between your sales team and marketing department• Supply content that enables your sales team • Connect your sales teams with your marketing efforts – establish integration and identify any existing blind

spots• Tightly align marketing initiatives to specific sales goals and objectives to generate more high-quality leads• Recognize the need for a collaborative effort between marketing and sales, and ask for feedback

“B2B companies’ inability to align sales and marketing teams around the right processes and technologies can cost them upwards of 10% or more of revenue per year” (IDC, 2011)

Executive Summary (continued)


© Richardson 2012 • www.richardson.com

Sales Reps Managers0%

50%

100%

54%65%

46%35%

DisagreeAgree

Key Takeaways:• Nearly 50% of your sales reps and more than 1/3 of

your managers do not understand your content marketing strategy

Implications:• 57% of sales pipelines are generated by marketing*• Without an understanding, your sales reps and

managers cannot employ an “Always Be Sharing” attitude.

• Your company is missing out on the following benefits:• Continuous learning among sales team• Credibility as a trusted resource• Growing your pipeline

I understand my company’s content marketing strategy.




50%

100%

77%83%

23%17%

DisagreeAgree

Key Takeaways:• Much of what you publish and sponsor is being

read, but nearly 1/4 of sales reps do not read your content at all.

Implications:• Lack of integration and communication between

sales and marketing leads to missed opportunities• Without reading the content, sales reps are less

informed. • According to Genius.com, 66% of buyers indicate

that “consistent and relevant communication provided by both sales and marketing organizations” is a key influence in choosing a solution provider.

I read the content my company publishes or sponsors.




50%

100%

65%74%

35%26%

DisagreeAgree

Key Takeaways:• Only 2/3 of your sales reps believe your content

is valuable and relevant to your customers, while more than 1/4 of managers do not agree.

Implications:• Lack of preparation for sales presentations, buyer

interactions, and conversions• It is possible that your sales reps and managers

do not know how to use your content effectively in the sales process.

• Your sales reps may be spending more time trying to find valuable content, decreasing their efficiency and adding on more time to close the deal.

The content my company publishes is valuable to our customers.


Your content is not supporting lead

generation for sales reps or managers.

The content my company publishes helps to:


Differentiate our brand

Create market awareness

Generate qualified leads

Improve my sales effectiveness

Retain key accounts

Grow key accounts

0% 50% 100%

0.75

0.78

0.37

0.52

0.5

0.51

0.25

0.22

0.63

0.48

0.5

0.49

69%

69%

33%

43%

41%

42%

31%

31%

67%

57%

59%

58%

Sales Reps Disagree

Managers Agree

Managers Disagree

Axis


I am confident in using thought provoking content to:


Support my prospecting efforts

Create new opportunities

Influence existing opportunities to my favor

Upsell existing customers

Motivate customers to buy

Disrupt a customer's mindset

0% 50% 100%

0.61

0.64

0.64

0.59

0.53

0.36

0.39

0.36

0.36

0.41

0.47

0.64

54%

50%

49%

40%

44%

29%

46%

50%

51%

60%

56%

71%

Managers Agree

Managers Disagree

Is your content assisting your sales reps and

managers beyond the first

stage of the sales cycle?


How can your company better help you use thought provoking content to support your selling efforts?


Self publish content more frequently

License thought provoking content and research more frequently

Improve content relevance to our customers

Create a stronger link between the content and the solutions we sell

Better inform me when we release new content

Help me understand how this content relates to our customers

Help me better understand how to use thought provoking content to prospect

Help me better understand how to use thought provoking content to win deals

Help me better understand how to use thought provoking content to grow key accounts

0% 50% 100%

0.36

0.2

0.59

0.51

0.46

0.37

0.39

0.39

0.35

0.64

0.8

0.41

0.49

0.54

0.63

0.61

0.61

0.65

52%

23%

57%

65%

46%

47%

51%

40%

48%

48%

77%

43%

35%

54%

53%

49%

60%

52%

Sales Reps Disagree

Managers Agree

Managers Disagree

Axis

“I don’t need more, I need

better.”


Content Marketing & Sales Effectiveness Survey

Business

Content Marketing and Sales Effectiveness Survey