1st annual 2014 Technology Marketing Survey

Transcription

1 1st annual 2014 Technology Marketing Survey Brought to you by the friendly folks at : info@thepartnermarketinggroup.com

2 Marketing that works for our specialized industry As marketers, we know that our messages will be more effective when they are targeted to a very specific audience. In that same spirit, we thought it was time for ERP and CRM channel partners to have marketing data that was fine tuned to your industry. Our respondents are VARs, ISVs and other technology providers who support ERP and related solutions. Some are small resellers whose entire practice is devoted to one ERP solution. Others are global accounting firms with a business unit focused on delivering ERP. And everything in between. You ll find a full demographic profile of our respondents in the last pages of this report. It s been fascinating working through the findings to present them in a way that will help us all understand and learn from our shared experiences. A few of the findings that really stand out in the survey include: While most respondents don t believe that is a very effective lead generator, over 90% are using it. SEO is ranked as the most effective (by far) source of leads, while social media tops the list for least effective tactics in generating leads. 8 out of 10 of our respondents maintain and blog, but less than 1/2 post every week. 40% of marketers are creating more than 8 pieces of substantial content each year. And there s lots more...enjoy. Thank you to all who spent their time responding to the survey. We hope everyone who finds this report interesting will participate next year as we build trend data that will help all of us become better ERP marketers. I m still having trouble getting the company to buy into social marketing and social selling. Respondent comment Page 2

3 Lead generation tactics Marketing 90.5% Search Engine Optimization (SEO) 89.5% Social Media Blogging Webinars Events / Seminars Trade Shows Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising (print or online ads, billboards, radio) Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Telemarketing / Telesales Direct Mail Re-targeting / Re-marketing 41.0% 36.2% 31.4% 29.5% 24.8% 22.9% 83.8% 74.3% 70.5% 61.9% 58.1% 90.5% respondents are using marketing Third Party Lead Services (pay-per-lead) 20.0% Other 4.8% ERP marketers are still using the full range of marketing tactics to build their pipelines. Other tactics included networking, public relations, industry associations and Microsoft Pinpoint. Inbound versus outbound More than half of respondents are splitting their time equally between inbound and outbound. Only 20.2% are using more inbound tactics than outbound. 59.6% 4.8% 8.7% 11.5% 15.4% We are 100% outbound (direct mail, , telemarketing, networking) We are 100% inbound (SEO, SEM, PPC, social media, targeted keyword strategy, etc.) More than 50% inbound More than 50% outbound We are about 50/50 Page 3

4 Effectiveness of lead generation tactics Most effective Search Engine Optimization Webinars Events / Seminars Trade Shows Marketing Blogging Pay-Per-Click Social Media Telemarketing / Telesales Re-targeting / Re-marketing Third Party Lead Services (pay-per-lead) Advertising (print or online banner ads, Direct Mail Chart reflects the number who rated the tactic 1 or 2* in effectiveness for lead generation. SEO was rated as the most effective lead generation tactic that our respondents are using. Search engine optimization, webinars and events lead the pack as most effective. Chart reflects the number who rated the tactic 4 or 5* in effectiveness for lead generation. Social media has not yet proved its value to the respondents of the survey. Least effective Social Media Direct Mail Marketing Advertising (print or online banner ads, Blogging Telemarketing / Telesales Third Party Lead Services (pay-per-lead) Webinars Pay-Per-Click Search Engine Optimization Trade Shows Events / Seminars Re-targeting / Re-marketing Social media, direct mail and are not delivering results for most respondents. * on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being very effective and 5 being ineffective. Page 4

5 Biggest challenges in inbound marketing Building powerful consistent content over time Creating and executing an effective nurture program Getting traffic to the website Converting the leads to opportunities Capturing the leads Graph reflects the number who identified the issue as their #1 or #2 most difficult challenge. Biggest challenges in outbound marketing Getting adequate response rates Building powerful consistent content over time Creating and executing an effective nurture program Converting the leads to opportunities Capturing the leads For inbound marketing, content is the biggest challenge. For outbound marketing, getting responses tops the list of challenges. Graph reflects the number who identified the issue as their #1 or #2 most difficult challenge. Page 5

6 Outsourced marketing activities 38.4% No Yes 61.6% Responses to the question, Do you outsource any of your marketing? 61.6% outsource a portion of their marketing Marketing activities that respondents outsource Web design 71.9% 71.9% who outsource marketing engage a web designer Content development Search Engine Optimization (SEO) 46.9% 54.7% Writing of blog posts 35.9% Strategy & planning Branding Public relations Other Execution 17.2% 12.5% 9.4% 7.8% 7.8% Other outsourced support included graphic design, search engine marketing and telemarketing services. Page 6

7 The importance of content to inbound or outbound marketing strategy 4.1% 1.0% 27.6% 12.2% 55.1% High priority one of the most important things we can do in marketing Medium priority important but not critical Somewhat a priority Not a priority Not sure Eight in ten respondents think content is important or most important to their marketing strategy. 83.7% have a blog Most partners are creating industry specific content 27.3% 6.1% 31.3% Absolutely! All of our content is industry-specific More than 50% is industry-specific Less than 50% is industry-specific None not important to be industry-specific at this time Two-thirds report that at least 50% of the content that they create is industry specific. 36% post at least once a week 35.4% Page 7

8 Number of pieces of content that partners create annually 22.8% 36.8% 17.5% 22.8% % create original ebooks, whitepapers, infographics, case studies, or videos as thought leadership content for their target audience. We are such a specialized ISV that generating interesting relevant content is always a challenge for me! Respondent comment 40% of those partners create more than 8 pieces per year. Page 8

9 Amount of content creation that is outsourced 38.4% 9.1% 52.5% All None We outsource some Over 50% of partners create all of their content in house. For those partners who outsource a portion, 30% is the median amount of content that is created externally. Lack of internal resources is by far the biggest challenge to creating original content. Challenges to creating content Don t Don t have have internal internal resources (people (people or or expertise) expertise) to to create create it it Don t have budget to to create new content Don t Don t have have buy-in buy-in from from our our company company to to create create it it 20.0% Not Not important to to us us to to have original content 2.2% (we use (we the publisher s use the publisher s content) content) 34.4% 83.3% 20% still don t have buy-in from management for content creation. Page 9

10 Respondents with nurture marketing programs in place 32.3% Nurture 25.3% 42.4% Nurture programs by target audience 92.9% 71.4% 35.7% Yes No No but we re planning to launch one in the next six months 26.2% Survey participants were asked if they had a nurture marketing program - outside of a monthly newsletter. 50% of those respondents with nurture programs customize the content to the audience. marketing programs are a priority, but not fully in place for many partners. Prospects are the most nurtured target audience. Prospects Customers Influencers Channel partners and/or ISVs Page 10

11 Frequency of nurture touches 8.2% 4.1% 14.4% 24.7% 48.5% Challenges to delivering nurture programs Don t have any content to send to nurture our audience(s) with Too difficult to set-up and execute Other No budget allocated for it Don t know the reasons We don t have a regular nurture rhythm or it is infrequent (more than a month apart) We have a monthly nurture Our nurture is based on a prospects interaction with our offers (we have a marketing automation tool and are using it) Other We have a weekly nurture 14.6% 20.7% 28.0% 31.7% 41.5% 41.5% cite content as a significant challenge to supporting nurture marketing programs. Don t know how to track and report on it 8.5% Unimportant at this time 4.9% Other reasons cited included lack of time and limited resources. Page 11

12 Marketing automation 40.4% No Marketing automation systems used by respondents 3% 3% 2% 0% 3% 3% 3% Yes 59.6% Responses to the question, Are you using a marketing automation system? 59.6% are using a marketing automation system 46% using marketing automation use ClickDimensions 10% 6% 46% ClickDimensions Other CoreMotives Marketo HubSpot Pardot Other systems include Silverpop, Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Leadformix, icontact, and Zift 123. ActOn 27% SalesFusion Page 12

13 Social media outlets where respondents are active LinkedIn personal profile 87.9% LinkedIn corporate profile 85.9% Twitter 81.8% YouTube 62.6% Facebook 62.6% Google+ 55.6% Microsoft Yammer Groups 25.3% Pinterest 10.1% Other 5.1% None 3.0% Xing 1.0% Other outlets included Vimeo and Instagram. Frequency of posting updates to social networks 67.7% post to social media at least once a week 10.1% 10.1% 7.1% 5.1% 42.4% Multiple times per week Weekly Rarely A few times a month Never Monthly 25.3% Page 13

14 Most effective social networks for lead generation LinkedIn corporate profile LinkedIn groups LinkedIn personal profile Twitter YouTube None None we we don t don t get get leads leads through our social media efforts Google+ 9.4% 20.8% 25.0% 30.2% 37.5% 41.7% 62.5% LinkedIn is ranked ahead of the others as an effective tool for lead generation Facebook 7.3% Other 3.1% Xing 1.0% Other outlets included the ERPSoftware Blog. 30.2% believe Twitter is effective for lead generation Page 14

15 Our view Because we ve worked with hundreds of ERP/CRM partners and ISVs over the years, many of the findings in the survey reinforced what we hear from our clients each day. But we wanted to pull out a few things that didn t surprise us as well as a couple of findings that did make us look twice at the data. 3 Things That Didn t Surprise Us 1. Over 90% of the respondents are using marketing despite the fact that response rates, leads, and conversions continue to remain low. However, it is an integral part of a nurture strategy and therefore, marketers will continue to use it as an essential outbound marketing tactic. 2. We re not surprised that 80% of the respondents think content is important or most important to their marketing strategy because this has been the topic of much training as well as the subject of free two ebooks on The Partner Marketing Group website, The Year of Content and The ABC s of Content Marketing. 3. Marketers are a social bunch! We ve all adopted social media as part of our marketing culture and have added it at least a weekly as a must do task. Most marketers regard it as complementary to the other inbound and outbound marketing tasks and not as a core lead generation strategy. 3 Things That Surprised Us 1. We were pleasantly surprised at the 66.7% who stated that at least 50% of the content they create is industry-specific. That s a much higher number than we expected! It clearly shows that marketers in our industry have adopted the go vertical message to differentiate themselves. 2. A larger than expected number (83.3%) don t have internal resources people or expertise to create content. We know that s a big gap for most partners but didn t realize how big. 3. Adoption of marketing automation systems (MAS) continues to be slow. Despite being in the technology business, technology marketers are slow to embrace the software and systems that will enable success. ANNUITAS Group states that businesses that use marketing automation to nurture prospects experience a 451% increase in qualified leads. We ve all adopted social media as part of our marketing culture and have added it at least a weekly as a must do task. Page 15

16 Respondent Demographics 89.5% Worldwide employees 12.3% Annual marketing budget, excluding salaries 18.8% 23.7% 17.9% 14.0% 16.1% 4.4% 12.3% 19.6% 33.3% 27.7% $0-$10,000 $10,001-$25,000 $25,001-$50,000 $50,001-$100,000 $100,001+ Number of people on the marketing team worldwide Expected change in budget over next 12 months 2.6% 43.5% 7.0% 1.8% 1.8% 13.9% 89.5% 3.5% 36.5% Increase significantly Increase Stay the same Decrease Don t know respondents have 1-4 people on the marketing team 63.4% have an annual marketing budget of less than $50, % work with less than $10,000 Page 16

17 Respondent Demographics Roles (may be more than one) 81.4% 32.7% 31.0% 8.0% Marketing Sales Leadership Technical Mid-market ERP products the firm represents (may be more than one) Type of firm (may be more than one) 33.9% 2.6% 2.6% 6.1% 74.8% Headquarters location (may be more than one) A reseller or services partner An ISV An Influencer Other 74.8% are reseller or services partners 33.9% are ISVs 86.8% Microsoft Dynamics 15.8% 17.5% 13.2% 4.4% 7.0% Sage Epicor Intacct NetSuite Other 13.0% 13.0% 73.9% United States Canada Other 81.4% are marketers Page 17

18 Marketing Services for Technology Service Providers and Software Vendors When you work with The Partner Marketing Group, you tap into years of experience with professional marketers who have devoted their careers to technology partners and vendors. We will tell you honestly what we think and will bend over backwards to help you succeed. Experience-backed guidance combined with high-quality content to fuel your inbound marketing. We help technology partners and software vendors improve lead generation and awareness through well planned, well executed marketing. Our services include: Marketing planning and strategy. As Virtual Marketing Directors for technology partners we provide strategic and execution planning to align your marketing with your business goals. Content development. Our writers know the channel and how the services you deliver impact your business customers. From infographics to interactive ebooks, we write and design for today s all-too-distracted prospects. QIC Campaigns. Quarterly Integrated Content (QIC) Campaigns give you high-quality lead generation campaigns and the tools to promote it for a full three months. Channel Marketing. We help software vendors, including Microsoft, Intacct, and Sage, educate and equip channel partners to build their marketing success. Social Media. In all of our marketing programs, we include the recommendations and tools that will help you make the most of your time investment in social media. Nurturing influencers through social networks (online and offline) will be a big challenge in the future. Respondent comment info@thepartnermarketinggroup.com Page 18