Although research indicates a significant 26% of annual marketing budgets are allocated to content marketing, only 41% find that the efforts are effective. Why the crisis in confidence and how can you insure that your content marketing investments are effective? This webinar, conducted by Tom Pisello, the ROI Guy & Chairman/Founder of Alinean, will discuss the latest content marketing research and the significance it has on setting your budget, driving strategy and tactics and optimizing return on investment.

1. Optimize Your Content
Marketing to Facilitate
the Buyer's Journey
Tom Pisello, The ROI Guy
Chairman & Founder, Alinean
September 20, 2011

2. Our Speakers
Tom Pisello: The ROI Guy
– A 25-year career helping companies to get more
business value from their IT and business
investments
– Serial Entrepreneur
– Pundit & Blogger
– Chairman and Founder
• Alinean – Content Optimization w/ Interactive Smart
Content and Value-Based Sales Enablement Tools
• Akonna – Social Media Marketing Competitive
Benchmarking
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© 2011 Alinean, Inc.

3. Agenda
1. The Significance of Content for Marketing & Sales
Enablement
2. Top Content Challenges
3. New Content Optimization Strategies & Tactics
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4. The Significance of Content for Marketing &
Sales Enablement
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5. Content Spending and Tactics
51% increasing budget
over next 12 months
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Junta42 and MarketingProfs, 2010 Content Marketing Benchmark Survey

6. Top Content Marketing Challenges
© 2011 Alinean, Inc.
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Junta42 and MarketingProfs, 2010 Content Marketing Benchmark Survey

7. Crisis in Confidence?
Only 41% indicate
that their content
marketing efforts
are effective.
© 2011 Alinean, Inc.
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Junta42 and MarketingProfs, 2010 Content Marketing Benchmark Survey

8. Why The Content Marketing Crisis in
Confidence?
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9. Buyers Have Fundamentally and Permanently
Changed
More Leads to Close Same Executive Scrutiny Reduced Deal Size
Amount of Business
Longer Sales Cycles Increased Competition
More Stakeholders
Stalled Deals
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10. Frugalnomics: the new mantra for B2B Buyers
On average 90% of corporations surveyed require
Quantifiable benefits
quantifiable proof of bottom-line benefits on most
are mandatory
projects.
Two-thirds (65%) of buyers indicate that they do not
Quantifying value is
have the knowledge or tools needed to do business
difficult for buyers
value assessments and calculations.
Buyers turn to vendors 81% of buyers expect vendors to quantify business
for value proof points value of proposed solutions.
Most trusted sources are: Industry Analysts (31.4%),
Third party validation is and Peers (28.7%).
essential
Vendors lag as a trusted source for only 8.1%.
Source: IDC 2010, survey of 200 B2B buyers,
Sirius Decisions 2010 B-to-B Buyer Survey on trusted sources.
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11. Describe the budgeting/approval process for most
recent solution purchase?
26.7%
Budget for project was approved and
allocated during beginning of the year
26.1%
Budget was allocated as part of a larger
line item once need was established
20.6%
Budget was determined post multiple
bids
15.8%
Budget was taken from another line item
after need was established/clear
10.9%
Determined potential impact through
other adopters and built a business
Demand Creation Specialists B2B Buyer Survey - 2011
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12. How has the buying/decision-making process changed for
the most recent purchases vs. prior decisions?
Multiple Responses Allowed
Took more time to research and consider
48%
solutions
Utilized a wider variety of sources to
36%
research options
Did more detailed analysis of costs/ROI of 34%
solution before finalizing the process
More internal team members provided 30%
their input into decision process
Relied more on live customer 21%
feedback/recommendations
Demand Creation Specialists B2B Buyer Survey - 2011
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13. Which Content is The Most Effective?
Most often used to help make purchase decisions
70%
White papers
60%
Peer referrals
50%
Webinars
40%
Email
30%
User Events
20% Analyst reports
10% Case Studies
0%
Early Middle Late
Source: SiriusDecisions 2010
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14. Content Optimization Strategies & Tactics
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15. Fight Frugalnomics™ with Value Selling &
Marketing
Product Focus Solution Focus Value Focus
Discussion: Discussion:
Discussion:
• Customer knows issue • Prescriptive & Quantified
• Customer knows issues &
• Tie features / functions to desired outcome • Discover… Is customer
needs aware of issue?
• Questions to discover pain
• Compares product points
alternatives • Diagnose… How bad is it?
• Feature • Function • Price • Recommend solution to • Quantify … Value of change
solve pain
• Compare … Value vs. Status
Drive: Sales Led: Product Drive: Sales Led: Pain-Point Quo / Competition
Driven Driven
Drive: Diagnostic Led: What
is issue & value of change?
Solution
Vendor Trusted Advisor
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16. Making Content Relevant by Mapping to the
Buyer’s Journey
Buyer’s Journey
Purchasing a Solution is a Complex Change Management Process
Discovery Consideration Decision
Need Help in Facilitating the Steps in the Process:
• Easier to Do Nothing than to Change
• More Stakeholders
• Competitive Agendas
• More Economic Scrutiny
Seeking Content that is:
• Consultative, Not a Sales Pitch
• Proactive
• Personalized and Concise: One-to-One
• More Relevant 16
© 2011 Alinean, Inc.

17. Content to Facilitate the Buyer’s Journey
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18. Facilitating the Buyer’s Journey w/ Interactive
Smart Content & Diagnostic Sales Tools
BUYER’S JOURNEY
Loosening Exploring Committing Justifying
Committing Making the
of the possible to a the
to change selection
status quo solutions solution decision
DISCOVERY CONSIDERATION DECISION
Content Marketing & Sales Enablement Strategy
Help Align
Align buyer solution Validate/
Create reinforce
problem with identify with Make the
awareness choice
business needs in specific business case
around a new
issues; drive solving sets of for change Prove best
problem
urgency the business value
problem needs
PROVOCATIVE APPROACH VALUE APPROACH
Interactive White Diagnostic Assessment
ROI Analysis Tools TCO Comparison Tools
Papers Tools
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19. Interactive White Papers
• Interactive Profiling to Align
Content
• Intelligent Quantitative &
Qualitative Personalization
• Concise
• Increased Relevance
© 2011 Alinean, Inc.
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20. Diagnostic Assessment Tools
• Identify / Prioritize Issues
and Recommend Solutions
• Survey to Identify
Opportunities
• Peer / Leader
Benchmarking
• Intelligent Roadmap
Recommendations
© 2011 Alinean, Inc.
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21. ROI Calculators & TCO Comparison Tools
• Quantify Cost of Doing
Nothing
• Justify Solutions
• Differentiate Value
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22. Are You Ready to Optimize Your Content?
• Buyers Have Changed
– Purchase process is more complex
– More empowered, but overloaded
– More skeptical and frugal / economic focus
– Need help from solution providers
• Content Must be More Relevant to be Effective
– Facilitate the Buyer’s Journey
– Consultative & Concise
– Personalized / One-to-One
• New Content Marketing Needed to Drive Relevancy
– Interactive White Papers
– Diagnostic Assessment Tools
– ROI Calculators
– TCO Comparison Tools
© 2011 Alinean, Inc.
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23. Next Steps
Content Optimization Assessment
http://www.alinean.com/COA
Best Practice Resource Center
http://fightfrugalnomics.com
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24. Questions?
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