Alignable CEO Eric Groves: Finding the optimal mix of acquisition strategies is both an art and a science. Groves, who led Constant Contact’s go-to-market strategies for over a decade, will share some of the key learnings from their success and some thoughts about the future.

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Art and Science
Of Selling to Small Businesses
Presented by: Eric Groves

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The Lifecycle of Your Industry
Geoffrey Moore
Understand Where You Are in Life Cycle
(Science)

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AIDA and Your Sales Funnel
Awareness
Interest
Desire
Action
Of the problem your product or service solves
“Bringing customers back is important to my success”
In solving the problem using the solution you provide
“Email Marketing can help me bring customer back”
To learn how others like them have found success
“What pet store has done Email Marketing successfully?”
How can I try it with limited investment to see if it works
“Free 60-day Trial”
Art of AIDA - find the optimal balance of media, social media,
inbound marketing, telesales, direct sales,… and onboarding
resulting in the best overall Cost of Acquisition

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AIDA, Chasm & The Conversion Zone
Awareness
Interest
Desire
Action
The “Conversion Zone”
Where Art & Science Collide

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The “Conversion Zone”
Millions spent searching for ways to overcome
objections and close the sale
SMB Cost of Acquisition
$150 to $5,000
Inside Sales
Outside Sales

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The “Conversion Zone”
The Battle over Mindshare

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Winning in The “Conversion Zone”
Who do Prospective Customers Turn to for Advice?
Other SMBs with something in common
 Existing Relationships (Known & Nearby)
 In their Industry
 With shared business issues
 Who have solved similar problems
Thought leaders recommended by people they
trust

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Who Are Your Advocates?
Word-of-Mouth Referrals from Existing Customers
• Their reputation on line for your business
• Purchase decision based on trusted relationship and shared
knowledge
• Difficult to motivate on ongoing basis
• Can’t be bought
• COA = $0

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Do They Trust You?
Cost of Acquisition
LevelofTrust
(NPSScore)
HighLow
High
Low
How Likely is a SMB Owner to Recommend You to Others?
Brand NPS Score
Google 48
Mailchimp
Square
American Express
PayPal
Intuit Quickbooks
GoDaddy
Facebook
Insightly
Constant Contact
Squarespace
Wix
Verizon
OnDeck
Web.com
Comcast
Groupon
Yelp -66
?

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Add Customers to Your “Conversion Zone”
Checklist for Success
Understand Relationship with Your Customers
 What’s your NPS score?
 Focus on the Attractors vs. Detractors
 Where are you on your Industry Growth Chart
Build a Loyal Following of Ambassador Customers
 Identify your brand advocates
 Invite them to engage in an educational dialog
 Feed them your knowledge via sharable insights
Sharable Insights – Short Thought Leadership Content
 No “White Papers” – How To Tips (500 characters)
 Make it Actionable (“try this”)
 Drive Engagement – make it easy to share / comment

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In-Bound Marketing Platforms
Where do Customers & Prospects Interact
Platforms
CanYouEngageTheminADialog
Customer Centric Prospect CentricBlend
Ad MediaUser Engagement

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Fostering Interaction
Capture NPS Score
to identify attractors
Posting educational
content
SMB
Reviews
SMB
Followers

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Final Thoughts
Master the Art and Science of Selling
 Know Where Your Industry Stands in
the Life-cycle
 Track Industry / Your NPS scores
 Build & Nurture a loyal following of
advocates
 Invest in sharable content