Influencer Marketing Archives

Cultivating Customer Advocates in a B2B Environment

Few things can be as effective at generating sales as positive customer reviews. Similarly, and conversely, few things can be as damaging to sales as negative customer reviews. In terms of online retail, a recent survey found that positive reviews influence the purchase decisions of 90 percent of respondents, while negative reviews influence around 86 percent. But that’s in the B2C (business-to-consumer) world. In B2C, there are a relatively large number of customer interactions compared to B2B (business-to-business). This means that while B2B has fewer potential customer reviews to base a purchase decision on, each one is that much more impactful. Continue reading “Cultivating Customer Advocates in a B2B Environment”

Are You Wasting Your Time at Networking Events?

In a recent Entrepreneur article, John Rampton explains to readers “Why You Should Stop Wasting Your Time on Networking Events.” In the piece, Rampton writes, “If people will be there that have great ideas and energy to share, I’m game. But attending an event just to hand out business cards and get a stack in return with the hopes of landing a new client or important connection is not for me.” Continue reading “Are You Wasting Your Time at Networking Events?”

Avoiding the Top 3 Networking Blunders

Hiring marketing or content marketing talent? Networking is an important activity in any industry. The term has many definitions depending on who you talk to, but in a broad sense you can think of it as just getting to know people in your industry. It’s surprising how many employment, mentorship, sales and partnership opportunities come about just by tapping into who you know and who you’ve met through networking activities.

Unfortunately, we don’t always leverage those relationships to best advantage. Continue reading “Avoiding the Top 3 Networking Blunders”

Influencers: Organic or Paid? Making the Right Choice Matters

Testimonials and endorsements have been a mainstay in marketing for many years. In the online environment, these concepts have been combined, embraced, and refined to drive a hot trend: influencer marketing. It works. If you think about your own purchase behaviors, you can probably trace many of those purchases—whether for some electronic device, a hairstyle, a meal, or a car—to a recommendation or referral that came from a friend or relative or that was prompted through some online endorsement from an individual you admire. How effective are these kind of endorsements? Both Nielsen and McKinsey have studied the issue.

Continue reading “Influencers: Organic or Paid? Making the Right Choice Matters”