Yesterday saw thousands of enthusiastic B2B marketers descend on London’s Business Design Centre for the B2B Marketing Ignite event. A combination of conference, networking opportunity, and awards ceremony, this occasion attracted the industry’s best and brightest stars for a day-long agenda filled with insights and information. With input from experts across a variety of disciplines, the information and advice was flying thick and fast. And of course, we sent a selection of our marketing directors and managers along to ensure we stay ahead of the curve.

The average attention span in 2015 was 8.25 seconds[i]

To put this statistic into perspective, the average attention span of a goldfish is 9 seconds. Yes, that’s right… humans now have a shorter attention span than goldfish! And this information is a generalised number, as when it comes to viewing webpages and content, the time is no doubt a lot less than 8.25 seconds. So, what does this mean for B2B marketing content? Well, the landscape is changing and a paradigm shift is taking place. Are you ready?

Email marketing, how we love it. Even to this day, the grandfather of online marketing is still performing and proving to be a highly valuable weapon in the B2B marketer’s arsenal. But, have we stopped giving this channel the due care and attention it deserves? Perhaps so.

Firstly, what is an MQL in this world of acronyms and abbreviations? Well, it’s a marketing qualified lead.

This status is used in lifecycle marketing and the defined stages related to the concept of mapping and aligning marketing and sales efforts to different stages of a buyer journey.

A simple lifecycle can be stated as such: anonymous > MCL > MEL > MQL > SQL > SRL > customer

The lifecycle is traditionally linked to the sales funnel stages: Awareness > Consideration > Decision > Sale

An MQL is the final output of all marketing plans, campaigns and activities – it’s the hard-earned leads that have been generated from months and possibly years of marketing effort.

For those organisations out there that have yet to review and amend their procedures in line with the GDPR, now is definitely the time. With the law coming into force in May 2018 (yes, this time next year), failure to comply could result in fines of up to €20 million. And just to clarify, the fact Brexit is going ahead will make no difference to the implementation of this law, so that’s not a ‘get out of jail card’ either. So, what should you be doing now to ensure you are best placed for the arrival of the GDPR next year? Well…

Everyone’s talking about great content – where to find it, how to write it, and how to use it to fuel B2B campaigns which generate real and measurable results. Once considered a department which shied away from metrics, today’s marketing wordsmith’s know only too well how important it is to prove the selling power behind their words.

As a generation who were born or brought up during the age of internet technology, digital natives are able to adapt and respond to the latest digital trends with seemingly little trouble. What about the rest of us though? What about those of us who go to great lengths to understand and implement the latest tech, only to find that 3 more tools have arrived in the marketplace during that time? As people who seem to be endlessly chasing a ‘comfort zone’ of the latest technology knowledge, these digitally displaced marketers could really do with a break.

Believe it or not, 91% of B2B buyers are influenced by word-of-mouth referrals when making their buying decision[i]. This means that even with their great power and authority, there are few things which these decision-makers rely on more than input from their colleagues. So, what does this mean for you? Well, ultimately it means - overlook these influencers at your peril.

‘Martech’ is a term that’s been around for a while, but what seems to have slipped quietly under the radar is the fact that the number of actual marketing technologies is growing at an exponential rate. This means that there’s twice as many software options and programs as there were last year, and there will be twice as many by this time next year. Now, on an individual basis, each of these solutions will no doubt have their benefits. But, to a marketing director who is tasked with overseeing data, targets, and the results of the marketing department, this tech explosion can create a dizzying environment – not to mention a big headache.

Before we dive into this topic and its potential uses within the B2B marketing space, lets first be clear on the definitions. Augmented reality is the ability to superimpose digital objects and imagery into the real world using a camera (smartphone or tablet) as the conduit. Virtual reality on the other hand, is the creation of an entirely digital world which people can access via immersive technology such as headsets. All make sense? These are technologies which you’ve no doubt seen previously in different forms and variations. But, as the technology develops and becomes more mainstream, these digital realities are starting to make waves in the world of marketing.

When you know who your most profitable and high-profile clients are, why wouldn’t you want to attract more organisations just like them? Well, that’s exactly what account based marketing (ABM) enables businesses to achieve. By targeting a hand-picked group of ‘dream’ prospects, companies can focus their energy and resources on creating highly targeted messaging and activity.

Account based marketing (ABM) is one of those techniques which has picked up speed over the past 12 months. Many marketers are experimenting with the activity, others are investing heavily in it, and many more plan to implement it in some way during 2017. Now, the statistics and case studies which have already been published show that ABM works. So why isn’t everyone doing it? Well, it turns out this marketing approach isn’t for everyone. For one reason or another, some businesses just simply aren’t ready to jump aboard the ABM train. But, for those that are, our latest tipsheet is packed with hints and tips, including…

80% of marketers measuring ROI say that ABM outperforms other marketing investments*

For those of you still unsure as to the meaning of account based marketing (ABM), let me explain. Unlike the traditional method of marketing to a large target audience and then qualifying them in or out of further activities, ABM is much more focused. In fact, this activity is so focused, that any other method could be considered as a ‘spray and pray’ approach.

Every business will have at least an idea of which companies they’d love to work with – and this is the foundation of a ‘dream’ prospect list. However, there’s more to it than this, which is why it’s so important to carry out a comprehensive review process and use criteria to determine if a prospect company really is a ‘dream’.

74% of marketers say targeted personalisation increases customer engagement[i]

Do you remember the novelty of receiving that first marketing email which included your name in the subject line or body copy? It was great right? The impact that this tactic had on engagement rates made B2C and B2B marketers alike think they’d uncovered the secret to success. However, as with all things marketing, audiences quickly got wise to it and became jaded and unimpressed. So what now? Does that mean personalisation is dead? Certainly not. In fact, thanks to today’s ever-advancing technologies and data capturing capabilities, this technique can be more valuable than ever before.