Earl Weaver, the crusty old manager of the Baltimore Orioles who chain-smoked his way to the Hall of Fame, was once asked about momentum:
Momentum? Momentum is the next day’s starting pitcher.
Not a bad thought to remember when you send out a B2B copywriter to pitch tomorrow’s B2B blog post. The importance of the content put in front of your audience is immediate— a dynamite post can have a dramatic effect on how your blog is perceived, and bring a reader back to it repeatedly.
For those with a more analytic approach to the blogging game, preferring Billy Beane’s sabermetrics to Weaver’s curmudgeonly instincts, a recent post on g2msolutions.com will be of interest.
The author shares a trio of tips on how B2B marketers can build momentum:
- Find out what your “funnel maths” look like
- Include rhythmic tactics in your campaigns
- Don’t forget the importance of recycling leads
The first point speaks to the age-old task of marketers: quantifying their efforts. The inability of marketers to do this effectively has led to a stunningly negative perception of marketers among CEOs, according to a recent survey by the Fournaise Group. 80% indicated they don’t really trust and are not impressed by the work done by marketers. 78% said marketers too often lose sight of what their real job is— increasing demand for goods and services in a quantifiable manner. Bottom line, as a marketer you need to know the number of visitors, leads, meetings and proposals necessary to meet your sales objectives, as well as the volume of activity needed to reach revenue targets.
The second point speaks to the importance of common-sense tactics to achieve the “rhythm” necessary for momentum: repeatability of the message, value of that message to the customer and prospect, and the ability to deliver the message cost-effectively (and therefore with requisite frequency).
The final point speaks to the value of staying in touch with prospects, even if they fail to swing at your first pitch. According to the author, 80% of leads leak from the marketing effort.
Which brings me back to the hopeful kernel in Earl’s dictum: frustration is the antithesis of momentum, so never forget that today’s effort can dramatically change what’s happening on the playing field. As another old ballplayer put it, it ain’t over until it’s over: something those playing in the big leagues always keep in mind; otherwise they‘re destined to be banished forever back to the minors.
