Ed Trachier, Founder and CEO
OnTarget Partners

Marketing to the top is not easy.

CEO marketing requires unrelenting patience and tenacity.  It also forces marketers to be at the top of their game at all times, understanding that powerful executives expect nothing less and often demand more.

I have been in the CEO marketing business for over 20 years now.  I suggest to new prospects and clients of OnTarget’s services that I have learned a lot more from my failures than my successes; the scars on my back enable me to be that much more successful (for them) today!

So, what have I learned about CEO marketing over this time?  Several things that may have an impact on how you approach selling to CEOs in the future:

CEOs are interested in solutions that help their companies become more effective and efficient.  They want to cut costs and increase revenue.  They are required to spend time on strategic initiatives that make the company better in the future.  They are expected to be visionaries and motivators, with great communication abilities and unwavering integrity.

CEOs are paid to make the right decisions quickly.  This does not mean that they do not do their homework; it means that they tend to say “no” much more readily than the average corporate buyer.  They process better.  They know what they need based on experience and talent, and if your offering does not create the value they require, you will be shown the door quickly.

I have written many times about “Demand Discovery” versus “Demand Creation”.  At no place in corporate buying decisions is demand discovery more important than the c-suite.

Therefore, studying and reading prior to marketing to a company CEO is paramount.

If you understand where the leader is looking to take the company, it is much easier to see where your solution fits in that journey.

Google the CEO and the company.  Do an advanced search and see what has been written in the past month.  (Not long ago, we at OnTarget would spend hours reading 10-ks and quarterlies prior to picking up the phone.  Now, information is at our fingertips with a quick online search).  Go to the company website and read the recent press releases.  Read the blog, specifically the “CEO’s Blog” if there is one.  Watch videos and listen to the podcasts produced by the CEO.

What are you looking for while studying and reading?  Trigger events that make your solution attractive to the CEO.

Look for situations, issues, and opportunities that match success stories and case studies for your company’s solutions.  If these exist, you may have just discovered demand.

Build your value proposition to highlight your solution in such a way that the CEO knows immediately the value you can bring to the table.  Maybe start with a dimensional mailing (FedEx works the best).  Send an email to support your phone call, and then coordinate an in-person meeting when it makes sense.  Don’t “sell”, rather, “market”.  Inform, prove and be honest.  The CEO will appreciate your candor and if your offerings match up to his or her vision, you may be on your way to a fabulous, long-term business relationship.

-Ed

Ed Trachier is Founder and CEO of OnTarget Partners, LLC.  He can be reached at 469-200-4901, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com.

Ed Trachier, Founder and CEO
OnTarget Partners

As an insider, I have a unique perspective of outsourced B2B marketing and sales companies.  Competitors of OnTarget Partners generally fall into four categories:

1. Full service boutiques

2. Pay for performance appointment setting firms

3. Onshore/offshore telesales organizations

4. Market and marketing research companies

Generally, the clients we work with have a good grasp of the markets they operate in, and have a robust marketing department with qualified and capable people.  Offshoring is usually not an option, as the typical target contact we develop is in the c-suite or at the VP level.  Also, our clients are not looking for “meetings” or “appointments”, but, rather, true and qualified sales opportunities with the right prospects at the right time.

OnTarget is a full service boutique.  We pride ourselves on offering extreme customer service and excellent results that will consistently produce marketing spend ROI.  When choosing a partner in the outsourced b2b marketing and sales space, OnTarget and our clients believe full service is the only way to go.

-Ed

Ed Trachier can be reached at 469-200-4901, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com

Ed Trachier, CEO

It is legitimately hard to create demand (demand generation) in the big-ticket, solution sales world of B2B.

I counsel my clients frequently not to cast a wide net with loose value propositions and generic advertisements.  The “buy now or you may lose out” selling style simply does not work in the markets in which OnTarget operates.  No one buys large solutions on impulse; there is a lot of complex, analytical thought and plenty of budget considerations too.

This is what I call the demand discovery vs demand creation paradox.

OnTarget is in the business of demand discovery, not demand creation.

We look for qualified buyers for our client’s solutions.  We grade these buyers based on several important characteristics:

• They have a real business problem that is solved by the client’s solution(s)
• They are willing to take the time to explore the client’s solution(s)
• They have a discussed budget
• They have a defined time-frame
• They have knowledge of the decision-making process, and share that with us

When all of these characteristics line up, we have discovered demand for our client.

Discovering demand for our clients may be difficult to accomplish, but it is not near as difficult as creating the demand.

-Ed Trachier

Ed Trachier is Founder and CEO of OnTarget Partners, LLC.  He can be reached at 469-200-4901, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com.

Ed Trachier, CEO

When it comes right down to it, asking the right questions is one of the most important things we as salespeople can do. Experienced and successful salespeople tend to be very good questioners, because they know that good questions qualify prospects better:

• Does the person I am dealing with have budget authority?
• Who else will be involved in the buying decision?
• What does the competition look like?
• How quickly will the decision to buy happen?

Talk to your prospects, and push them to move forward with good questions. Questionable selling will work for you, an lead to an increase in sales effectiveness.

Ed can be reached at 469-200-4901, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com.

Ed Trachier, CEO

As an insider, I have a unique perspective of outsourced b2b marketing and sales companies.  Competitors of OnTarget Partners generally fall into four categories:

1. Full service boutiques

2. Pay for performance appointment setting firms

3. Onshore/offshore telesales organizations

4. Market and marketing research companies

Generally, the clients we work with have a good grasp of the markets they operate in, and have a robust marketing department with qualified and capable people.  Offshoring is usually not an option, as the typical target contact we develop is in the c-suite or at the VP level.  Also, our clients are not looking for “meetings” or “appointments”, but, rather, true and qualified sales opportunities with the right prospects at the right time.

OnTarget is a full service boutique.  We pride ourselves on offering extreme customer service and excellent results that will consistently produce marketing spend ROI.  When choosing a partner in the outsourced b2b marketing and sales space, OnTarget and our clients believe full service is the only way to go.

Ed can be reached at 214-618-4960, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com

If there is one thing that sets OnTarget apart from our competitors, it is our ability to reach and communicate with the executive level.

Executive level telemarketing, or C-level telemarketing as some people may call it, is not easy, but can be very effective.

Many people are reluctant to call on the higher level executives in an organization.  They fear their directness, and may be intimidated by them.

OnTarget prides itself on our ability to reach these executives — CEO, CFO, CIO, President, Division Manager, etc.  They are the true strategic drivers in the business, and because OnTarget typically supports the sales and marketing efforts of solutions providers, these are the decision-makers and buyers of our clients products and services.

So, if you are in the market for executive or c-level telemarketing, you have found the right resource — OnTarget Partners.

Ed Trachier, CEO

When it comes to new business prospecting, one important qualifier stands out above all others.

I discuss the primary qualifiers of a prospect with my clients frequently.  They are:

• Need
• Budget
• Time-Frame
• Decision-Making Authority

What may seem somewhat counter-intuitive, is that the decision-maker is always the most important qualification criteria. 

Sometimes, we as salespeople overlook the fact that there is a reason a VITO (Very Important Top Officer) is taking the time to meet with us.  We may not have all the facts.  We may not know the true intent of the decision-makers action of accepting our offer to meet.

One thing is clear, though — Take the meeting!

If you are sitting across from, or on the phone with, the decision-maker, you always have a great opportunity to close business.  Good Luck!

-Ed Trachier

Ed Trachier is Founder and CEO of OnTarget Partners.  He can be reached at 469-200-4901, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com.

We often hear the expression that the most important words in real estate are location, location, and location.  At OnTarget Partners we have decided that 3 of our most important words are qualified, qualified, and qualified – especially in regards to the leads we generate.  We take B2B lead qualification very seriously and understand that generating quality leads ultimately results in subsequent and successful business for our clients.  Qualified leads comprise one of the most critical factors in successful B2B campaigns.  Lead quantity is important as well since a campaign certainly needs a steady supply of high-quality leads in order to be effective.

So, what makes a lead more than just a lead?  Our process begins with thorough and intensive research at OnTarget Partners.  We determine which contacts should be targeted, based on the type of marketing campaign.  We analyze contacts for each prospective company in which our client has interest.  Our research analysts can then determine who should be the key decision-maker and buyer for our clients’ solutions.  We will then take it a step further by also analyzing other contacts within their organization who may be influential to the main decision makers.

The B2B lead qualification process then continues with verifying and testing.  Contacts are confirmed in regards to their employment status, titles, phone numbers and email addresses.  Only after a contact has been analyzed and completely verified will it be added to a campaign.  When the campaign is completely filled with an adequate number of qualified targets, our opportunity developers are then prepared to hit the phones with their robust lists of data.

Would you like to learn more about our custom research and prospecting services?  Our CEO, Ed Trachier, is very knowledgeable in helping companies achieve their lead generation goals.  Find out how we can help you, too,  here.

Jennifer Hanford is Social Media Coordinator for OnTarget and can be reached at jhanford@ontargetpartners.com.

Ed Trachier, CEO

What do marketer’s need in this troubled economic time?

How can OnTarget continue to perform well in a struggling environment?

The answer to these questions is the same, and the reason we are in business.

OnTarget, without the space, is all about putting you, the marketer, On Target.

Finding the right prospect, at the right company, in the right vertical or geographic marketplace, is tough.  Qualifying that prospect for need, budget and time-frame for buy is even more difficult.

OnTarget’s responsibility to our clients is to put them On Target.  We use demand generation services and lead generation activities to help your sales team qualify prospects better.  Our successes come when we put you on the right prospect at the right time and you CLOSE BUSINESS.

Find out more by requesting a free consultation here.

-Ed Trachier

Ed is Founder and CEO of OnTarget Partners.  He can be reached at 214-618-4960, or via email at trachier@ontargetpartners.com.

I recently had the opportunity to hear and learn a wonderful story. The story is one of opportunities found…then lost. We have all been there and maybe this story holds true for you as well.
This is the story as I heard it:
When the great library of Alexandria burned, the story goes, one book was saved. But it was not a valuable book; and so a poor man, who could read a little, bought it for a few coppers.
The book wasn’t very interesting, but between its pages there was something very interesting indeed. It was a thin strip of vellum on which was written the secret of the Touchstone!
The touchstone was a small pebble that could turn any common metal into pure gold. The writing explained that it was lying among thousands and thousands of other pebbles that looked exactly like it. But the secret was this: The real stone would feel warm, while ordinary pebbles are cold.
So the man sold his few belongings, bought some simple supplies, camped on the seashore, and began testing pebbles.
He knew that if he picked up ordinary pebbles and threw them down again because they were cold, he might pick up the same pebble hundreds of times. So, when he felt one that was cold, he threw it into the sea. He spent a whole day doing this but none of them was the touchstone. Yet he went on and on this way. Pick up a pebble. Cold – throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea.
The days stretched into weeks and the weeks into months. One day, however, about mid-afternoon, he picked up a pebble and it was warm. He threw it into the sea before he realized what he had done. He had formed such a strong habit of throwing each pebble into the sea that when the one he wanted came along he still threw it away. ~Author Unknown ~
Oops. So it often is with opportunity.
The opportunity developers at OnTarget Partners want to make sure you are not casting away your golden opportunities. Our Associates are experts at making consultative cold calls to executives at every level and in virtually every industry and marketplace to identify opportunities with the highest probability for your organization to close.
Is your business searching for its own “Touchstone”? Are there opportunities out there that you would rather not lose? We would love to hear more about your company and the “pure gold” you are searching for. Please check us out at http://www.ontargetpartners.com/customprospecting.html to see how we can help you in your search.

Jennifer Hanford is Social Media Coordinator for OnTarget Partners, and can be reached at jhanford@ontargetpartners.com.