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, Founder and CEO
OnTarget Partners

If your world is like mine, you sometimes get lost in the hustle and bustle of day to day business.  It is in these times that I have to remind myself of the power of pipeline lead nurturing.

Sometimes a lead isn’t converted into a client or customer shortly after first contact due to deal flow (time to close) or some other unique circumstances.  It is imperative for each of us to focus on three areas: capturing the lead information, creating a lead pipeline, and nurturing the lead through our (closing) process.  We as marketers need to focus on each of these areas, and, as a result, we can transform a nurtured lead into a client.

It’s always great to get a referral, phone call or email with an inquiry from a qualified prospect, and a few days later have a signed fee agreement— but it usually doesn’t happen that way.

This doesn’t mean the lead should be dropped or discarded; rather, with the right care, feeding and patience, your lead has the potential to become a valuable future client.  The key is for the marketer to remain on the lead’s radar and follow up with the lead as agreed.

First, capture the leads contact information in your CRM.  Put in good notes about your conversation and what next steps are.

Second, do what you said you would do!  If you promised a whitepaper or case study, send away.  If you said you would call back in six weeks, make the call.  Drip campaigns are useful to building solid nurturing pipelines.

A solid sales pipeline requires a powerful nurturing for a lead pipeline.  If you don’t have a pipeline nurturing plan in place, OnTarget can help.  Visit http://www.ontargetpartners.com/freeconsultation.html.

-Ed

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

Ed Trachier, Founder and CEO
OnTarget Partners

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, and lead to increasing sales effectiveness.

-Ed

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

Ed Trachier, Founder and CEO
OnTarget Partners

The terms B2B and B2C are short forms for Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Consumer (B2C). Both describe the nature and selling process of goods and services. While B2B products and services are sold from one company to another, B2C products are sold from a company to the end user. - Wikipedia

B2B sales are significantly different from B2C sales.

B2B transactions often involve several decision-makers, multiple channels, and, sometimes, unique technical specifications.  These issues, coupled with the typical large investment requirement, will tend to make the sales cycle longer and more arduous.

In most instances, the complexity of the B2B sale requires a talented and experienced sales executive to lead the prospect through the buying decision, as opposed to going it alone.  These sales executives tend to be the best in the field, as a B2B sale can easily add up to a million dollar plus deal.

The Internet is changing the way B2B buyers buy.  Armed with significant information about competitors, pricing structures and independent evaluations, prospects are well educated shoppers.  The savvy B2B marketer creates a solid and consistent brand with tactical marketing programs geared to specific target audiences using powerful value propositions.  By educating, motivating and nurturing, the B2B sale is made well.

-Ed

Ed Trachier is Founder and CEO of OnTarget Partners.  Ed 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.

Do you have a contact data problem?

Do you have outdated marketing lists?

Do you need better sales leads?

OnTarget deals with contact data daily, and updates and appends marketing contacts for our clients.  We can work within a client’s CRM (offering CRM data cleansing services), or can transfer data via FTP or in CSV.  (If these acronyms are confusing, don’t sorry, we can help!).

One of the things that drive sales forces and marketing teams crazy is the e-mails that are returned for non-delivery.  Bad contact data are a waste of time and money.

We have found that large-scale contact data providers offer data that is 70% correct.  That means three in ten records in inaccurate or incomplete!

Perhaps there is a better answer…

Let OnTarget Partners do the work for you.

OnTarget is not just another 3^rdparty lead generating company; not in the slightest.  OnTarget doesn’t merely skim the surface of company personnel rosters with hasty searches using three key words. OnTarget digs deep, analyzing connections between companies, and – more importantly- between people. Using personal contact and specialized search techniques designed for our company in addition to modern “digital age” social media connections, allows OnTarget to maintain accurate and thorough leads. What good is the name and number of someone in purchasing for a company, if that person doesn’t have the authority to make decisions about purchases? A company that seeks to survive or, even better, to survive and thrive, needs to maintain accurate marketing data – with specific names, numbers, titles, relationships and more. Our lead generation is truly OnTarget. Keep those contact lists intact and updated, and let OnTarget do the dirty work for you!

To learn more about our data cleansing and custom research please visit: http://www.ontargetpartners.com/customresearch.html

If you need up-to-date and accurate prospect contact information, you’ve come to the right place…

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 214-618-4960, 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