Guest Post by: Shonal Narayan
marketing mix.
“It is a mistake to think you can solve any major problems with just potatoes.”
– Douglas Adams
What a B2B marketer can take from Adams’ quote here is that when you’re presented with an especially difficult problem, you have to look outside of conventional methods and staples to address that problem. If you’re social media pages are lacking, try thinking of a different way of promoting them. Special offers or an integrated campaign between your e-mail and social campaigns are great way to do this. Just remember that “potatoes”, or tried and true practices, don’t always work.
“The great menace to the life of an industry is industrial self-complacency.”
– Joyce Carol Oates
B2B marketers are good at knowing and sticking to what works. They are adept at speaking, talking, social networking, and keeping on top of web news. This is a reminder to never stop searching and growing as a marketer and as a company – even if you’re at the top of your game, that doesn’t mean there isn’t still room to grow and get even better. B2B marketers can continue to evolve by networking with other B2B marketing leaders, reading respected industry news & blog
“What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it.”
– Gabriel Garcia Marquez
A B2B marketer has to remember that not everything they do is going to be a hit. Not each and every blog is going to be tweeted and not every Facebook post will be liked. Not all e-mails will be responded to and not all voicemails will be returned. What matters is that you remember what works and what doesn’t and learn from your actions. The actual happenings, even if they are negative, can be a powerful learning lesson. If a blog campaign flops, learn from it, remember it, and move on to bigger and better ideas.
“I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.”
– Oscar Wilde
This is a good practice for anyone trying to accomplish anything: if you expect the best of your company, from copywriters to coders and onward, you will get the best. This quote speaks to the simplicity of expecting quality as a company policy. If people can get away with satisfactory work, more often than not, they will. Be clear with your colleagues and reports that you have simple tastes, and they are for quality every time.
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference..”
– Robert Frost
There is a simple but essential message marketers can take away from Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”: don’t allow yourself to be limited. Marketers shouldn’t be afraid to follow paths that have not yet been tread and follow their instincts. Be clever, be strange, be intriguing, be new, be social, be compelling.
What quote is missing? Which author inspires your B2B marketing messages? Share them with us in a comment!
