Written by: Vickie Sullivan | November 19, 2020
How Brand Awareness Impacts the Sales Cycle
You know you have to promote your expertise. That’s why you do all the content marketing and social media marketing. But do you really know how your brand awareness impacts buyers? PFL published a report recently, Reaching Prospects Through the Digital Noise, that will challenge your assumptions.
Move past the advocacy of “tactile marketing” (but kudos to the direct mail company for using a clever term). The bigger question the study asks: Due to the tsunami of content out there, how does brand awareness really impact the sales cycle?
Two big changes I see:
• Front runners are established before the initial call is ever made. Yep, all of that content marketing does impact buying decisions, but the timing is different now. Buyers expect you to stand out before they even consider you. Translation: If you’re seen as “one of many,” you won’t make the first cut. (Yes, even if you are referred. You will still be vetted by the team.)
Listen: The Two Biggest Brand Awareness Mistakes Smart People Make
• The buyer is buried. Risk mitigation is alive and well in corporate America. The buyer doesn’t want the blame, so they surround themselves with chief lieutenants. That’s why the PFL study promotes influencers. If you don’t have a groundswell of support, you will get torpedoed. Brand awareness creates that buy in.
Too many of us think brand awareness is a “throw content spaghetti on the wall” approach. Not anymore. Gear up for next year by sharpening your message now.
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