Survey says…. Results from our Annual Growth Survey
In June we conducted our Annual Growth Survey, targeted to startups and scale-ups in both B2B and B2C segments globally. As we all know, running a business in the growth segment is both wildly exciting and scary as $%@!. As the business scales up, it becomes crucial to “stay ahead of the curve, adapt to market changes, and effectively implement your marketing strategies” - or so they say (and who is “they” anyway??). Our Annual Growth Survey provides real-time feedback on what we care about right now, and where we need to focus our attention moving forward.
In this blog we’ll cover:
The channels we use to stay up to date (and how B2B marketers can leverage that knowledge)
What’s truly keeping us up at night (besides late-night coffees and vinos)
Where we need a bit of support
And who the icons are that we want in our corner
Just Give Me the Facts
We know we need to stay up to date with the latest trends, insights, and industry news. But what’s the best way to do that? There are so many options available and it can seriously become overwhelming. Here is what you told us:
Podcasts are your favorite. There’s so many options as it relates to topics, length, speakers, etc. They’re particularly valuable due to:
Accessibility: You can listen to podcasts pretty much anytime, anywhere, making it an easy way to integrate into everyday activities
Diverse Content: With topics ranging from industry-specific insights to general business strategies, there's a podcast for every interest and need
Expert Advice: Many podcasts feature interviews with successful entrepreneurs and industry veterans who share their experiences and advice. Great motivation and inspiration!
Despite the popularity of digital media, newsletters remain a staple for staying updated. They provide a curated selection of news, insights, and trends straight to your inbox. We tend to like newsletters because they provide:
Curated Content: Newsletters often compile the most relevant and important information, saving you time and effort in staying informed
Regular Updates: With weekly or monthly editions, newsletters help to ensure you never miss out on big news
Deep Dives: Many newsletters offer in-depth analysis and commentary on key issues, helping to gain a deeper understanding of complex topics.
And last but definitely not least, in-person networking remains a critical component of staying informed and connected in the business world. We love our face-to-face interactions for a bunch of reasons including :
Building Relationships: Networking events, conferences, and seminars offer opportunities to build new relationships and keep existing ones fresh
Real-Time Feedback: Engaging in direct conversations allows you real-time interactions that we just can’t get online.
Collaboration Opportunities: And of course, meeting others in your industry can lead to collaborations, partnerships, and new business opportunities.
What’s Keeping Us Up at Night
It’s hard running a business. We’re often wearing multiple hats, trying to juggle all the things and deciding what to do first, when everything is a priority. We asked our participants what keeps them up at night and the results aren’t surprising.
It seems the focus is really split between a lot of things: employee and customer satisfaction, sales revenue, profitability and, of course, lead generation. Generating high-quality leads, ones that actually convert, is the lifeblood of any business. Without a steady stream of potential customers, growth can stagnate. While we are big believers in a healthy balance of growing the brand while generating demand, for many businesses in a growth phase, leads are one of the primary drivers. How do you generate leads though? While each brand is obviously highly unique, here’s a few things to consider:
Content Marketing: Producing valuable, relevant content that attracts and engages your target audience can drive traffic to your website and generate leads. Consider the usual suspects such as blogs, webinars, and infographics. Don’t forget video too, especially for storytelling
SEO and SEM: Optimizing your website for search engines (SEO) and investing in search engine marketing (SEM) can increase your visibility and attract potential leads
Social Media: And of course, leveraging social media platforms to share content, engage with your audience, and run targeted ads can help you reach a broader audience and generate leads.
What Can I Do for You?
When it comes to marketing, we were super curious about where support is needed the most. Not surprisingly, digital marketing execution rose to the top, followed very closely by marketing strategy development, and marketing strategy implementation.
Digital marketing is essential for reaching and engaging your audience, regardless of the industry you’re in. However, executing a digital marketing strategy can be challenging. When we execute for our Clients, we consider a few different ways to achieve efficiencies, without compromising on the deliverables:
Tools: We are big believers in using tools to optimize; the question is what tools? Save that thought as we’ll come back to that in a future blog post :)
Data Analytics: It’s always about the numbers. Regularly analyze your marketing data to understand what's working and what's not. Then use these insights to refine your strategy and improve results.
Consistency: If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times: consistency over frequency! Whether it’s organic social posts or digital blogs, being consistent wins every time.
While we have a lot to say about marketing strategy (after all, we are a strategy shop!), we’ll keep it short here. Creating a comprehensive marketing strategy is the foundation and provides the guidelines and framework for the execution. There’s a lot that can go into the strategy including:
Discovery: Conduct thorough market research to understand your target audience, competitors, and industry trends. This information will inform your strategy and ensure it's tailored to your audience's needs. It can take the form of primary or secondary research and should always include multiple sources. As a gentle guide, consider the 4 C’s to start: Culture, Consumer, Competition and Company.
Clear Objectives: Set clear, measurable objectives for your marketing efforts, both qualitative and quantitative, and the KPIs that you’ll use to measure those objectives
Integrated Approach: Develop an integrated marketing plan that combines various channels and tactics, such as content marketing, social media, email marketing, and paid advertising, to create a cohesive and effective strategy.
Obviously, we can go on and on… send us an email if you want to chat further!
Power Players
This is a fun one! Who do you want in your corner? If you’re assembling a kick-ass team to give you guidance, support and that ever-so-loving kick in the butt, let’s see who you chose:
It seems we’re looking for leadership and sales support - Grant Cardone was the number one response. It was then followed by Whitney Wolfe for marketing. Which makes sense if what’s keeping us up at night is lead generation and sales revenue. While we can’t bring these two gurus together to serve you, we can provide the next best thing - us :). Seriously though, we’ve worked with start-ups and scale-ups across a wide range of industries and get it, we’re one ourselves. Being an entrepreneur is not always for the faint of heart but it truly does give us the biggest rush.
Want to dive deeper into the results or share some feedback? Send us a note and we’ll book some time to chat.