Ep 43: Sales and Marketing Merge with Integrated Business Development | Andy Buyting
The latest episode of Tiny Marketing podcast serves a flavorful conversation between Sarah Noel Block and the maven of Smarketing, Andy Buyting. This episode illuminates the concept of Smarketing, coined from the amalgamation of sales and marketing, making it a one-stop destination for those seeking a growth strategy for their business. Andy, the CEO and Founder of Tulip Media Group, walks us through his passionate journey of establishing Tulip Media Group which was built from his lifelong fascination of marketing.
Dive deep as Block and Buyting discuss a revolutionizing approach towards business development, ignoring the conventional divisions and looking at marketing and sales as an integrated part of the business. Through the lens of Tulip Media Group, they present the customer journey as the soul of this approach, from identifying core prospects to closing deals for them. As with the assembly line at Ford, optimizing each stage is vital, and Andy paints this imagery for listeners, underlining the strengths and weaknesses of each stage in the process.
Harnessing the Power of Smarketing: Bridging the Gap between Sales and Marketing
In today's evolving business landscape, organizations are tapping into the immense potential of blending marketing and sales, giving rise to a booming concept - Smarketing. It's essentially the integration of sales and marketing under the umbrella of business development, crafted around one comprehensive strategy that fosters organizational growth. Amongst the pioneers in this approach is Andy Buyting, the CEO and Founder of Tulip Media Group, a specialized digital and print marketing firm that primarily aims to make marketing managers and coordinators feel like superheroes.
The Genesis of Tulip Media Group
Andy Buyting's fascination with marketing can be traced back to his childhood when he grew up in a family-run business. The potential of effective marketing to drive businesses ahead stirred his enthusiasm and led to the foundation of Tulip Media Group almost a decade ago. Tulip Media Group was born out of Buyting's passion for marketing and designed as an organization he would joyfully engage with, even without pay. Today, Tulip Media is a dynamic entity that aids an impressive roster of clients throughout North America. At the core of Tulip Media's philosophy is the conviction that if marketing is executed right, sales can happen with greater ease.
Integrating Sales and Marketing: The Smarketing Approach
Traditionally, organizations have invested considerably in building sales teams with little focus on strategic marketing. Marketing divisions often end up as meek resources for sales teams rather than being treated as strategic counterparts. Challenging this conventional approach, Tulip Media sees business development as a blend of marketing and sales, advocating for an integrated 'Smarketing' strategy.
Instead of viewing them as separate departments, Tulip Media views marketing and sales as a business development effort that works together to boost business. But what underpins this Smarketing strategy is a deep understanding of the customer journey, identifying core prospects, and the steps to move them from being potential customers to signing contracts. Like Henry Ford’s automobile assembly line, this process includes stages from prospecting and lead generation to product demos and closing deals.
However, like the assembly line, every stage of the business development process has its strengths and weaknesses, and optimizing each is essential. To drive home this point, Buyting parallels Justin Rothmyers' book, The Machine, where he paints vivid imagery of an assembly line workflow.
Nailing Digital Marketing: Automation and Customer Journey
Tulip Media Group leverages the power of digital marketing to automate the early stages of the business development process. This primarily involves online conversion strategies for websites, search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click, content marketing, and specifically targeted email lists. The focus remains on attracting the right customers by addressing their pain points, educating them, and strategically guiding them through their purchasing journey.
One of the critical stages in this journey is ensuring the website or the 'storefront' is optimized to attract and retain customers. This includes clear messaging about what a business does, connecting with the right audience, and providing a single, engaging call-to-action for visitors to follow. Giving visitors a clear path and guiding them on their next steps is vital. The measure of success boils down to driving engagements like phone calls, contact form submissions, or meetings booked in calendars.
Smarketing is revolutionizing how organizations approach and amalgamate their sales and marketing strategies. Firms like Tulip Media Group are leading the way, integrating marketing and sales into their very business development fabric, optimizing operations, and amplifying results. By utilizing automation, understanding the customer journey, and using strategic online strategies, 'Smarketing' opens the door to increased efficacy and success in business development.
Setting Benchmarks and Measurement Tools in Smarketing
It’s crucial for businesses to set certain quantifiable metrics to assess the success of Smarketing in their strategy. Tulip Media Group utilizes three primary parameters for this process: the number of phone calls generated for the client, the number of contact forms filled out by potential prospects, and the frequency of meetings booked through scheduling platforms like Calendly. The metric trends are closely monitored to promptly address any dips and ensure a consistent upward movement.
Creating benchmarks involves in-depth discussions with the clients to understand their current marketing efforts and requirements based on the type and size of their market.
Understanding and Optimizing The Customer Journey
The fundamental principle underlying a successful Smarketing strategy revolves around acquiring a detailed insight into the customer journey. Understanding the customer from their point of entry through a company’s website or the marketing funnel contributes to efficiently guiding them through their purchasing process.
The purpose of crafting the messaging in such a manner is to attract the right customers and repel the low-quality, non-prospective ones. This saves valuable time and resources for the sales team, who can now focus more on high-quality prospects. Every step in this journey should be tested for effectiveness, even if it means the marketing director playing the role of a customer and experiencing the journey first-hand.
Utilizing Internal and Client Dashboards
To monitor the progress and trends of their Smarketing efforts, Tulip Media Group takes advantage of internal dashboards for both the team and their clients. Every client gets a unique engineered dashboard based on their requirements that helps them closely watch their progress and systematically plan future strategies.
The company also leverages platforms like Google Data Studio to integrate multiple data sources for a comprehensive view of the performance.
In-depth Research and Strategy
The final piece in the Smarketing puzzle is devising a detailed strategy based on thorough discussions and research. This involves understanding the clients about their core customers, conducting a competitive analysis and keyword strategy, and learning about customer behaviors through direct conversations.
Tulip Media Group also offers a free consultation for companies to understand their marketing challenges better and strategize their next steps.
Final Note
Smarketing unifies the often segregated worlds of sales, business development, and marketing. By taking a deeper dive into the customer journey, analyzing performance through internal and client-specific dashboards, and conducting thorough research, Tulip Media Group has evidently shown how Smarketing can lead to tangible results. Business landscapes are shifting, and the integration of sales and marketing is not just an option but an essential strategy for businesses to thrive in this highly competitive arena.
Andy Buyting
Andy Buyting is a leader in thought leadership and content marketing. His “integrated content” strategy has served both himself and his clients exceedingly well.
Andy’s thought leadership journey started when he published his first business book in 2007 and started publishing his first magazines in 2009. Since that time, he has leveraged his integrated approach to print, digital and interactive marketing strategies to establish himself as a thought leader in content marketing and brand positioning. Andy’s 2nd book, How to Win Clients & Influence People, is now in its 2nd edition and is an International Bestseller on Amazon. In 2021, Andy co-authored Double Sales/ Zero Salespeople: Optimize Your Sales and Marketing Into One Business Development Strategy That Works!
Through Tulip Media Group, his team helps to fuel revenue growth for their Client-Partners through effective marketing that works.
🔗 Resources
Double Sales/Zero People by Andy Buyting and Jessica Embree
Free 20-minute consult with Tulip Media Group
Marketing Mad Libs Workshop: Schedule Your Fit Call
Highlights
00:01:03: Andy's introduction and description of Tulip Media Group
00:01:33: Discussing the start of Andy's business
00:02:58: Andy's philosophy on work satisfaction
00:03:46: Introducing the topic - Marketing and Sales Integration
00:04:21: Challenges faced by small marketing teams
00:05:09: Shifting understanding of Sales and Marketing Departments
00:06:25: Approach to increasing businesses via Sales and Marketing Integration
00:08:26: Introduction of the business development process from Tulip Media Group
00:09:21: Explanation of Tulip Media Group's eight-step customer journey
00:10:33: Inspiration from Justin Rothmyers's book 'The Machine'
00:11:15: Understanding strengths and weaknesses in business development.
00:11:44: Discussing optimal job roles
00:12:04: Boosting connection with the team
00:12:36: Tips for the sales process
00:13:14: Importance of optimizing business development
00:13:34: Automation with digital marketing
00:14:01: The role of marketing in customer journey
00:14:44: Using digital marketing for B2B companies
00:15:36: Conversion strategies for websites
00:17:10: Understanding company's core customer
00:19:00: Positioning your company as a resource
00:20:31: Importance of understanding your customer
00:21:04: Optimizing websites for easier sales.
00:23:37: Importance of clear business communication
00:24:04: How to guide customers through their journey
00:25:40: Aligning marketing to customer needs
00:28:31: Strategy behind choosing the right words
00:30:43: The role of the agency in strategy execution
00:31:38: Achieving satisfactory results
00:32:12: Benchmarking and measurement in marketing
00:33:34: Setting up targets for effective marketing
00:34:17: Improving Lead Generation
00:34:53: Strategy Adjustment and Result Expectations
00:36:00: Attracting High-Quality Prospects
00:39:07: Testing and Experiencing Own Company's Customer Journey
00:40:57: Researching and Establishing Customer Journey and Strategy
00:43:00: Content Strategy based on keyword research
00:44:18: Enhancing Customer Experience Through Interviews
00:45:08: Channels for Contact and Cooperation
00:45:47: Discussing a marketing strategy
00:46:12: Conclusion of the discussion
00:46:31: Tying together sales, business development, and marketing
