An “evil empire” of digital platforms is making it harder for small and medium-sized companies to find new business, warn marketing experts.
B2B marketing agency Intergage has launched a Marketing Rebel Alliance to help SMEs cope with the onslaught of challenges from:
- Google Search – zero-click searches have risen by 30 per cent in two years…so companies’ websites get fewer visitors (56 per cent of mobile searches do not result in a click to a website)
- Google Ads – return on investment is trending towards zero because of changes by Google and increased competition on important keywords
- Facebook – organic reach for Business Pages has plunged to just 0.09 per cent (median average), so firms’ posts are barely getting seen unless they advertise
- Twitter – the average engagement rate per post is now just 0.048 per cent (median average).
Dorset-based Intergage hosted a Star Wars-themed seminar – ‘Nerd Wars’ – to help companies cope with the changes. More than 70 business leaders attended the event at the Italian Villa, Canford Cliffs.
Intergage managing director Paul Tansey said: “Once Google was an idealistic business run by two gifted young entrepreneurs. Its motto was ‘Don’t Be Evil’. We all trusted. Now Google is a global corporate empire and that motto is nowhere to be seen.
“Facebook encouraged companies to start business pages so they could have helpful and meaningful conversations with their customers and prospects – now it has faded those conversations to mere whispers.
“And it’s not just Google and Facebook. Changes to other digital major platforms are also squeezing small firms.
“Consequently, more firms now feel their commercial futures are being dictated by an ‘evil empire’ that has too much power.
“It’s time for us all to take a stand. Let’s fight back by exploring new, better and more human ways of doing business – ways that truly delight the end users,” he added.
Intergage’s speakers at the seminar were Mike Finn, Nicki Cluley, Steve Caple, Alex Turrell and Roan Fair. They outlined solutions including:
- embracing changes in buyer behaviour and upholding the highest ethical standards – “the most human company wins”
- replacing the traditional marketing funnel model with a ‘flywheel’ that encourages delighted customers to review, refer and recommend firms to prospects
- improving advertising by using remarketing correctly – targeting people who know and trust you with the right message at the right point in their buyer’s journey
- profiling customers with buyer personas, understanding their decision-making patterns, using behavioural targeting
- aligning values with potential customers, forging trust, demonstrating your passion for what matters most to them, becoming part of their community, showing you care
- using multi-channel campaigns that offer more points of contact – including traditional marketing methods such as press and PR, sponsorship, promotions and events
- building relationships – becoming the most recommended in your space, creating advocates, building brand loyalty, creating great experiences, creating a dialogue.
Guest speakers were:
- marketing automation specialist Kenda Macdonald of Automation Ninjas (and author of Hack The Buyer Brain) on buyer psychology
- digital and behavioural transformation consultant Alan Coote of Monogram Media.
Intergage business development director Nicki Cluley, who compered the event, said: “We wanted this to be a really fun but informative event.
“We hope that people left with plenty of great ideas that they can implement in their own businesses.
“The feedback we’ve had is so good that we may make this an annual event,” she added.
Join the Marketing Rebel Alliance! For more information, contact Intergage managing director Paul Tansey, 01202 684009 www.intergage.co.uk