Zngly Blog
Importance of Building Relationships in the Sales Cycle
Welcome to our special report on Personalisation.
Have you wondered what your client really wants to hear? What’s catching their eye. If that PDF you sent was opened and read? Or if that email was forwarded on to others? We are all in an information overload. Are you drowning in document attachments, video and web links? Well no more!
We know that your content and relationships with clients are critical. We want to make sure that the interactions you have with your leads are personal and impactful.
The power of personalisation is nothing new. As far back as 2019, Gartner reported that companies that focus on personalised messaging have a 16% higher impact than those that don't. Fast forward to the post-pandemic world and McKinsey research found that on average companies can earn up to 40% more revenue from implementing personalisation. There is a clear link on how innovative B2B sales are following the trends and techniques in consumer selling.
At ZNGLY we have the tools to help you win. We make sure that you get the most out of your connections and sales pitches. With ZNGLY you can manage multiple stakeholders and complex sales cycles. All while giving your recipients a really great user experience viewing and sharing your content. This Blog showcases the tools and techniques in our platform especially created for sales teams.
https://www.zngly.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Zngly-Personalisation.mp4
What is it - Building Trust and Connection
Personalisation creates a genuine connection between businesses and their target audience.
Personalisation creates a genuine connection between businesses and their target audience. By addressing clients on an individual level, companies demonstrate that they understand their needs, preferences, and pain points. This understanding helps build trust and fosters a sense of loyalty. When customers feel seen and heard, they are more likely to engage with a brand, become buyers, and even become brand advocates. By personalising content, businesses can establish themselves as valued partners who genuinely care about their customers' success.
How does it work - What ZNGLY does
Curate a private list
Meet Znglists, a game changing approach to content curation. Sales teams use an official catalogue of content to create personal playlists of media for their targets – we call the Znglists! Znglists handle the complete range of media – videos, PDFs, news stories, podcasts, web links and more. You can list content that you’ve created, you can also add material from third party sources – even AI-generated content. By having all of this content into one catalogue, there’s one version of the truth – say goodbye to handling multiple versions – and no need for attachments – everything is sent as a smart link.
Record a personal video message
Nothing beats saying hello. We live in a video communication age. You record a video message for that personal touch. They enhance user engagement and create deeper relationships - they are also quick, and fun.
Send content in a slick email - no more attachments
Say goodbye to attachments, scruffy web links, and cluttered emails! With ZNGLY your playlists, and video, are presented in a mobile friendly listing. All content is sent as smart links, working with, rather than against, customer firewalls and screening.
Have your own personal Sales Page
And when your recipient views the content, it’s all displayed in the salesperson's own tailored web page, along with additional content, links and messaging that each salesperson controls - specific to them and their target audience.
And everything is tracked in real-time
Data is the heart of ZNGLY. Every click, view, download - even email forwarding, is all captured in real-time and reported in our analytics suite. We even integrate with HubSpot, Salesforce and more.
Why is it important - Benefits for your Business
The customer experience is a key differentiating factor for businesses in today's competitive market.
Let’s hear from one of our users, Bruce Corcoran, a renowned executive and thought leader in the US retirements space:
"Personalization: The secret weapon that transforms engagement, ignites sales, and turns memories into unstoppable momentum. Personalized content has taken customer connections to new heights. By seamlessly integrating their memories and perceptions with fresh, captivating content, you create a comfortable and familiar space for engagement. This powerful approach has unlocked endless opportunities to captivate audiences with irresistibly tailored messaging and content, leaving them with no choice but to act.
Personalization isn't just a strategy; it's the fuel that propels people, deals, pipelines and entire companies towards extraordinary success."
To Wrap Up - The Importance for Your Business
In a world where clients need an engaging experience for them to buy, personalisation has become a game-changer for businesses. By tailoring content in sales pitches and marketing strategies, companies can build trust, enhance the customer experience, increase conversion rates, and maximise their marketing ROI. Embracing personalisation is no longer an option but a necessity in today's competitive landscape.
To Find Out More - Useful Links
To find out more about our ZNGLY platform, visit us over here
To see the fantastic work Bruce Corcoran is doing with Coherent, visit them over here
The Power of AI Generated Content
Hopefully this blog will inspire you to explore the power of AI for your work and for your playtime too! AI solutions are a new, fresh, and fast paced technology. We share how easy it is to get it up and running and the benefits of implementing an AI content strategy for your business.
We spotlight some great client work, with examples and use cases. It’s a fascinating technology that has so much room for growth, and the impact it has already had on art, tech, business and culture is astounding. And it’s only the beginning.
https://www.zngly.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Zngly-Blog-V2.mp4
In today's digital age, where attention spans are short and competition is fierce, businesses are constantly seeking innovative ways to captivate their audience.
Let’s dive in – The Potential of AI Content Generation:
In today's digital age, where attention spans are short and competition is fierce, businesses are constantly seeking innovative ways to captivate their audience. The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has revolutionised the way we create and distribute content. It's no longer necessary to shout to be heard; if your content is engaging!
We can now harness the power of AI to create compelling and sharp content that resonates with your target audience and generates a buzz. We explore how AI-generated content is transforming the business landscape and providing new opportunities for success.
Unleashing the Power of Video
In the digital omnichannel arena we operate in – inbound, outbound, LinkedIn, newsletters and EDMs – it's an overwhelming number of venues to manage. Nothing is as eye-catching as video, it’s got the best SEO, the best conversion rates, and visitor retention – but it’s expensive and time consuming to create – not any more.
AI generated video content is a great alternative to traditional media. With AI video content generation, you achieve high production values for low production spending.
Here’s some great examples and use cases of AI video avatars in action:
Tech Gateway uses AI video avatars to welcome visitors to their resource centre, and guide web traffic through their site and material.
https://www.zngly.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Tech-Gateway-Intro-2.mp4
FINOS (The FinTech Open-Source Foundation of The Linux Foundation), uses this technology to promote their upcoming events. It’s a great way of signposting on LinkedIn and social media, getting promotional material out there quickly to their target audience.
https://www.zngly.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/mp4-video-1.mp4
NextWave Consulting uses AI video avatars to promote the offerings from their technology partnerships. This example is Genesis. It’s a great, slick, synopsis of the Genesis no-code / low-code solution and the benefits the platform brings.
https://www.zngly.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/NW-Partner-Genesis-Global-1.mp4
AI tools are more accessible than ever, offering a range of capabilities to suit your business needs.
So how do they do it? Utilising AI Tools:
First off, it’s easy! AI tools are more accessible than ever, offering a range of capabilities to suit your business needs. Writing tools like ChatGPT, video tools like Synthesia, and image tools like DALL-E enable your organisation to become more efficient and successful. Use these tools to empower your team to work at their best.
With AI, you can create content swiftly, make a lasting impression, with a lower cost of production and consistent high production values.
And ZNGLY was created for managing content at scale. Our platform helps our clients take advantage of the power of AI generated content and work it seamlessly into their workflow.
To Wrap Up - The Importance for Your Business
Whether it's a marketing team wanting to ‘stop the social scroll’ and capture leads or sales managing complex relationships and sales cycles, having smart content is crucial. If you are not using this as part of your marketing and sales strategy you are really missing out.
Just go create!
To Find Out More - Useful Links
Our core mission at ZNGLY is to find new ways and techniques for our clients to harness the power of communication to turbo charge their business.
We would love to have a chat and demonstrate the power of our platform for you to sell more, and market better.
If you would like to see our work at ZNGLY, you can check that out over here
For FINOS - you can check their work out here
For Tech Gateway - you can check their work out here
For NextWave - you can check their work out here
International Womens Day -
More than just a day
International Women's Day celebrates the incredible achievements of women around the world and reflect on the progress we have made towards gender equality.
However, the celebration of women and their achievements is not limited to just one day. The global women's movement has been ongoing for decades and has brought about important changes in women's rights and gender equality.
Individuals, organisations, and governments must continuously work towards a more equal world, where women have equal access to opportunities. It is up to all of us to keep the drum beat & conversation going all year round!
Tech Gateway - Be a part of the conversation!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyyKzrINvT0&t=1s
Why is it important?
In recent years, we have seen an increase in the number of women breaking barriers and making significant strides in the tech industry.
In recent years, we have seen an increase in the number of women breaking barriers and making significant strides in the tech industry. From leaders in tech companies to entrepreneurs and innovators, women have made remarkable contributions to the growth and advancement of technology.
Prioritising DEI in tech is crucial for promoting innovation, improving decision making, attracting top talent, creating a positive work environment, fulfilling social responsibility, and driving business performance.
What are the benefits?
When it comes to the benefits of a more diverse and equitable workforce there are a three main benefits:
- Increased innovation and creativity: When companies have a diverse team, they bring unique perspectives and experiences, which can lead to increased creativity and innovation
- Increased social impact: Tech companies can have a significant impact on society, and DEI can help ensure that this impact is positive and equitable
- Improved problem-solving: When people with different backgrounds and experiences work together, they can bring a variety of problem-solving skills to the table. A variety of solutions through a variety of lenses!
How is it measured? Measuring DEI in a workplace can be challenging however, there are various indicators and metrics companies can use to measure DEI these include:
- Demographic data - This can include data on race, gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and other factors
- Representation in leadership - Companies can measure the representation of diverse individuals in leadership positions. This can help identify potential barriers to advancement and ensure that diverse perspectives are represented at the highest levels of the organisation
- Pay Equity - Companies can measure pay equity to ensure that employees are paid fairly regardless of their gender, race, or other factors
How do I get involved? The Tech Gateway ‘Big Boost Mondays’!
We want to be a part of this movement and that is why over the past year we have teamed up with the ‘FINOS - Diversity Equity & Inclusion Special Interest Group’ to launch Tech Gateway. Helping to celebrate technology & showcase the opportunities for DEI groups to encourage diversity, equity & inclusion!
If you want to be a part of this conversation, come along to Big Boost Mondays!
To find out more and register for our next event using the link below:
Tech Gateway - Big Boost Mondays
What to expect:
This is your monthly Tech & DEI meet up in both Dublin & London to highlight and showcase all the opportunities & pathways into technology.
Bringing together industry experts each month to speak all about their journey & why DEI is so important. We have had great pleasure to work with & speak to leaders of tech companies such as Natwest, Tech She Can, PwC, Deutsche bank, Code First Girls & Synechron to discuss these main topics:
- What we can do to build a more diverse workforce
- How we can tackle the issue of Diversity Equity & Inclusion in tech
- How we together can advocate for change and work towards a more just and equitable world
- The importance of encouraging more young women to pursue careers in STEM fields - what is out there to provide mentorship, education, and training opportunities, to empower the next generation of women in tech to succeed and break those barriers into tech
Let's work together to create a world where every woman has the opportunity to thrive and reach her full potential
It follows that creating a supportive and inclusive workplace culture is essential in retaining and advancing women in the industry. This includes promoting equal pay, offering flexible work arrangements, and addressing gender bias.
As we celebrate International Women's Day, let's continue to support and uplift the women in our lives. Let's work together to create a world where every woman has the opportunity to thrive and reach her full potential. Let's celebrate the progress we've made and commit to pushing forward towards a brighter, more equal future for all.
FT Live is the global conference & events division of the Financial Times Groups. They host a variety of events to bring together executive audiences and deliver them the latest information with great speakers and content that matters in a deliverable way.
Zngly attended the Financial Times Live (FT Live) ‘Woman at the Top’ event, due to our involvement surrounding diversity, equity & inclusion. This event was all about diversity, equity & inclusion and was the first Woman at the Top event after 3 years so I was super honoured to have the chance to attend!
As the business environment becomes more tough, organisations must think about how will leaders approach diversity and inclusion in the workplace? Studies have shown that a more diverse workplace improves productivity and performance of organisations so how can we reshape diversity and inclusion to be a must-have instead of a nice-to-have.
This is directly in line with the work we have done surrounding diversity & inclusion. Back in September we hosted Tech Gateway which showcased diversity, equity and inclusion. We had:
- Wincie Wong, Head of Services Workforce Technical Capability from NatWest & Founding Member of TechSheCan - discussing getting more women into tech
- Peter Ward, Deputy CEO at Leadership Through Sport & Business (LTSB) - spoke on building a more diverse and inclusive workforce and the actions LTSB do to bring companies like NatWest a more inclusive pool of talent
- Chris Howard, Open Source Lead- spoke on LGBT+ and diversity in the technology
This event really showcased everything diversity, equity & inclusion and the importance of getting more women into tech and diversity.
We are also currently did some work with Coherent to set a Guinness World Record and to highlight the partnership with TechSheCan to encourage and support bringing more women into Tech. All of this work surrounding diversity, equity & inclusion which we are passionate about, is what made me really excited to attend the FT Live event and hear the perspectives of the great speakers there.
Having real human connection and hear
people’s experience first-hand, is an invaluable experience
What did we learn…
When attending this information packed event, it really brought to the forefront how diversity, equity & inclusion is more than just attracting a diverse pool of talent to an organisation, it’s also equally as important for organisations to make this change something sustainable. The acknowledgement of the issue of diversity & inclusion is the first step in the right direction and that organisations need to really think about the effectiveness of thinking about tomorrow's workforce today.
1. Leadership in the new era needs to be more open and visible and that the real change will happen at a faster rate when the views are reimagined from the top down
2. Building a healthy organisational culture is the greatest way to attract and retain talent
3. To attract a more diverse workforce & include more women into technology, organisations need to start from early and encourage the younger generation to get involved in more STEM subjects.
So how did it work – what’s the format
The conference was an all day event with multiple speakers, these talks ranged from 30 minute keynote interviews to 40 minute talks covering a variety of different topics with a panel of speakers.
In between all these talks, there were networking breaks which gave everyone a chance to speak on everything DE&I.
Topics covered were:
- Transition, Transformation and Trust
- Leadership in a new era
- Will D&I survive the pinch?
- What about me?
- Has the rise of ESG on the agenda improved diversity?
- Taking the lead in business: Closing the fundraising gender gap
- How do you keep women in the workforce?
- Tackling the 3 M’s (menstruation, maternity & menopause)
- Leading the next generation
A jam packed event full of great speakers & insights covering a huge range of topics. This was a real deep dive!
Diversity, equity & inclusion is more than just attracting a diverse pool of talent to an organisation, it’s also equally as important for organisations to make this change something sustainable.
So - lasting benefits…What did we take away for Zngly
1. Zngly can be a real working force in making a change to bringing more women and diversity into the technology world. Our work with Tech Gateway and Coherent in raising awareness around diversity in tech, is a step in the right direction.
2. Change will come from the top. We can't expect the workplace to transform if we aren't doing anything at the top to apply these changes.
3. To create a sustainable diverse workforce we must educate the younger generation & promote STEM subjects from early. We can play a role to reinvent the perception on tech & really develop and grow our new and emerging talent.
We love to be playing and active role in promoting and focussing efforts around diversity, equity & inclusion. Zngly is always proactive in creating an inclusive and open environment where everyone can truly be themselves.
So how is it measured…
We have noted some key takeaways in just how to measure DE&I in the workplace.
Diversity & inclusion must show across all levels of the organisation, every leader must be held accountable
Three key takeaways:
- Look at your diversity of employees vs. your application pool
- It's all about data. Collecting as much data about your workforce is key to identifying where organisations can be more inclusive
- Make company data of D&I public and available for anyone to view. This holds organisations and the voice of the leader publicly accountable! Allowing active actions towards building a more diverse workforce.
So FT Live...
We look forward to being invited to more events like this and taking large leaps to a more diverse and inclusive workforce!
SaaStock is a conference dedicated to ‘Software-as-a-service” bringing together participants from across the ecosystem – investors, influencers, thought leadership and founders, with companies from acorns to unicorns.
It was held in Dublin at the RDS, (with some pop-ups across the city), over three days (the main part was Sep 18th – 19th) with 5,000 delegates from across the world. it’s the biggest SaaS conference in Europe.
It was our first time attending. Zngly is bootstrapped and proud of it. No VC. No outside money. We are building a profitable business, creating value not valuation. We make every pound / dollar / euro a prisoner!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCsZ5uy-gLw
So… we paid hard earned ‘list price’ cash
for our tickets and we wanted to get the maximum return of time, money and
opportunity!
Myself and Oscar attended, he took point on Customer Service, and I covered Business Development. We set ourselves some goals:
- How do firms talk about themselves, what sets them apart. How do they ‘sell’
- Our clients love Zngly. How do we increase customer adoption
- What are the hard decisions that we need to make, and when to make them
So what did we learn, was it worth it?
When you get to immerse yourself like this you see how really important it is to get our industry together. Nothing beats meeting people.
After lockdowns this was the first gathering of SaaStock. We had a month of meetings and insights every single day.
Having real human connection and hear
people’s experience first-hand, it’s just invaluable.
What did we learn…
- There is the mother of all recessions coming make your business relevant and flourish
- Bootstrap all the way! Be cockroaches not unicorns. Not just survive, but thrive
- Be confident, stick to your plan, progress is incremental steps. Build on good foundations
So let’s dive in and share with you how we got on…
So how did it work – what’s the format
The conference is organised in three parts:
- Formal(ish): A great agenda of speakers, keynotes and sharp folk sharing experiences. The sessions are really well moderated. 20 minute, high paced, content rich. No fluff or puff. All proper.
- Collide: Stands and booths. From ‘pop-up’ pubs to stalls that would not look out of place at a village fair. Lots of friendly folk, who want to pitch, sell, demo, and also to listen and connect. There was a tonne of great swag and sweets. It was most definitely sugar fuelled! We left full in every possible way.
- Connect: The SaaStock app was super easy to use, scan a QR code, connect and meet-up. The Nightstock events were great fun. SaaS folk know how to work and play! With lots of people visiting Dublin and wanted to sample all the fun of the city.
Organised across ‘stages’ – Bootstrap, Growth, Accelerating and Scale – it’s like a Geeky Glastonbury without the mud. It’s not all back slapping and shooting to the moon. Quite the opposite.
There was failures, heartache and tears
shared. The challenges of getting a business off the ground and wind under it’s
wings. Practical, proper advice.
A special shout out to the Bootstrap moderators, curators and speakers stage. Great content and connections. Thank you!
So - lasting benefits…What did we take away for Zngly
We validated our approach to marketing and business development, forget the funnel (for now). We’ve got it right with laser focus on the great opportunities we have.
How and when to scale and the key decision factors within that scaling, seeing the problems other founders faced. Do not put off the difficult decisions.
You can see the ‘aha’! moment - the real power of cloud delivered innovation, Time To Value, that’s what it’s about.
We feel energised to be part of a community and Zngly is where the smarts are – SaaS delivered, open-source, no-code. We fuel our clients at the speed of a click.
Be the promise delivered.
So how is it measured…
We are already adopting some of the findings
and advice.
There is no better reference than a happy customer.
Three key takeaway:
- Adoption: Our existing clients, their day to day use of our platform. Listen to them.
- Analytics: How Zngly is delivering real measurable returns and value. Power them.
- Ambassadors: There is no better reference than a happy customer. They will champion you.
So SaaStock...
We will be back next year. With a stand. And on a stage. Loved it.
SaaStock, you do indeed Rock!
Zngly EI International Markets Week
Starting a business or sourcing solutions. Be inspired!
This blog I hope will… inspire entrepreneurs embarking on creating a business to consider setting up in Ireland with the help that Enterprise Ireland (EI) can give to grow internationally. Give our clients a line of sight on the global network of support we have at Zngly. And to businesses in international markets to consider sourcing solutions from Irish companies. From Cyber to Payments, Digital to Manufacturing, Ireland’s eco-system of firms from start-up to established is firing on all cylinders. A hot bed of innovation and ambition.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaavvW82vHc
EI International Markets Week what’s it all about?
EI is an Irish Government agency dedicated to the promotion, development and growth of Irish businesses, and are ranked first in the world of venture capital investors by deal count.
At Zngly we were delighted to have been selected as an EI-HPSU (High Potential Start-Up) when we launched. EI provide us with a wealth of knowledge, experience and connections.
International Markets Week (IMW) is a three-day coming together of all the Market Advisors (MA) from around the world converging in Dublin to assist and support Irish businesses with their growth plans. It was held at the RDS in Ballsbridge, Rugby fans will know it as Leinster’s home ground, and was the first time it was held since the Covid lockdowns.
It was great getting everyone together in a real celebration of Irish innovation and business, with over 700 EI portfolio companies attending over the three days. Meeting with MA’s from all over the world, from northern Europe, to the southern hemisphere, from Asia to the US West Coast.
I knew the omens were good on the way there! I passed Old Belvedere, and I see their next home game is against my old club Naas RFC. So hopefully I would be the first of many winning Naas men in Ballsbridge this week!
Why is IMW important to Irish businesses?
Zngly are proud that we are a bootstrapped business, with no VC or outside money.
We are focused on creating a profitable business, with value not valuation our priority. So
it’s hugely important for us to be able to connect into this network of advisors on the ground who can shape our opportunity and proposition.
We have clients in Hong Kong, Singapore, UK, Ireland and the US. We are global and international markets are massively important to us.
IMW means we are on track, the products we are shipping have local market validation, and our business development growth plans and connections are at a personal level.
So how does it work?
We worked with Conor our Dublin based Development Advisor (DA) ahead of IMW identifying opportunities and geographical regions. We then scheduled a series of one-to-one meetings with the international MA’s. In one day we covered a global conversation from Asia (with Tiarnan and Sinead), US (Jack and Jane), UK (Jack and Niamh) and also here in Ireland (Luke and Mike) working with global ambition and global brands. We even had a master class chat on Marketing & Sales with Naghmeh!
The depth of local market knowledge, and deep relationships is incredible.
Lastly, it's just a lot of fun. I loved it! The event was a huge infectious feeling of innovation opportunity ambition. It was a privilege to be selected to be a part of it, and we are very grateful. Making these personal connections is what it’s all about.
What are we taking from it?
There are three immediate great benefits from this. First the discipline of presenting Zngly, pitching and demoing our platform in a high paced showcase event like this from around the world really helps validate market fit. You get feedback upfront.
Secondly, hearing first-hand the opportunities, needs and challenges from around the world is massively important so we know how to allocate resources and identify opportunities.
Being a start-up, you are looking for friends and ambassadors. With EI we have that and so much more.
Lastly, it's just a lot of fun. I loved it! The event was a huge infectious feeling of innovation opportunity ambition. It was a privilege to be selected to be a part of it, and we are very grateful. Making these personal connections is what it’s all about.
How are the benefits measured – what next?
There are three very practical ways. One, how we tune the B2B Zngly proposition and market fit to specific sectors.
Fintech, Media and Education are all really exciting areas for us where we have great clients.
Secondly, we’ve got a diary of meetings and confirmed follow-ups in Asia, US, UK and Ireland. There are dates in the calendar.
Finally, the benefits aren’t just measured by sales and growth, but that we have an action plan that’s ‘doable’ that we can confidently build out for our clients and business.
To close.. that was some day.
A huge thank you to everyone I had the pleasure to work with and congratulations to Enterprise Ireland on a fantastic event. To Deirdre and all the team – Joanne, Jack Callaghan Jack FC, Niamh, Tiarnan, Sinead, Luke, Mike, Naghmeh and Conor.
Final thought. There was even a vegan option for my lunch! I’ve changed and come a long, long way from my Naas RFC days!
Zngly Awarded October’s Community Spotlight by FINOS
We’ve been awarded this month's community spotlight feature by The Fintech Open Source Foundation (FINOS)
“By using Zngly, we have been able to level up the messaging and value surrounding our critical projects and initiatives for FINOS.”
“Aside from being an outstanding content and resource management tool, Zngly has partnered with us on many different events throughout the year, both in-person and remote, most recently with last week's DEI SIG Tech Gateway, which was a day of DEI events in the City of London which was organized by FINOS DEI SIG members, Zngly, Scott Logic, NatWest, Goldman Sachs, EPAM, GitHub, Google, Red Hat, and ING.”
“The event brought together under-represented London communities to explore city tech career opportunities through inspiring DEI stories, tech mentoring, and network building.”
“FINOS is proud to partner with Zngly! We look forward to organizing more co-hosted open source events this year and delivering our content in new and innovative ways.
Special thanks to the Zngly team, Mike Wilson, Oscar Wilson, Hayley McCarthy, Vlad Medves and Shaban Duymun, among many others.”
Click here to read the full article over at the FINOS website
Click here to check out the FINOS Resource Center which is powered by Zngly.
Part 1
The future of content marketing
In the first of a three-part series on how the Zngly media platform reenergises B2B sales and marketing efforts, we look at how businesses can make the most of their webinars
What is Content Marketing?
Over the last five or 10 years, digital transformation in B2B has served a single purpose: to make content marketing more effective and more cost-effective.
The focus was on bridging legacy systems, integrating product catalogues with the content platform, and enabling the creation of “customer experiences” in an omnichannel context.
Even for small to medium-sized B2B businesses, the implementation of customer experience projects takes many months, if not years, and requires a considerable commitment in terms of resources.
Although the goal as always is to make the business more agile, the means of achieving this ideal state of “agility” is usually costly and painstaking.
Omnichannel is now widely accepted by B2B businesses as the way forward but implementations are still weighted heavily towards the website, perhaps for good reasons. A breakdown[1] of more than 46 billion user sessions across 14 industries in 25 countries showed that B2B came second only to media for average time spent per page, at 82 seconds per page. This was a significant 20 seconds more per page than the next category, travel, and 30 seconds more than financial services.
The popularity of B2B webinars suggests that customers aren’t finding all the answers on the website which, in the majority of cases, is still only a shop window, not a shop. Other than at marketplaces, most B2B suppliers still sell through distributors, wholesalers, resellers, or retail outlets – each with their own website of course, and their own customer experiences.
[1] 2022 Digital Experience Benchmark Report, Contentsquare
Businesses are engaged in a digital arm’s race of ever increasing complexity; they would much prefer to get off this merry-go-round yet they don’t know how – and are inhibited by the fact that everyone else seems thoroughly invested in the customer experience paradigm.
The media platform Zngly offers a way out – or at the very least a respite from complexity, and the never-ending succession of digital projects. Zngly puts sales and marketing back on the front foot by enabling them to curate content and get it directly in front of the prospect, bypassing the websites.
This three-part blog explores the tortuous content landscape, and analyses how Zngly addresses pain points that persist, despite years of digital investment and transformation.
As we mentioned a moment ago, the new generations of B2B leaders prize the expertise and experience of webinars, and so this is where we shall start.
Supercharge your webinars
Webinars can be the gift that keeps on giving. A conversation between experts or seasoned B2B cadres is a more immediate way to get into a subject than (most) written content. The thought leadership is extended to include the attendees who are invited to ask questions. The Q&A part of a live webinar is often the most lively and eye-opening, as attendees reveal what is preoccupying the market – and the experts have to think on their feet to answer.
So webinars are good, and “webinars on demand” are good in theory – if only you could get people to demand them! In the rough and tumble of a busy working day, most B2B influencers and decision-makers don’t get around to doing this – even if the topic interests them.
This is why B2B marketers amplify the reach of their webinars by creating complementary collateral such as blogs, white papers, fact sheets, infographics, and follow-ups on social media. You can never quite tell which piece of content is going to hit the spot, so you have to be patient and wait for your audience to build.
Patience and consistency are particularly relevant in the financial sector, where sales cycles are very long. You have to keep the marketing drumbeat going by delivering this complementary content – and curate the webinar itself for targeted sales approaches.
And this is where marketers have a problem. If you have chosen an interesting topic and invited a good mix of expert voices, your webinar will be interesting. However, not every part of a wide-ranging discussion will be of interest to all your customers and prospects – even if they had the time to watch the discussion from beginning to end.
Posting a recording on YouTube removes the “on demand” barrier, but still requires the customer to work out which part(s) of the discussion are of interest to him, and then click through the timeline to get there. It’s not that your customers and leads are lazy; it’s that your splendid webinar is not a priority for them.
You have to make it easier for your customers – and pique their curiosity. This is what Zngly can do for you.
The platform boosts webinar views. The customer doesn’t have to ask for it; he doesn’t have to go from your website to his email inbox to download it, and he doesn’t have to parse it or “skim-watch it” to find the content that is relevant to him.
For the sales reps or marketers that curate the webinar, the process is also very intuitive. Zngly enables you to segment webinar content so it will start where you need it to start for a particular client. You can give the webinar a custom title and/or description, whatever you believe will resonate most strongly with the customer. You can send the webinar extract individually or as part of a Zngly list with other relevant collateral.
One click (no download) and your customer is immersed in the webinar discussion. Of course, there is nothing to stop him from watching the entire webinar once he has been hooked by the curated extract. But the initial approach will have been much more likeable and realistic. You have gone from a presumption (“Give us an hour of your time to watch a webinar that will at some point be of interest to you”) to an act of thoughtfulness (“We thought X’s views on Y might interest you and your colleagues. And here it is”).
We are not suggesting that traditional marketing approaches are brash or rude – not always anyway! But we all know that the decision whether to-watch-or-not-to-watch is on a knife’s edge – and that you must do everything within your power to improve your odds. With Zngly, you do that.
In the next instalment of our blog on content marketing we look at the future of PR and email campaigns
