Moeller-Hoercher “2nd International PR Day”

A Visionary American View on B2B PRpresented by

Our Work

US B2B PR – Overview/Trends

B2B PR in the US is focused on steering the brand or product message into relevant content that businesses/decision-makers use to educate themselves prior to making a purchasing decisions•Education – Content to define, demonstrate and display products or services•Lead Generation – Use specialized relevant content (webinars, podcasts, case studies) as a tool to generate sales leads•Sharing – Making content easy to share helps spread brand awareness and build community•Credibility – Be transparent and serve as an authority about your company’s offering –this is who we are, this is what we make, this is how it works•Q&A – Have a conversation where questions are answered in a straight-forward way with no sales pitch

The Three C’s to B2B PR

Communications

Content

Community

Communications

Get the message out!•Website•Blog•Social Networks•Public Relations•Forums•Webinars•Trade shows

Bread Crumbs: Make it easy to find your company and product •Optimize for search•Keywords, Keywords, Keywords

Engage your customers every chance you get

Content

Strategic Content is King•B2B sales driven by online customer research –not cold calls•Content must be relevant to the customer – produce content that your customers would ask for in the sales process•Produce different types of content

• Blog posts• Videos• Webinars• E-Newsletters• Podcasts• Case Studies• White Papers • Datasheets• Make your content easy to share • Repurpose your content across different platforms

Community

Community: a place to build & nurture loyal advocates to your brand or product•Establish a community presence where your customers hang out – Xing, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, YouTube, Forums •Feed the community with regularly scheduled and unscheduled relevant content – Blog feeds, video links, podcasts, news•Engage the community in discussion – start one or participate – Let them know you are there•Make it easy to join your communities •Share other relevant content with your community as a way to invite those content producers into your community•Publish your news to the community just prior to the distribution of a traditional release – make the community feel special•Offer product specials and incentives to your community members

Educate, Influence & Promote

B2B consumers prefer to educate themselves before engaging in the sale – so arm them with information•Provide technical specs, interoperability, feature list, instruction manuals, warrantees, data sheets, product videos and webinars, and pricing •Influence businesses by sharing third- party testimonials and reviews of your products •Promote your products across the social graph by offering coupons, specials and incentives to brand loyalists

PR/Media Relations and Thought Leadership

Media Relations

B2B PR uses social networks to connect and develop relationships with targeted media and keep then informed of breaking news

Thought Leadership is communicated through executive blogs, video blogs and interviews, podcasts, and white papers. This content is easily shared and can position a business out in-front of its competitors by demonstrating a commanding knowledge of their industry and product.

Engagement and Lead Generation

Engagement•Communicate with your customers by responding to posts and comments•Start discussions in forums and LinkedIn Groups•Use social media to resolve customer service issues•Educate prospects and clients with webinars, blogs, podcasts, videos

Lead Generation/Call to Action•Use your content as an asset to produce leads – webinars, case studies, white papers and podcasts•Have a newsletter sign-up on your website or blog•Create special programs requiring registration•Conduct online surveys

3 keys to Succeeding in B2B PR – Key #1

Be Where Your Customers Are•Where do your customers go for information?•Where are there discussions about your industry, product or service?•What social networks are your customers on?•What online publications or blogs do they read?•Are there active forum discussions about your product or services?•Where are your competitors playing?

3 keys to Succeeding in B2B PR – Key #2

Plant Your Flag Across the Social Graph•Build a profile on Twitter•Create a company profile on LinkedIn•Start a discussion group on LinkedIn•Build a Facebook brand page•Create a YouTube Channel•Start a brand page on Google+•Write a blog•Syndicate your content through an RSS feed•Build a mobile app

3 keys to Succeeding in B2B PR – Key #3

Produce a steady stream of relevant and educational content that is easy to distribute and share•Blogs•Videos•Podcasts •Case Studies•White Papers •Traditional PR/Media Relations•Thought Leadership•Surveys

PR Professional Requires New Skillset

Listen with intelligence

Digital natives/web and social savvy

Create compelling and educational content that is strategic and shareable

Creative across multi-channels and mediums

Strategic counselors

Experts across both product corporate and brand marketing

Thank You

John GatesPrincipal, Account Director

617.861.3651jgates@elevatecom.com

Mark BaizenAccount Services/Program

Management 617.861.3680

mbaizen@elevatecom.com