This week I attended an interesting Market Chat Live event sponsored by MeriTalk and Government Marketing University. It focused on understanding the WIIFM – What’s In It For Me – element in your B2G marketing to specific agencies and government decision-makers, aka account based marketing.
Steve O’Keefe, founder of O’Keefe and Company and MeriTalk, opened with an entertaining presentation focused on taking the prospect’s perspective and needs into account, rather than talking about your company. He used the amusing example of the boorish guy in a bar with the bad comb over – don’t let your marketing be like that guy. O’Keefe stressed understanding these senior executives as people with families and personal interests, and also understanding the legislative and policy mandates important to them.
Here’s a creative representation of that concept. Do you know the seven executives who will vet the submissions to the Technology Modernization Fund (a key part of the MGT Act)? O’Keefe calls them the Magnificent Seven:
He also advocated taking an editorial calendar-like approach to sponsored research and event planning, per the timeline shown above. For example, it’s easy to determine when government FITARA scores will be published. That’s the “report card” for the federal CIOs most companies are trying to reach. So talking about that issue prior to their release – whether through sponsored research, paid or owned media or via an event – just makes sense.
I also liked the 3-30-3:00 rule he shared. Your first marketing touch needs to convey value in 3 seconds. That will then earn you thirty seconds of a decision-maker’s time. If you continue to offer WIIFM value to your prospect, you’ll then get three minutes.
After the initial presentation there was a panel discussion three different perspectives on ABM – decision-maker, contractor and agency:
- Dominic Sale – Assistant Commissioner of Operations, FAS Technology Transformation Services, GSA
- Tom Ruff – Vice President Government for Akamai
- Caroline Boyd – Director, Government Programs at MeriTalk
A few nuggets I found interesting for federal marketers:
Dominic – reminder that execs like him can affect the RFP, but don’t get involved in actual sales decisions. Also reinforced point about understanding how agencies need to translate policy direction into action, understand and assist that process.
Caroline – make sure you understand where the money is coming from – read Hill reports, follow hearings. Never make the first page of your presentation you company bio – snoozefest, you’ve just lost the audience. Make sure that the metrics from events are being tracked accurately – she shared story of a big sale that originated from an event conversation, but never credited to marketing. Case studies are important, and if you can’t get help from sales you might get it from the technical team.
Tom – always remember your three key relationships – with the sales team, with end customers and with ecosystem partners. Strive to prove ROI – how are your marketing efforts supporting the sales funnel. Remember that OPM doesn’t just stand for the Office of Personnel Management, it stands for Other People’s Money. Look to leverage partner dollars in your marketing efforts.
The final presentation was from Tasha Klares, Director of Marketing at Force3. She counseled B2G marketers to take a long, hard look at how they are differentiating themselves from competitors in the market. There is a lot of similar messaging going on in the B2G space. Companies need to challenge themselves on the messaging front, and look down the road to see government priorities they can focus their branding on to stand apart.
She offered her company as an example. Formerly Force3 was a classic re-seller in the government market. Discerning the need to stand out from the VAR crowd, the company went through a rebranding in 2015, sharpening its focus on cybersecurity. It used the massive OPM breach to highlight the urgency of the need, and used the NIST RMF SP 800-53 recommendations as the basis for their Four Tenets of cybersecurity. This was right in synch with earlier points made – understanding government priorities and tailoring your messaging to address them.
It was an educational and enjoyable morning. To provide the best service to clients, it’s important to keep learning from your peers. Watch this page for information on upcoming Market Chat Live events.