SMB Marketing Services Needs Outlined in New InfoTrends Study
“Software and service providers need to recognize that the marketing communication needs of SMBs are being redefined. Solutions that focus on all digital or all print marketing are no longer viable in the cross-media world. SMBs are turning to service providers and web-based software to provide solutions to manage their media needs.”
Critical Success Factors
SMBs are generally mixed on whether or not they prefer a software solution or a service provider to manage their marketing needs, however, one fact is for sure—they prefer to manage all marketing in one central place. This study addresses a number of critical success factors that solution and service providers need to keep in mind when trying to capture the SMB marketing automation opportunity:
- Ease-of-use
- Affordability
- A Consultative Approach
- Measurement of Communication of Success
- All-Channel Approach
- Understand Root Business Needs
- Meet Vertical Specific Needs
Project Objectives
Based on extensive analysis of 2,010 small- and medium-sized businesses surveyed in the United States, a dozen phone interviews with SMBs across the major verticals, and five interviews with innovative marketing communication service providers that focus on SMBs, “Capturing the SMB Marketing Automation Opportunity” covers the following aspects of the SMB market:
- Understand the SMB marketing and business communications automation opportunity.
- Key applications by SMB vertical.
- Internal infrastructure and resources for marketing communications.
- Current marketing spend and outlook across applications and channels—Print, email, Web, mobile, and social.
- Current marketing mix for customer acquisitions/retentions.
- Management and analytics capabilities of customer information.
- Relationships, considerations and go-to-market strategies for external service providers, including awareness and usage of external service providers and understanding success factors in services such as design, photography, and advertising.
- Understanding success factors in technology.
- Identify pain points and future requirements across major SMB verticals.
- Provide recommendations on service offering, pricing, product offering, vertical, markets, and partner opportunities.
Additional insights are available from Pieruccini in an exclusive InfoCast. To access it, visit the InfoTrends Website.