So, you want to sell me something? Tell me, have you taken the time to find out anything about me? Do you know what my primary business goals are? What my hot buttons are? What keeps me up at night? Are you interested in truly helping me, or are you casting a wide net and hoping to find me flopping around in it? If you want to establish a trusted relationship with me, then please, show me you care – talk to me.

Business-to-business marketers have long understood the importance of defining target audiences before they ever begin the creative process. We define prospects in terms of industries, titles, organization size (number of employees or annual revenues), geographic regions and more. But the most important step, and regretfully one many marketers fail to take, is treating those targets as unique/living/breathing/feeling/
thinking individuals. That’s the goal of one-to-one marketing. It’s a standard today’s successful B-to-B marketers strive for each and every time they create a communication.

Consider how many technology companies have CIOs and IT Directors as their primary targets. If you want these guys/gals to hear you over the thousands of other companies vying for their attention, you have to speak their language and talk about what’s really on their minds. It’s not about you or your product, it’s about them. Yes, you can gain valuable insight from your management, sales, marketing and product teams, but to ensure your message resonates with the real people that represent your database, you must talk directly to them.

When developing/testing your company’s key messages with customers and prospects, ask:

1. Does the message address your key challenges?
2. What words or concepts cause an emotional reaction (both favorably and unfavorably)?
3. Is the message easy to understand?
4. Is the message believeable?
5. Is the message sufficiently unique (or could it be easily interchanged for any other company in our category)?
6. Will the message cause you to consider changing the status quo and taking action?

One-to-one is not just for marketers. In fact, it works best when a true partnership between Sales and Marketing exists, ensuring a continuous focus on each individual customer from the very first touch point onward. Treating prospects and customers as individuals with unique needs is a mindset that, if embraced by the entire organization, can have a dramatic impact on the success of your company. Not only will you develop more trusted relationships and close more deals, but you’ll be serving customers who truly need and believe in your product or service, resulting in outstanding customer loyalty and employee satisfaction.