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7 Smart Marketing Tipsfor Channel Partners

Are you interested in attracting more prospective clients? Would you like higher conversion rates? Do you want your marketing efforts to be more efficient? If your answer is yes to any of these, then you should know that you can achieve these goals by adopting smart marketing strategies for your business. Smart marketing is characterized by deliberate, strategic actions that sales agents and VARs can take to increase sales. Smart marketing is taking advantage of every opportunity you have to interact with and build relationships with prospective and current clients. Every opportunity matters: Channel Marketer Report found that small business owners who personalized their marketing efforts garnered up to a 20 percent increase in sales.

What do smart marketing strategies look like? Here are six marketing strategies that you can begin pursuing (or fine-tuning) today.

1. Make it personal.This year, personalized marketing is expected to dominate. Personalized marketing appeals directly to hand-selected prospects through a customized web experience that responds to the customer’s preferences, interests, and purchasing habits. Nearly 90 percent of marketers agree that businesses get their best results when marketing efforts are personalized for a specific audience. However, only about 5 percent of all businesses engage in personalized marketing.

2. Leverage mobile device opportunities.Current and future prospects are likely to be heavy users of mobile devices. Within the next year, mobile users are expected to make nearly 270 billion downloads and to engage with more than 100 mobile services and applications every day. In addition, online consumers take personalized recommendations very seriously: an estimated 45 percent are more likely to shop on sites that make custom-tailored suggestions. Smart marketing takes prime advantage of mobile opportunities.

3. Ramp up your website.Nearly 90 percent of those looking for technology-related solutions or services begin their search online, according to Modern Marketing Partners. An online presence is an undeniable necessity for any business, and if you capitalize on its possibilities, your website is sure to enhance your list of prospects, conversion rates, customer loyalty, customer relationships, and referral rates. One way to do this is through a thought leadership blog, which can act as an initial point of contact with prospects who can benefit from your products and services. Of course, your website will also share information about your company, services, and solutions offered.

4. Utilize social media.Social media is a gold mine for uncovering potential prospects, getting referrals, and building relationships with current clients via sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Make efficient use of your online time by identifying the groups and sites that are most used in the industry. Be sure to link back to your thought leadership blog and include contact information on your social media sites to increase ease of communication.

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5. Make smart use of email marketing.Email marketing is another key way to reach a prospect on a personal level. Be sure to take full advantage of this by personalizing the email, which Channel Marketer Report revealed significantly increases a response.

• Personalized emails were 25 percent more likely to be opened.• Personalized emails had 51 percent higher click-through rates.

6. Pursue networking opportunities.Attendance at in-person conferences and seminars, involvement in local and national events, and sponsorship of local organizations and charities significantly boost your reputation, brand, and overall visibility for current and potential clients. Never underestimate the power of a handshake.

7. Utilize resources offered by your channel partner program.Forward-thinking channel partner programs offer substantial marketing resources for their partners in support of sales and revenue growth. The Spectrum Business Partner Program, for example, recently launched a portal of customer acquisition and sub-agent recruitment materials for partners.

Using the portal, partners can do the following:• Co-brand marketing materials.• Easily create a customized call-to-action.• Select personalized materials to print and distribute.• Utilize HTML-coded templates--paid for by the partner program--to advertise their landing page, call-to-action, logo, and

contact information.• Take advantage of volume pricing discounts for printing.

For more smart marketing tips and resources, contact the Spectrum Business Partner Program and fine-tune your approach to attracting new customers and agents.

7 Smart Marketing Tipsfor Channel Partners