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How to Influence C-Level Decision Makers in B2B Marketing

How to Influence C-Level Decision Makers in B2B Marketing

Connecting with a B2B company’s C-Level decision makers shortens the sales cycle and helps earn a fast profit, which is every salesperson’s objective.

C-level executives are the ultimate decision-makers, so it is important to schedule, implement, and master tactics that include selling to them.

In B2B marketing, about 64% of C-level executives are reportedly the final decision-makers.

As a result, the approach to C-level executives must be focused and precise to influence them and pique their interest in your product. What makes your approach and plan more targeted and influential is something to think about.

Stop stressing and start reading to get a better understanding of the situation.

10 Ways to influence C-Level decision-makers

Here are some of the most creative ways to keep C-level executives interested in your sales pitch.

1. Conduct extensive analysis

There is no better way to impress or influence company decision-makers than to conduct rigorous analysis. Needless to say, the whole marketing strategy you pitch to executives will be focused on the results of your investigation.

Understanding the market and the brand will help you communicate the whats, whys, and hows of your approach, as well as the result of pursuing the proposal you pitch.

2. Adopt a multi-channel marketing approach

B2B-Buyers-Path

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It is convenient to quickly link to a larger clientele base with an efficient multi-channel communication strategy.

Using the inherent strengths of particular marketing platforms, this technique easily and effectively communicates the importance of a product or service.

Email, direct mail, blogs, social media, show advertisements, and/or a retail storefront are examples of marketing platforms.

LinkedIn is an essential channel. You should email a compelling offer to persuade the decision maker to accept your call, and then follow up with an email message.

As per Zoominfo reports, 52% of marketers use three or four marketing channels, up from 44% in 2015, and nowadays, business is determined by its customers’ desires and needs.

3. Recognize their problems

The-Biggest-Challenges-Of-A-CEO

B2B marketers need to understand that C-level executives work in a fishbowl. The actions and decisions of executives are scrutinized closely because the company’s future is at stake. As a result, before approaching them with a pitch, you must first learn all that is troubling them.

If C-level executives believe your product can help them solve their dilemma, the ball is in your court. Unlike mid-level executives, C-level executives seek product durability, ensuring that you have a good understanding of the product’s prospects.

As a result, if you know the pressure points of top-level executives, you can tailor the sales pitch accordingly, giving more flexibility to focus on the product’s key features instead of beating around the bush.

4. Timing is crucial

You must do everything as you say in your sales pitch, particularly while dealing with people in high-ranking positions. Since top officials recognize the value of their time, there is a growing pattern of officials working on Sunday nights.

As C-level executives prepare for a busy week, marketers may send them a quick sales pitch via email or other means to keep them in their sight. It’s all about timing in today’s B2B marketing landscape. Marketers will close the deal with less fuss if they make the right move at the right time.

While sending a sales pitch on a Sunday evening, make the subject line entertaining. Answer all of the important points briefly in the pitch, and conclude with a clear Call-to-Action (CTA). Furthermore, the content of the pitch should be free of jargon and entice the C-level executive to call you the next morning.

5. Become a marketing storyteller

Storytelling

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All top-level officials don’t have the same personality characteristics; however, stories have the power to unite and hook the entire tribe. The way marketers present their product must show their understanding and affection for it, and a great story may be just the thing.

CEOs can be autocratic, humble, and open to suggestions, or they can be utterly narcissistic. But if you can engross them in a compelling tale about your product, you have hit the jackpot with your sales pitch. However, when weaving a plot, make sure to keep the essence of the product in mind, as it is all too easy to stray from the core theme and lose sight of the main goal.

Since CEOs won’t accept less than flawless, be thoughtful and research anything you are going to present.

6. Develop a relationship

You should create your B2B marketing strategy to provide your company with more than just a business offer. Hit the right note with senior-level executives by humanizing brand stories to establish a long-term partnership.

C-level executives are creative thinkers, and a sales pitch from a marketer needs to grab their attention. You must treat high-level executives in the same way that B2C marketers sell their products to end-users. If the managers are losing interest in your product, explain the important benefits in depth to reclaim their focus. Remember to have a backup plan in case one plan fails, and to use it wisely.

7. Get referrals

Invite-&-Earn

Having referrals from people you already know is the perfect way to set up meetings and make an impression on C-level decision-makers. An expanded network of people will assist you in connecting with the right people to pitch your marketing ideas to.

Most marketing companies have long-term customers that were brought on board by existing relationships. Take advantage of this.

Mark-Zuckerberg

For “information and advice,” 88% of B2B decision-makers depend on WOM (word-of-mouth) both online and offline. It means one of the only ways to get a meeting with a member of the target account’s leadership team is to get a warm introduction from someone they know and trust.

Referrals, on the other hand, do not imply that you are neglecting your study or marketing strategies. Spend sufficient time to know about an unknown client.

8. Open and effective communication

At all times, particularly when engaging with top officials, the marketer must ensure that their sales pitch does not become a monologue. When making your pitch, interact with the officials regularly and answer any questions they may have.

It is necessary to provide free space and time for C-level executives to evaluate the product from their viewpoint and experience to influence them in the right proportion. Since they have a high IQ, their analysis will be crucial in making a decision.

9. Position yourselves as a thought leader

Building faith with your audience can be as simple as positioning yourself as a thought leader. You will help the audience see you as more than just an organization seeking to sell their goods and services by sharing other people’s insights and your own industry events.

Any market or C-level decision-maker you meet can form an opinion about your organization based on your interactions. When you come across as someone who has a thorough understanding of their business and the market, they will be more inclined to accept what you have to say.

10. Don’t rush

Maintaining a rhythm when providing a B2B sales pitch to a company’s top executives is critical, just as it is with music. The marketer should not rush to make a point or show the product’s key features.

Before pitching the presentation’s main points, it is essential to create a solid base to have the C-level executives on the same page. The presentation’s goal will not be met if the high point of the project does not resonate with the audience.

Conclusion

The art of persuading C-level decision-makers is largely dependent on your strategy and how well you understand the product.

Furthermore, if you deviate from a general strategy, it may benefit your pitch significantly. Keep your analysis intact and be meticulous about the statistics you’re presenting because the stakes are so high. C-level executives have an uncanny ability to spot something that is not quite right.

Guest author: Jigar Agarwal is a passionate writer at AgencyMat. He wants to unlock the world of technology and social media where every day there is a new possibility as well as innovation. Follow Him on Twitter.

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