As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt business, every technology vendor has had to re-evaluate the ways they conduct business. Organizations that prioritize adaptability and resiliency are much better equipped to roll with the punches and meet customers’ changing expectations.
This realization is a perfect opportunity for disruptive emerging technology vendors striving to establish their brands and claim market share. If they can correctly adapt to the new customer expectations created during the pandemic, they can create a significant competitive advantage. Marketing should help drive the strategy of exceeding customer expectations and execution of that strategy.
Do More with Less: The 2021 Marketing Challenge
However, even as the pandemic brings opportunity, it also is handing its share of challenges as well. In response to the turbulence of the market following the pandemic’s first wave, marketing has taken the brunt of budget cuts in the past year. 42% of marketing departments cut their budgets in 2020. Even if marketing is being asked to do more with less, there are 3 specific areas of focus for emerging tech vendor marketers to focus on to address changing buyer requirements in the post-pandemic world. Look for these guideposts as you build your marketing strategy:
How to Craft Your Marketing Strategy Considering the “New Normal”
Once you know what to look for, how can emerging technology vendors build the right strategy? Here are a few places to start:
- Build trust through digital marketing content that uses trustworthy data and research to align with buyer expectations. There is going to be more noise than ever for your customers and prospects to wade through; establish your brand’s reputation by only creating and sharing content that is valuable to your audience and that is built on a reputable foundation.
- Emerging tech vendors need to prioritize awareness efforts to not only fill the lead/sales pipeline, but to also establish strong brand recognition – establishing market presence and building trust. Building awareness and demand has always been a critical part of marketing’s role, but now these activities are even more important for emerging vendors. The market is crowded, and you need your brand to be recognized – and trusted – now more than ever. Make sure your content marketing is supporting your brand and solution stories at every stage of the buyer’s journey.
- Don’t try to do it all yourself. Investment in content marketing and digital channels remains high, but the budget allocation for people and tech resources for marketers dropped in 2020. Outsourcing quality content is an opportunity to make up the gap but finding third-party content that is backed with data and expertise must be a priority.
Learn how to craft a full marketing strategy that incorporates these guideposts and delivers competitive advantage and increased revenue; read our “Tech Marketer’s Field Guide to Post-Pandemic Marketing Success” to learn more about the guideposts, landmarks, and pitfalls to watch for as your emerging technology organization navigates the new business landscape:
