Continuing from last week’s post, I’ll cover
integrated marketing for SAP and UPS. Both are B2B companies that successfully
employ integrated marketing.
I’ll examine these two companies just as we did FEDEX and Maersk.
Additionally, I’ll compare the integrated
marketing efforts of all four companies.
Then, we’ll look at what they have in common.
From that, you’ll have a best of breed
analysis you can adapt to your own programs.
Successful Integrated Marketing by B2B Businesses
My review of the four B2B companies below led
to some interesting conclusions. The main point is there is no single solution. Every
business does integrated marketing differently. You have lots of flexibility.
You’ll see that in my reviews.
Let’s get started.
How SAP Employs Integrated Marketing
SAP is a German B2B
company that provides business enterprise software. It offers a various solutions, but I’ll
focus on their logistics enterprise software solutions. SAP and Oracle compete fiercely for business in the enterprise
software space, much like UPS and FEDEX.
Content. Like Maersk, content seems slants
heavily in favor of digital. [Not surprising form a software company.] SAP has a complete,
media-rich web presence. I say web presence rather than website because SAP has many websites, each catering to a different customer.
However, you won’t find its tagline, “The Best Run Companies Run SAP”, on
all its websites. Instead, its current campaign, “Run Simple”, is what you’ll find across its online presence.
I don’t see this as an inconsistency. Rather, I
view the original motto as SAP’s main theme. “Run Simple – A New Way to Run Business” supports the original
motto. This is how SAP describes its new campaign:
“How we can all overcome the complexity that we’re needlessly
adding to our businesses, our jobs and our lives.
And each site has rich content: from articles
and blog posts, to white papers and webinars. Most content offers follow-on
information that delve into more detail. Click a link and you’ll go to another
article or a video that goes deeper into the topic.
Social
Media. SAP has a balanced presence on LinkedIn
and Facebook with more than one-half million followers on each site.
It also has a growing following on Google+
with 28,389 followers.
SAP also promotes itself or publishes content using
Twitter, YouTube, and Slide Share.
Besides these social media platforms, SAP
also has many blogs.
Its blogs are organized around five categories:
(1) Future of Business – with 5
sub-categories; (2) Technologies – with
6 sub-categories; (3) Line of Business – with 7 industries; (4) Industries, and (5) Small Business.
Each blog features multimedia content: articles,
video, pictures, photos, etc. You would expect that from a software company.
Moreover, you’ll find quality content everywhere because SAP employees – the
experts – publish most of the company’s content.
Integration. I mentioned above that SAP does not directly promote its umbrella
concept that the best run companies run SAP. However, it uses a derivative
theme that you can find throughout SAP’s content. “Run Simple” implies that the best run companies run simple.
On LinkedIn,
SAP showcases: (1) The Future of Work; (2) the Future of Customer Engagement,
and (3) Networked Economy. All of these
position the company as forward-thinking.
These showcases integrate with articles on their
website, with embedded YouTube
videos, and third party sites like the Economist
and MIT Technology Review.
SAP takes integration a step further by weaving sustainability into its vision to help the world live better and improve
people’s lives.
Surprises:
(1) Vast
storehouse of content. The vast
store of resources available to
customers. It terms of content, SAP content is
like the Encyclopedia Britannica with
a good dose of entertainment added.
(2) Social
Media Engagement. All social media sites display the same level of high-quality content. [Most of it written by SAP professionals on the SAP Community Network (SCN).] Whether
it’s original or curated, the content reflects SAP’s commitment to providing
customers with the latest and greatest information available.
That wraps it up for SAP. Now let’s look at United
Parcel Service (UPS).
How UPS Employs Integrated Marketing
UPS is the No. 1 shipper in the transportation logistics industry. Everyone
knows Big Brown, so let’s move right into how UPS employs integrated marketing.
Content. As with FEDEX, UPS has a good
mix of content type. It uses articles, blog posts, audios/podcasts, images,
press releases, and video. It also publishes this content on a variety of
social media platforms.
Its blog, called Longitudes, is described as follows: “A
blog discussing the macro forces shaping the global economy today and over the
horizon”.
The blog covers six
categories: (1) Global; (2) Trade; (3) Innovation; (4) Logistics;
(5) Ecommerce; and (6) Other Topics (including
Sustainability).
Clearly, UPS promotes itself as an industry
thought leader. Contributors include UPS
employees and executives as well as experts in their fields such as trade,
logistics, and ecommerce.
Social Media. Like the other B2B
companies profiled, UPS actively
engages customers on social media. It has 1.4
million likes on Facebook, 291,734 followers on LinkedIn and 66,383 followers on Google+.
UPS also uses Twitter extensively offering information about
deliveries or products. Besides that UPS
broadcast news on Twitter. It addresses small business needs, job openings, as
well as regional information about Canada, Asia, and Europe. They stay
connected to their customers.
Noticeable across UPS’ online presence is its
attention to brand. Its “We Love
Logistics” campaign comes through in its content. Specifically, UPS shows customers how it grows their
business, serves them better, while saving them time and money.
It’s a
utilitarian message that focuses directly on the customers’ needs. And as with
some of the other companies profiled, UPS
goes beyond immediate customers’ needs to explain how it supports
sustainability.
The
message: UPS is a good corporate
citizen.
Integration. UPS integrates its
brand message effectively with its content. I found no obvious discrepancies or
conflicts in their messaging. It also integrates its case studies or success
stories of UPS customers naturally
with its content offerings.
The
content clearly shows how UPS helped
a customer overcome an obstacle that led to success. That’s powerful.
UPS’ use of Twitter in staying connected to its customers is another
example of its focus on the customer.
I found
the online content to be exceptionally customer-centric. And it keeps its
message consistent among its various platforms.
Surprises:
(1)
Useful Content. Relevant
content is available everywhere - on the company website, blog, or social media
platforms. Content was clear and customer-focused. Use of case studies worked
seamlessly across all platforms.
(2)
Video. Extensive use of videos on its small business blog. This provides
useful information to time-pressed customers. Many videos also serve to
entertain.
Conclusion. Integrated marketing by B2B companies plays an important role in
effective marketing. All in all, effective integrated marketing includes a
clear, consistent, relevant, and customer-focused message among all marketing
platforms.
Below are ten
conclusions from four B2B companies featured this week and last.
- Integrated marketing and branding are mutually essential.
- Integration opportunities exist between online and off-line content.
- Integration opportunities exist within print and online content, respectively.
- Integrated marketing is most effective with a mix of content types.
- There is a clear trend favoring digital content delivery.
- Video is a growing form of content that integrates well with text.
- Big picture issues works well when aligned with mission. (Sustainability)
- Customer-centric case studies, especially video, integrate well as a form of storytelling.
- Consistency and currency matter - maintain consistency and currency across all platforms. (FEDEX)
- Integrated marketing works best when strategically planned (Maersk).
Did I miss anything?
If you
have any questions about my analysis or conclusions, please feel free to
contact me by phone, by email or directly on my blog.
Alex Milo
B2B Copywriter and Consultant
“Helping Transportation and Logistics Companies
Generate Leads with Compelling Content”
Phone: 256-886-4684
Email: amilo@b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com
www.b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com
Email: amilo@b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com
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