There’s Power in Our (BtoB Marketing) Habits

I have been thinking lately about the power of our habits – those habits that contribute to “negative” outcomes, and those that help us to meet positive goals.

A Shared Definition

After checking a variety of sources, here’s a working definition of the word “habit.”  It is something:

·      we do automatically without thinking

·      we repeat often as a routine

Good, Bad, the Ugly

Good habits in our personal life include brushing our teeth upon waking; clicking our seat-belt when we get in a car, or saying "please and thank you.”

Good habits in business to business marketing might include taking time each week to review relevant metrics related to marketing programs, monitoring key industry blogs and publications for trends, or a weekly update meeting with the customer service team to pull compelling customer testimonials.

Bad habits include biting our fingernails, late night snacking in front of the TV, those afternoon candy breaks at work, and more.

Bad habits in business to business marketing might include forgetting to keep a customer mindset in programs, ignoring key metrics like web visitor behavior, not regularly scheduling sales team project updates.

The Power of Habits

The bottom line is that habits have a lot of power in both our personal and work lives:  power for good, or power for bad. 

As marketers, we are wise to build a set of routine behaviors that deliver the best business outcome for our clients.

• Routinely checking customer service for mini success stories is a powerful habit that fuels content marketing programs.
• Regularly posting comments on thought leadership blogs and articles helps your client “get in the conversation.”

Intrigued?  See one of the best posts out there about “habits of highly effective marketers” here…