Brenda Van der Steen, Content Strategy Group Manager presents at the Marketing & Sales Alignment Conference about how Qwest/CenturyLink was able to identify its differentiation.

1. Differentiation in a commoditized market:
How CenturyLink found it
Brenda Van der Steen
Content Strategy Group Manager
Business Markets Group
September 21, 2011
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2. Commoditized Differentiation … really?
Which one are we?
Which one are you?
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3. Even harder with….
1,200 Sales Professionals
110 Products/Solutions
5 Verticals
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4. The Math
1,200X110X5=660,000
Potential Messages
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5. Availability of CenturyLink services varies. Please refer to the following for availability details: HTTP://qwest.centurylink.com/legal/docs/availability
© 2011 CenturyLink, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Not to be distributed or reproduced by anyone other than
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6. The Result
YOUR BUSINESS LIVES ON YOUR NETWORK,
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR INVESTMENT
Cost Management Changes in Demand Continuity
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7. Deployment
• Executive buy-in
• Tools
• Training
• Alignment
• Focus on our
customer
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8. What we are hearing… the impact
• “We need one of these for all the major industries, healthcare,
finance, etc.”
• “This would really start the discussion.”
• “I was thinking the whole time, ok prove it. Then you did on
the last slide.”
• Comes from a point of view, “We understand your problems,
here is how we’d help.”
• I never thought I would say thank you to marketing
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© 2011 CenturyLink, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Not to be distributed or reproduced by anyone other than
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9. What’s next
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10. Pull-through
http://www.centurylink.com/business/resource-center/videos-and-demos/list.html#3022
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11. LEARNINGS:
• Rationalize feedback
• Better cross-section of sales participation
• Importance of executive buy-in
• Keep it alive
• Deeper dive...
• Finding our “Why”
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© 2011 CenturyLink, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Not to be distributed or reproduced by anyone other than
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12. Why?
YOUR BUSINESS LIVES ON YOUR NETWORK,
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR INVESTMENT
Cost Management Changes in Demand Continuity
Availability of CenturyLink services varies. Please refer to the following for availability details: HTTP://qwest.centurylink.com/legal/docs/availability
© 2011 CenturyLink, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Not to be distributed or reproduced by anyone other than
12 CenturyLink entities and CenturyLink Channel Alliance members. ASSETID# MM/YY