a Bizcamp 2009 presentation by Charlie Crouch

1. 24 Oct 2009
Marketing Your Technical
Product/Service
... to my Mother
Companies with a new technical product or service follow a familiar path:
• Launch a new or revised website
• Promote the new product/service with press releases
• Provide support materials such as specifications sheets and technical notes
While traffic to the website may increase, follow-on inquiries can be slow, and new sales do
not appear as expected.
A major issue is that the company has made its offering based on technical features and
benefits, while technology may well not be the main decision criteria. Potential customers will
be looking for business benefits which have not been addressed.
Customers Act Differently
Companies think in terms of products or
services, while people think in terms of problems
or activities. Companies must approach
customers on their terms, not the terms of the
company.
Marketing Your Technical Product/Service! Page 1

2. In the past sellers would qualify potential
buyers, then approach them with sales
proposals. Now buyers conduct their own
search for sellers, visiting websites and
pre-qualifying sellers at an early stage
based on the material they find on
company websites.
Marketing Communications is Changing
The main goal of marketing is to attract and retain customers, but
again the Internet is causing change. John Sviokla and Antony Paoni Awareness
(www.svioklascontext.com) have written about the new face of
marketing on the Internet:
• Product becomes Personalization. People want things Consideration
personalized just for them.
• Static Pricing becomes Dynamic Pricing. It is harder to set and Preference
control prices today.
• Promotion becomes Persuasion. People evaluate their own
Action
information, using social networks to rank and rate products and
services.
• Place becomes Presence. Companies need to be first in line Loyalty
when potential customers are beginning to start the Customer
Decision Process.
Moving to the Front of the Line
To move to the front of the line, you must provide content that your target audience will find
interesting and relevant to their needs and questions, not just describing your product or
service. If visitors cannot find what they want, they will leave, and fast.
Marketing Your Technical Product/Service! Page 2

3. Three Key Questions to ask about your potential customers:
• Who is your target audience?
• What do they want to know? (Not: What do you want to tell them?)
• How can you make it easy for them, not you?
Using this information and the Customer Decision Process, you must design your website to
provide information to help your visitors make their purchasing decision.
Making changes to your website or message can help move potential customers along the
Customer Decision Process to reach your desired goal. Even a small improvement can have
big results.
Marketing Your Technical Product/Service! Page 3

4. Design for Your Audience
All your marketing material must be designed to help your potential customers make
decisions. High-value content will:
• Educate potential customers
• Include information to help them make a decision
• Include clear instructions for the next action to take (sign up, call, download, etc.)
White Papers and Reports
White papers and reports help people make decisions. They are a combination of a brochure
and an article, designed to be both informative and persuasive.
Case Studies
Case studies which describe real situations where your product or service has provided
valuable solutions provide excellent content. People like stories that relate to them, so make
your case studies relevant to the potential customers you are trying to reach.
Other types of relevant and interesting content include videos, podcasts, webinars, online
demonstrations, and e-books. All of these provide experiences which keep your potential
customers engaged for long periods of time, thereby offering you opportunities to help move
them along the Customer Decision Process.
Charles E. Crouch
Helping people who are lost on the Internet
Online Business Consultant
Lecturer in e-Business, Boston University, Brussels
Phone: +32 (0) 472 73 80 89
Email: charles.crouch@mac.com ccrouch@bu.edu
linkedin.com/in/charlesecrouch
© 2008-9 Charles E Crouch - Creative Commons Attribution (BY) License. You may copy, distribute and
use this handout freely, as long as you give proper credit.
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