MindTree Blog ArchivesFinal revisions are underway at MindTree to complete our 2010-11 planning. Of course, that means me and my marketing team are also busy finalizing our marketing plans. Clearly, there are a few central themes that are emerging from each plan.
Demand Generation and Brand Development are the “needs of the hour” for MindTree. We’ve read it in all the plans from our business heads. We’re probably not too different than other companies in our industry in this regard. Marketing is trying to figure out the right mix of channels to focus on, based on past results and future promise: channels such as the Web site; industry-specific events and webinars; public relations; search marketing; analyst relations; and email campaigns to name a few.
When you get right down to it however, the success or failure of all this planning boils down to thought leadership. How successful will we be in creating thought leadership (industry content) that will help us differentiate MindTree? All of our go-to-market activities are contingent on fresh content created on a regular basis to express our points of view and client case studies. Thought Leadership “feeds” the channels that drive demand and, in absence of a product, thought leadership also positions the brand. It becomes the lynchpin for all that we do through the go-to-market channels mentioned above.
On my trip over to India the week of February 15th, I finished reading Jessie Paul’s book, “No Money Marketing.” In it, she talks about Thought Leadership being one of 4 key channels that services companies should use to market themselves, particularly if you’re on a tight budget (and who isn’t these days?) Jessie goes on to talk about how in other parts of the word, a “Chief Thought Leader” or “Chief Evangelist” is a full-time role, but not in Asia Pacific. Maybe it is time that it did.
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Ms Amanda B says:
Excellent and very interesting writing in chief thought leader.
Yes getting the marketing mix right in the form of channels is key to my mind top three being:
Webinars
Search Marketing and
Industry Specific / Unrelated Leveraged Events
Will watch this space for more!
Great day
Amanda
LJ Gallagher says:
Well said! and relevant to what’s missing every single time I want to say “yes” and ultimately say “no” to prospective clients through the course of due diligence discovery – it’s the secret sauce that’s no secret to me – or you! Cheers to a “saucy” 2010-2011 for you and the MindTree team!
Mark Delfeld says:
I like the open nature of blog and wish you well in the coming year.
Have you had a lot of luck with search marketing? I don’t believe that many B2B service firms have invested in that vehicle because of minimal returns.
Re Chief Evangelist wouldn’t you want to have as many people as possible play that role, each representing their domain?
Lubna says:
Hi Joe,
I agree that thought leadership plays a strong role. In fact, with the strong leaders that MT has, both in the top rung and at the second tier level, thought leadership will continue to have an audience and would be the right medium to attract stakeholders.
That said, while I belong to a different industry, clients are no longer looking at standard solutions with some tweaking. They are increasingly asking: Will you run the risk with me. Fees, itself have evolved. From flat fee to profit sharing. If the customer does well you do well and you get your share in the form of success fees.
In that context, I think ‘Thought Leadership’ communication will also have to change. It may no longer be about ‘what we are’, but rather about ‘how we can partner effectively with you’. Look forward to your thoughts on the challenges faced in the ‘Thought Leadership’ space, today.
Best,
Lubna
Joseph King says:
Lubna:
Good to hear from you again. Thanks for the gentle push to engage with you and the larger world through my blog.
We are also seeing a shift towards shared risk models and interesting to think about how thought leadership will factor into that.
The main challenge I see with Thought Leadership today is how to get heard through all of the “noise” out there. Due in part to online channels like this, there is so much information available that it becomes very hard for the reader to decipher the difference between information and knowledge.
Joe
Jeff Ogden says:
Could not agree with you more, Joe, on the need for thought leadership. Companies need to begin to Think Like a Publisher and continually publish great content on a consistent schedule. But as you try to differentiate your firm, companies need to know what really makes buyers stand up and take notice. As Joe Pulizzi co-author of Get Content, Get Customers said on our webinar today, “companies need to deliver valuable, relevant, and compelling content to prospective buyers on a consistent basis.”
I welcome further discussion, Joe. You can connect with me on Linkedin at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffreyogden or you can visit my website at http://www.findnewcustomers.net
Thanks,
Jeff Ogden, President
Find New Customers “Lead Generation Made Simple”
Pradeep Sahay says:
Hi Joe,
I could not agree more with the essence of your article here. There is crying need for ‘Thought Leadership’ today in all spheres of business activity, when majority of the systems, ideologies have failed to live up to their essential promise of creating an egalitarian society. It means not only acquiring a professional outlook but being aware of the broader societal context in which an enterprise exists drive by a sense of well being and care for your key stakeholders and also an intensely personal point of view of what can be ane needs to be done