Supercharging C-Suite Sales with B2B Thought Leadership.

Webinar on Demand - Thought Makers: Supercharging C-Suite Sales with B2B Thought Leadership.

This exclusive online event for UK and US marketing and sales leaders dived into insights from Man Bites Dog's comprehensive research study, Thought Makers: Supercharging C-Suite Sales with B2B Thought Leadership, to understand how C-suite executives from billion-dollar companies engage with thought leadership and how it influences their buying decisions. The expert panellists also discussed the thought leadership platforms they worked on in partnership with Man Bites Dog that are helping them "ride the Thought Makers wave".

Moderated by Fiona Buckley, Man Bites Dog's Technology Divisional Director, guests Tim Minahan, SVP and Chief Marketing Officer of the enterprise finance management platform, OneStream Software, and Caryn Herder Fritz, Sustainability Initiative Lead of the leading semiconductor designer and manufacturer, Intel, joined Fiona and Man Bites Dog CEO and Founder Claire Mason to talk about the power of thought leadership to bridge the gap between brand and sales.

Key takeaways:

• 73% of US business leaders prioritise strategic suppliers with strong thought leadership. 
  
• Investors are more likely to invest in companies where the CEO and C-suite are considered to be thought leaders.
  
• C-suite leaders now trust business brand content more than content from the media - offering an immense opportunity to lead change agendas. 
  
• Thought leadership is building trust and driving action at both the demand and conversion ends of the funnel. Over half of business leaders consumer B2B content daily.
  
• In the US, technology firms are winning the battle of the intelligent brands, with 72% of the C-suite voting for the sector as providing the most trusted content, and 71% voting for accountancy firms. In the UK, accountancy firms are in the lead, with 72% of C-suite leaders saying they trust content from accountancy firms above the media, followed by technology firms at 69%.
  
• The C-suite wants insights and thought leadership. 95% of C-suite leaders consume content from business brands at least once a week.

What can you do now to become a Thought Maker?

• Tim Minahan recommends that you "do your research before your research". This helped OneStream launch its thought leadership platform, Finance 2035, as more of a movement than a study, it started with research amongst over 2,000 C-suite leaders and the investment community to understand how the role of finance is evolving.
  
• You should showcase expertise and partner with the right organisations to share it. As Tim Minahan pointed out, even your best partners don't know as much about your technology, product or services as you do.
  
• Claire Mason urges companies to collaborate across marketing, brand and sales to generate and share insights.
  
• Have a big idea - a "Man bites dog..." story. Then think about the story arc beyond that big idea that you can use within your franchise of value to provide greater longevity, Caryn Herder Fritz recommends. For example, create ongoing benchmarks or indices that will populate over time with self-generated data. Keep finding those insights so you can continue your sales and client conversations. Caryn cites Intel's Sustainable CTO as an example of where they have used ongoing thought leadership programs to full effect. You can find out more about how this thought leadership began and has evolved over time in another Man Bites Dog online discussion with Intel: Tech Positive.
  
• Engage sales and use thought leadership as your bridge from brand conversations.
  
• Plan longer-term thought leadership programs to support sales and growth at each stage.

Supercharge your C-suite sales

Download your copy of the global and US Thought Makers reports here.

To learn more about the power of thought leadership to bridge brand and sales, contact us at [email protected].

For the latest updates on Man Bites Dog events and content, register for future event invitations here and follow us on LinkedIn.