Top/Bottom Messaging Approach to Shorten your Buying Cycle
The Challenge
Your target audience has been identified - they are director-level individuals that will be the buyers, influencers, and users of your product. The goal, of course, is to message these folks such that they see you as an authority and solution source for the challenges they are facing, and as a result, they react and connect with your content, promotion, or company. Your executive team or your clients have a different thought. They want to hop over that target audience and speak to the C-Level instead. They believe that this method will help drive a mandate down to the buyer – therefore shortening the buying cycle. You understand their requests (and the underlying urgency), but you also know that this method can be a little tricky if done incorrectly. You must now determine the best way to communicate with your target audience manager without stepping on their professional toes. If they feel you are disrespecting their perceived authority (going over their heads), they can quickly become roadblocks and dissenting voices to your message – so what’s a marketer to do?
The Solution
Use the top/bottom approach. Pour data into the top while pushing educational information from the opposite end. If your approach focuses on what appeals to each persona type, you can’t lose. It’s more work, but it can, in fact, help shorten the buyer’s journey.
Messaging In-roads
C-level folks tend to like facts and data that will help make big decisions. They don’t have time or energy to decipher hidden messages -use facts like market stats, success data, white papers, and visuals like graphs to help connect the dots. For your influencers and solutions users, provide educational information and outline how to help their organization and department become more successful.
Connecting with Executives
Financial Sustainability, Patient Satisfaction, and Consumerism are examples of what is stressing today’s healthcare leaders. Take time to understand these challenges, dig into data, and create messaging that includes stats as well as possible solutions. If your message doesn’t ping on top concerns, they will simply ignore it or kick it downstream.
Executive Communication Ideas:
Spark an epiphany by making connections they may not have considered.
Diffuse the sense that you are messaging a commodity, focus on value and long-term benefits to key industry problems.