Joshua Feinberg discusses strategies for a green data center business to reach out to existing and future customers.
For existing customers, he emphasizes the importance of customer success managers (CSMs) and account managers (AMs) in maintaining strong relationships and ensuring customer satisfaction.
He also highlights the value of customer marketing through tutorial videos, webinars, and events, focusing on sustainability-related topics.
For future customers, he advises leveraging traditional marketing and sales development reps to target ideal client profiles, using buyer personas to guide content creation, and engaging early in the customer journey as a trusted advisor rather than a salesperson.
This video is excerpted from the podcast Ep. #57 Joshua Feinberg, CEO of DCSMI | Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast.
Action Items
- Evaluate the current state of the CRM system and customer database to identify opportunities for improving outreach to existing customers.
- Develop a customer marketing strategy that includes tutorial videos, email courses, webinars, and in-person events for existing customers.
- Research to clearly define the ideal client profile and buyer personas for future customers interested in green data center services.
- Create a content plan that addresses the key priorities and pain points of the target buyer personas for future customers.
- Change the sales and marketing mindset from closing transactions to becoming trusted advisors and subject matter experts for future customers.
Outline
Reaching Out to Existing Customers
- Joshua Feinberg discusses the importance of reaching out to existing customers in a green data center business.
- He emphasizes the role of customer success managers (CSMs) and account managers (AMs) in building and nurturing relationships with existing customers.
- The focus is on ensuring customer satisfaction with services like uptime and billing transparency.
- Joshua highlights the need for a strong onboarding process and maintaining strong unit economics to support hiring great people.
Customer Marketing Strategies
- Joshua introduces the concept of customer marketing, which involves one-to-many outreach methods.
- He suggests engaging customers with tutorial videos, email courses, and on-demand courses.
- Virtual events like live streams and private webinars for specific client groups are recommended.
- Offline versions like in-person events and customer conferences are also suggested for a more impactful experience.
Content Focus for Green Data Centers
- Joshua mentions that content and events should revolve around sustainability, heat reuse, density, power use, and decarbonization.
- He stresses the importance of understanding buyer personas and using their own words in communication.
- The goal is to deliver significant value to existing customers through a combination of customer marketing and customer success.
- Joshua emphasizes the need to align content with what is top of mind for customers.
Engaging Future Customers
- Joshua focuses on engaging future customers through traditional marketing and sales development reps.
- He discusses the importance of identifying the ideal client profile and the total addressable market.
- The conversation includes needing a target account list and understanding the buyer persona.
- Joshua advises against assuming what customers care about and stresses the importance of external research.
Understanding Buyer Personas
- Joshua explains that most of the input for buyer personas should come from external research rather than internal stakeholder interviews.
- He suggests face-to-face conversations as the best method, followed by video conversations if not possible.
- For those who can't access face-to-face or video conversations, analyzing LinkedIn profiles and search footprints is a minimum requirement.
- The goal is to understand what customers care about, what stresses them out, and where they spend their time.
Changing the Mindset for Future Customer Engagement
- Joshua highlights the need to change the mindset from closing transactions to being an early and frequent teacher and consultant.
- He references Gartner's finding that 83% of a typical journey is over before vendor contact.
- The focus should be on being present throughout the customer journey, from awareness to decision.
- Joshua emphasizes the importance of being a trusted advisor and subject matter expert.
Outreach Strategies for Future Customers
- Joshua outlines the outreach strategies for future customers, including outbound, ads, social reach, and email.
- He stresses the need for a comprehensive go-to-market playbook that includes all these strategies.
- The goal is to be present and provide value at every touchpoint throughout the customer journey.
- Joshua concludes by reiterating the importance of being early and often in the customer's decision-making process.
Resources
Watch the full podcast Ep. #57 Joshua Feinberg, CEO of DCSMI | Data Center Go-to-Market Podcast
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