The Painful High Road

In the late 1990s, Cysive was a foundation client.  We played a lead role in building the company’s reputation, investing thousands of dollars in time each month above their retainer fee.

The company rode the dot com wave and was on a path to raise millions in the public markets.  All of our investment and loyalty was going to pay off in a six figure account for Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) 

Or so I thought.  They hired a new hotshot VP, Marketing out of Intel who then proceeded to fire us for one of the big brand name communications firms.

When the Marketing VP phoned me to strike our death blow the final insult was his decision to have the new firm manage a press interview I had been working on for six months.

My response, “If you guys mess this up I am going to be f--king pissed.”

As soon as the words slipped from my mouth I knew the relationship between Cysive and Strategic was forever shot.  My response was emotional, unprofessional and immature.

Which brings me to a blog post recently published on a government-oriented social network called MeriTalk.  Entitled “The Sting," author Steve O’Keeffe of communications consultancy O’Keeffe & Company relates a sad and frustrating tale of his company’s soured business relationship with a partner on a key government contract.

Steve O'Keeffe - jilted partner

There’s no way I can verify O’Keeffe’s presentation of the events portrayed in the post.  If it is true, his company was certainly mistreated.  

Yet, his decision to openly call out another company in a social environment – which he justifies with his belief in transparency – is misguided.  Why?

For starters, O’Keeffe’s post may be perceived by many as merely the rants of a spoiled child.  Although penning this article probably felt good at the time (as did my dropping the f-bomb on Cysive), the impression he has created is inconsistent with the premium brand he has worked so hard to build for his firm.

Second, O’Keeffe is inappropriately using his position of influence and authority as a top flight business leader and content publisher.  In an Email to the CEO of his company’s now former partner, O’Keeffe subtly delivers a threat which he has now made good on:

“I am frequent contributor to newspapers and magazines – and generate a weekly blog which goes out to 85,000 in the government and contractor community.”

And finally (and perhaps most important), this post potentially damages his firm’s ability to identify teaming partners for future business opportunities.  Things sometimes sour in a relationship.  Would you want to hit a tough stretch with O’Keeffe as your partner?

As a business owner, I know that it can be painfully excruciating to remain on the high road.  It is important to do so though, especially when it comes to participation in social media.   

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Disclosure:  My firm has competed for business against O'Keeffe & Company.  I've met Steve several times, yet we have no meaningful relationship or connection.  

Social Media and Sales Acceleration in the Public Sector

When it comes to the public sector there is seldom a quick hit in enterprise sales.

Prospective government customers are appropriately demanding.  They assess corporate capabilities and reputation.  They evaluate product features and service offerings.  They judge track record and contract performance. 

A vendor that attempts to rush this evaluation process can sour the deal and, in some instances, soil the long-term relationship.  That's because connections with government buyers are cultivated over time. 

In fact, it's quite common for the opportunity identification and capture process to be measured in years.

The payoff sure is sweet though.  Revenue generated from a multi-year, enterprise deal with a government agency can run well into the millions of dollars.  Plus, the lifetime value of the customer engagement is significant, as it provides a critical qualification that can lead to follow-on work and new opportunities.

At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), the majority of our clients sell complex products and services to government agencies, at both the federal and state/local levels.  As such, our social media marketing focus and engagement methodology has gravitated towards direct support of the three most important benchmarks for success in the sales process -- lead generation, cultivation of prospect relationships and deal capture.

Yes...it is possible for executive management and marketers to align social media with sales by following these four steps:

Step 1 Evaluate prospects in the pipeline and prioritize the hot ones.  Work closely with the sales team to cull prospects based on their purchase authority, intimacy of the existing relationship and timeline to buy.  We'll typically select 20 to 25 targets who we anticipate having a need in the next 18 months.

Step 2 Map and monitor.  Outline each prospect's social media engagement and online participation.  What social networks are they active in?  Do they blog?  Who do they follow?  Who follows them? 

Monitor and update this social media map at least twice monthly to stay tuned in to how the prospect's network of connections evolves.

Step 3 Engage in a prospect's communities of choice.  Connect socially with each target in LinkedIn, Govloop, GovWin, Twitter and the other online networks where they already spend time.  Follow the conversations they participate in and stay tuned in to their updates. 

Then, identify opportunities to bring value to the online discussion by sharing relevant content.  This could include posts from your corporate blog, links to trade articles or research, and technical white papers and presentations.  Steer clear of a blatant sales pitch by focusing on thought leadership and best practices.

Step 4 Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate.  Set tactical benchmarks such as the number of prospect connections made in a social environment, online interactions and prospect visits to the corporate blog.  Government buyers engage with those they trust, so this dialogue represents a deepening relationship. 

Equally important, collaborate with the sales team on an ongoing basis to shape content for the blog and provide intelligence on how prospects interact with the company in an online environment.  Seek anecdotal feedback from sales reps to understand how they have leveraged these social contacts to move deals forward more quickly.

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This article will appear in an upcoming issue of an e-newsletter published by Market Connections, a provider of business-to-business and business-to-government market research services.  Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) has partnered with Market Connections to survey the social media adoption of government agencies and public sector contractor community.

GovWin Delivers for Federally Focused Vendors

Most social networks fall into one of three distinct categories:

1. Horizontal oriented communities that measure their influence based on quantity.  For instance, Facebook sports a jaw-dropping 600 million members, while LinkedIn reports more than 70 million business users.

2. Vertical or niche market networks that offer access to a more targeted collection of members.  Govloop, Police Link and InMobile are examples.

3. Publication, association or industry managed networks.  Participation in these groups offer relationship-building opportunities with other like-minded members, as well as the credibility of networking in an environment that leverages the reputation of the organizing group.  CIO Magazine's online community of readers and Fast Company magazine's network are two examples.

For systems integrators, technology providers and other vendors the work with federal agencies, an online community of great interest is GovWin.  This platform offers access to more than 30,000 business contacts, market intelligence, and the tools to help its members identify government contract opportunities and teaming partners.

A basic membership in GovWin is free and the sign-up process is straight-forward.  However, once a contractor joins the community determining how to best participate and what outcomes to expect can be overwhelming.

GovWin's Jeff White

With this in mind, I called Jeff White of GovWin, to get his thoughts on how an individuals can derive the most measurable value from a GovWin membership.

Here are his four suggestions:

1. Create a profile:  this is how to promote yourself and your company to GovWin's members.  You can overview your company's capabilities and track record, and then add "tags" to the profile to make it searchable.

2. Set up subscription alerts:  based on the types of news, events, topics, contract opportunities, etc. that you find of interest, GovWin will notify you in real time when relevant content is posted to the community.

3. Complete the supplier verification process:  for contractors that elect to provide more detailed information about their business, GovWin's staff will review and validate these credentials and provide a certification similar to a Better Business Bureau stamp of approval.  This third-party validation enhances a company's standing in the community.

4. Join the groups:  they've been created by prime contractors such as Lockheed Martin, CACI, Mantech, Serco and others.  According to White, these primes anticipate awarding $8 billion in annual subcontract business to partners they identify through GovWin.

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Disclosure:  GovWin is a Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) client.