42 Rules for Growing Enterprise Revenue : Practical Strategies to Matter More and Sell More in B2B Markets

Value is in the eye of the beholder. Do your customers see your value? Business buyers barraged with a ceaseless, deafening cacophony of banal marketing-speak learn to focus exclusively on information that is directly relevant to them right now. To engage buyers and grow enterprise sales, companies must create and demonstrate tangible and unique customer relevance with every customer touch. In this time-crunched, information-overload reality: Customer relevance is the only way to generate customer interest and revenue growth Customer relevance cannot be accomplished by a single functional group There is no silver bullet--you have to keep trying new things and testing new strategies 42 Rules for Growing Enterprise Revenue provides practical ideas and proven strategies that boost B2B sales by making every aspect of your business more relevant to customers. The rules cover critical concepts, including: Making'Mattering to Customers'your company's core competence Pursuing markets where you're most relevant Cultivating Customer collaboration Defining value and relevance using the customers context Using solutions and industry specialization to increase relevance Putting customer relevance into practice through your sales channels Lilia Shirman, CEO of a highly respected Silicon Valley strategy consultancy, coach at Stanford University's Global Entrepreneurial Marketing program, and start-up investor and advisor, shares the best ideas and practices from her own and other executive's experiences taking B2B products to market. Heres a chance to learn from business leaders at Cisco, Adobe, Citrix, VMware, and others to distill actionable strategies that drive sustainable customer relevance and revenue growth. Marketing, sales, and business development executives face constant pressure to boost revenue. This book is a brainstorming tool meant to provoke discussion and creativity within executive teams who are looking to boost their top line numbers. '42 Rules for Growing Enterprise Revenue' is based on two concepts: No effective effort to grow a company is ever contained within a single function There is no silver bullet -- you have to keep trying new things and making bets So, this isn't a marketing or sales book; it doesn't focus on a single idea or framework. Instead, it discusses many different ways that companies have succeeded in boosting sales. This collection of practical ideas about the strategies that raise sales combines Lilia Shirman's observations from almost 20 years of experience in marketing, business development, strategic alliance management and operations with stories and lessons from other technology business leaders. The rules cover a broad spectrum of concepts, including: Laying the foundation for growth New market entry Sales enablement Solutions Industry specialization Demonstrating value Some rules are reminders of the things you know you "should do" but never implemented. Others might spark new ideas, or inspire different approaches to old ones. A few are warnings about the roadblocks you’ll want to avoid. All are practical, concise, and actionable. Customer relevance is at the core of any successful revenue growth strategy. 42 Rules for Growing Enterprise Revenue is for companies that want to matter more to the business customers and markets that represent the greatest opportunities for growth. These proven, cross-functional initiatives allow business leaders to identify and understand customers' context for purchases, and prove their companies' value in ways that are relevant within that context. Shirman combines years of experience taking enterprise products to market and interviews with business leaders at Cisco, EMC, Adobe, VMware, Citrix, and others to distill actionable strategies for B2B vendors to drive sustainable customer relevance and revenue growth. Annotation. Marketing, sales, and business development executives face constant pressure to boost revenue. This book is a brainstorming tool meant to provoke discussion and creativity within executive teams who are looking to boost their top line numbers