In today’s episode – the thirty-second in our series – Bart Burggraaf, partner at MediaGroup, speaks to Mark Ong, corporate marketing director at Phoenix Contact. 

Mark brings the insights he has gleaned from a 16-year marketing career working on many niche, technical and international campaigns. This episode focuses on revenue-driven approach – a strategy focusing on measurable sales outputs to maximise value-add and reportability.

Working in niche markets in the B2B segment across companies including Honeywell, A4 Tech and most recently, Phoenix Contact, Mark highlights the importance of a revenue-driven marketing strategy. As part of the general trend towards ‘digital first’, focusing on a close relationship with sales and performance measurement allows marketers to show their utility and protect from the trap of being seen as a cost centre.

Trade shows are a key part of the marketing journey in niche markets and for technical products. Interestingly, Mark noticed an improvement in trade show engagement during the COVID lockdown, as virtual reality and easier tracking of attendants improved engagement with marketing. Mark discusses avoiding common trade show mistakes, such as always speaking to the same sales staff.

Throughout, the importance of measurement is stressed again and again. If you can't measure performance and link it to marketing spending, it is hard to justify the department's role. As Mark puts it, 'if it isn't on Salesforce, it didn't happen.'

Memorable Marketing by MediaGroup interviews leading CMO’s, business innovators, entrepreneurs, experts on all things marketing, brands, campaigns, and awareness. Please join the conversation by leaving your comments, thoughts and questions and we will be happy to chat with you. If you want to discuss your business marketing strategies in more detail, feel free to reach out to us at: [email protected].