How to Become the Preferred Choice in Your Vertical

Great marketing gives your sales team more meetings with qualified prospects.

Let's say that your total addressable market (TAM) is 5,000 businesses.

5% of your TAM is actively shopping for a replacement for their current solution.

5,000 x 5% = 250

Wouldn't you like to pitch every one of the 250 opportunities?

If you're looking to scale...yes.

Here's the test:

What are the chances that these 250 will...

• Think of your agency because you're top of mind?

• Add you to a short list of providers to research?

• Reach out to meet with you?

The bottom line: If your sales team needs maore at-bats, it's time to re-examine your marketing plan.

Why?

Great marketing ensures that your agency's brand is the preferred choice when your buyers go to market.

CQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does the 5% actively shopping segment of a TAM matter so much?

Because that group represents the pool of real, immediate opportunities. Out of 5,000 businesses in a TAM, roughly 250 might be actively shopping right now, and that's a meaningful number worth being visible to.

What's the real test for whether marketing is working?

Whether an agency comes to mind, gets added to a shortlist, and gets reached out to by the businesses actively shopping. If none of those things are happening consistently, marketing isn't doing its job.

Why would a sales team need "more at-bats"?

Because if qualified prospects aren't reaching out or considering the agency in the first place, sales has nothing to work with. More at-bats means more real opportunities entering the pipeline through marketing.

What does it mean to be the "preferred choice" when buyers go to market?

Being the agency that comes to mind first, gets added to the shortlist, and gets reached out to directly, rather than being discovered late or not at all during the buyer's search process.

What should happen if a sales team isn't getting enough qualified meetings?

The marketing plan needs re-examining. A shortage of at-bats usually points back to marketing not effectively making the agency the preferred choice for the buyers who are actually out there shopping.