Account-based marketing is arguably the hottest trend in business-to-business (B2B) sales and marketing. But is it likely to outlast the initial wave of enthusiasm? This month brought one indication of its potential staying power. 

For many sales organizations, the starting bell for Q4 sounded on October 1.  Now only two months are left. 

The heat is seriously on for any sales team that must stretch to achieve their year-end  number.

This article provides suggestions for how to perform something I call “deal triage.”

It's the fashion these days to write short, minimal content for business-to-business (or B2B) websites, even when the product or service is complex. The theory is that no one reads anymore. 

Nonsense.

Websites are mainly for reading, or at least for browsing.  When people make important decisions, they're hungry for information to guide their choices. They'll digest your content if you make it useful and interesting. 

This post is for people who work at companies that sell complex, expensive products or services to other businesses. It focuses on ways that your website and the content you offer on it should be different from those of companies that sell simpler products. 

Does your website provide enough of the right kind of information to help visitors make big buying decisions?

Hare are 10 suggestions to help you ensure that it does.     

For B2B sales and marketing leaders who want to improve revenue generation, several first-rate research, benchmarking, and advisory firms can offer great ideas and counsel.

This is the second in a two-part series about the top six North American firms of this kind. 

This Part 2 covers CEB (Corporate Executive Board), Aberdeen Group, and Forrester Research. Part 1 considered SiriusDecisions, CSO Insights, and SBI - Sales Benchmark Index.   

Nearly every business-to-business (B2B) sales or marketing leader is asked hard-to-answer questions that deserve careful consideration: 

• Are we doing the right things?
• Do our sales and marketing teams have the skills they need? 
• Does the company have the right performance metrics and motivators in place?
• How much should a company like ours be spending on sales and marketing?
• How should we organize our people and activities? 

When senior executives in your company ask questions like these, you want to think before you respond. 

Fortunately, a handful of advisory firms offer good ideas, backed by survey research and benchmarking studies. This two-part series provides an overview of the top six in North America.

All six firms provide varying amounts of free information online. For a fee, you can also turn to them for counsel and perspective. They get their insights from surveys, benchmarking studies, and experience working with companies like yours. They'll even custom-tailor their recommendations to your situation.  

Part 1 of this series covers Sirius Decisions, CSO Insights, and SBI - Sales Benchmark Index. Part 2 looks at CEB (Corporate Executive Board ), Aberdeen Group, and Forrester Research.

Each firm, you will see, has a somewhat different market focus and business model.