B2B Reads: All the Feels, Eat Your Frogs First, & Customers Always Know

In addition to our Sunday App of the Week feature, we also summarize some of our favorite B2B sales & marketing posts from around the web each week. We’ll miss a ton of great stuff, so if you found something you think is worth sharing please add it to the comments below.

A World Without Email: Reimagining Work in an Age of Communication Overload
The idea of email spread quickly during the early 1990s because it was more productive than sending around paper memos in those folders with the little red thread ties. But as email moved from office to office, there was an unexpected side effect, a new way of collaborating: the hyperactive hive-mind workflow. Thank you for the great read, Cal Newport.

All the Feels: Why It Pays to Notice Emotions in the Workplace
Leaders are recognizing employees’ feelings and tapping into an important way to build trust. When we acknowledge emotions, we humanize and validate the person being acknowledged. Thank you, Theodore Kinni, for the insightful read.

3 Ways To Build Better Human Connections With Virtual Events
This past year has resulted in many people working remotely, and for B2B marketers and events specialists that have been used to bringing people together face-to-face, it’s been a steep learning curve. But it poses a question — how can we create genuine human connections and engagement in a digital world? Thank you, ON24 for the informational read.

Empathy is a Superpower in Marketing and Sales
The ability to see things from your customer’s perspective doesn’t just make you a more likable salesperson or marketer—it’s a huge advantage in terms of business outcomes. Thank you for the great discussion, Brian Carroll and Ben Goldstein.

Eat Your Frogs First Thing In The Morning
There’s an old saying that if the first thing you do each morning is eat a live frog, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you’re done with the worst thing you’ll have to do all day. For Tracy, eating a frog is a metaphor for tackling your most challenging task—but also the one that can have the greatest positive impact on your life. Thank you, Brad Feld for the mindful read.

How Content Operations Magically Balances Creativity and Scale
Getting content operations right frees marketers to act like creative kids and still produce an efficient, scalable product. And since the creation, production, and activation of content is now the heart of marketing, content operations make the heart function. Thank you for the great read, Robert Rose.

Author Talks: Somebody Tell a Joke
Drawing on years of field research and classroom workshops, Jennifer and Naomi explain the theory of humor—what it is, how it works, and why business leaders need it—without totally giving away the punchline. Thank you, Roberta Fusaro, Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas, for the humorous insight.

Five Digital Strategies For Improving The B2B Buying Experience
With highly technical solutions, a multitude of decision-makers and large budgets at stake, the B2B buying experience has historically been complex. Embracing digital buying processes in the customer journey — from the research phase to post-sales — is the only way to keep up with customers’ evolving expectations today. Thank you for the informative read, Marie Hattar.

Yes, Customers Always Know What They Want
People don’t know what they want until someone makes it first. If that’s true, then focus groups, surveys, or any other market research won’t make a difference since people can’t tell you what they want—except for specific features of already-developed products. Thank you, Allen Weiss for the great read.

B2B Marketer Pain Points, Performance, and Priorities for the Year Ahead
Because of economic uncertainty and rapid acceleration of digital transformation, 2020 was a challenging year for most businesses. Many B2B organizations—especially those in manufacturing and industrial sectors—had not yet developed strategic road maps for investing in the likes of marketing automation and e-commerce, yet they found themselves propelled into a digital-first ecosystem to keep up with fast-changing market dynamics. Thank you, Julia Doheny (Cupman), for the insightful read.