June 15, 2012, TheStrategicGuy.com by Marc Hausman
Events & Media Archive | 2012
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SAP Executive Reveals Shift To Customer-Centric Marketing
May 30, 2012, Channel Marketer Report by Alicia Fiorletta
During his keynote speech on Wednesday, May 23, Jonathan Becher, CMO of SAP, revealed the company’s continued transition to more customer-focused marketing tools and tactics.
“Because this is largely a B2B conference, you’re probably thinking our customers are companies,” Becher said. “But big glass buildings don’t buy software; people do. I think we’ve spent the last 10 years arguing about the difference between B2B and B2C and largely, we made it up. There are some differences between an impulse buy of a can of cola and a considered purchase of something that may cost tens of thousands of dollars, but the differences are much less than we claim they are. We’ve done ourselves a disservice by claiming the differences are more than they are.”
Sapphire 2012: The Softer, Greater SAP…I Hope
May 28, 2012, ZDNet by Paul Greenberg
Let me start this with a strange and seemingly incoherent (but truly more inchoate) statement.”If SAP marketed to the rest of the world, the way they produce conferences, they could arguably become the best technology company on the planet.
SAPPHIRE Now 2012 – day 1 wrap
May 15, 2012, ZDNet by Dennis Howlett
The surprise for most was that SAP took a radical departure from its past fare of grand visions and cheesy demos. Instead it got real, walking, talking customers to join McDermott on stage. I know this was CMO Jonathan Becher’s brain child as it is a topic we have regularly discussed. The questions from MSNBC “Morning Joe” co-host Mika Brzezinski were mostly softballs to even the untrained ear and at times bordered on the inane.
Even so, I give Becher, McDermott and the creative team a LOT of kudos for stepping away from a formula that no longer works and is often as dull as dishwater to business people. Of course a keynote of this kind is always a sales pitch. But if you’ve got to have them then I’d much rather it was customers doing the advertising than the often hollow sound of a professional sales person.
Brand Journalism, Disclosure and Sponsored Content
May 15, 2012, B2B Marketing Insider by Michael Brenner
In this video, SAP’s CMO Jonathan Becher (@jbecher), discussed “brand journalism, disclosure, and sponsored content” with one of the leading independent analysts in the IT industry, Jon Reed (@JonERP).
I was thrilled that they discussed the launch of our Business Innovation website where I am the chief editor (disclosure: I am a paid SAP employee.)
What should we expect at SAPPHIRE?
May 8, 2012, ZDNet by Dennis Howlett
My final wish is to see customers on stage answering questions that are relevant to customers. Seeing customers on canned video or answering fluffy questions in a live setting doesn’t do it for me. SAP knows my thoughts on this topic and I am assured that part of the program is evolving. We’ll see how much progress they have made along with the extent to which CMO Jonathan Becher can bring alive the promise that SAP is about customer users talking to customer user issues. That would be a major step forward.
Sapphire Now 2012: 10 Things to Know Before You Go
May 8, 2012, ASUG News by Thomas Wailgum
Sapphire Now and ASUG Annual Conference kicks off in less than a week in Orlando (on May 14, to be precise). In an interview with ASUGNews.com, SAP Chief Marketing Officer Jonathan Becher offered an overview of what’s new at Sapphire Now this year, provided some suggestions on how attendees could get more out of their time, and also gave his perspective on the unique partnership that exists between ASUG and SAP at this conference.
Industry Leaders from Adobe, Citrix, Concur, SAP and Symantec Will Headline SiriusDecisions Summit 2012
May 8, 2012, Digital Journal
SiriusDecisions, the world’s leading source for business-to-business (b-to-b) sales and marketing best practice research and data, today announced that senior-level leaders from Adobe, Citrix, Concur, SAP and Symantec EMEA will be keynote speakers at the company’s Summit 2012 flagship event, to be held on May 22-24 at Arizona’s Phoenician Scottsdale Resort. These industry leaders will share examples of how innovation in sales and marketing alignment has improved quality and driven growth.
SAP, Transparency, and Sponsored Content – an Impromptu Debate with Jonathan Becher, SAP CMO .
May 7, 2012, JonERP.com by Jon Reed
During a recent trip to Palo Alto, Jonathan Becher, SAP CMO, agreed to chuck the script and have an impromptu debate on brand journalism, disclosure, and sponsored content with Jon Reed of http://www.JonERP.com. Becher also shared the launch of SAP’s new thought leadership site: http://blogs.sap.com/innovation, and the guys hash out how this new site fits into the discussion. Note: Bob Evans, mentioned in this video, is no longer an SAP employee.
Identifying The Best B2B Social Practices
May 2, 2012, V3 Integrated Marketing by Shelly Kramer
Digital and social strategies are critical regardless of whether your company is B2B or B2C, but B2B marketers can learn a lot about best social practices from their B2C counterparts.That topic sparked a lively discussion during today’s Social Media Group webinar: “What Are The Best B2B Social Practices Right Now?” Featured speakers included Jonathan Becher, CMO of SAP; Jason Breed, Global Lead for Social Media at Accenture; Paul Gillin, writer, speaker and online marketing consultant; and moderator Maggie Fox, founder and CEO of Social Media Group.