Stakeholders individuals or groups that may hold interest in the business or may be affected by its decisions.
We distinguish between two groups of stakeholders:
Internal stakeholders who are directly involved in the running of the business;
External stakeholders who are indirectly involved in the running of the business or are simply affected/interested in its activity.
The interests of internal stakeholders
Owners or shareholders put up the capital which runs the business. The reward is the gain they make from owning the business. If there was no reward, no one would bother to invest.
Directors and senior management in small businesses, the owners are quite likely to be involved in the daily running of the business. This is not in case in bigger companies, where a board of directors may be involved and monitor the business’ activities. The performance of the business has a direct impact on them — if the business performs poorly, they might be made redundant. If the business performs well, they might be promoted or receive bonuses.
Employees are involved in daily activities and bring projects to life. If the business underperforms, employees are often the first to fall victim and get dismissed. If the business performs well, they might be promoted or receive bonuses.
The interests of external stakeholders
Suppliers: businesses depend on suppliers for resources otherwise production may be reduced.
Customers: one of the most important external stakeholders. Businesses need customers to sell goods and services in order to remain operational. Additionally, many customers depend on the goods and services provided by businesses.
Communities: businesses could play important roles in a community’s development by supporting charities, collaborating with schools or expanding projects to create jobs.
Pressure: groups they are interested in the business as they attempt to influence its decision making processes (e.g., forcing the local council to act against industrial pollution).
Competitor: other firms operating in the same market want to observe their competitors in order to predict future activities and to react accordingly.
Government: legal institutions are interested in a company’s lawful conduct. For example, they could inspect a business’ licenses or tax records.
Mutual benefit and conflict between stakeholders’ interests
Conflicts may arise when there are many stakeholders, each with different objectives. For example, there might be a conflict between customers and shareholders as customers want the highest quality products for more affordable prices. Spending more on research and development to create new products might lower the amount payable in dividends to shareholders. Improving quality might also lead to higher costs and lower profits, directly affecting shareholders.
As it is impossible to satisfy all stakeholders simultaneously, businesses need to focus on the ones that are important to them. In order to determine which stakeholders need to be satisfied, businesses compile a stakeholder analysis: visualising which stakeholders have the most interest in the company’s activities, and which have the most influence over the company.
Example of a stakeholders analysis showing the interest and power of four stakeholders: government, pressure groups, consumers and suppliers.
How to explain Content Marketing ROI to stakeholders?
To explain Content Marketing Return on Investment (ROI) to stakeholders, focus on the business outcomes they care about, not just marketing jargon. Use clear, relatable terms:
- Start with the "Why": Explain that ROI shows the financial return from our content efforts – essentially, for every dollar we spend, how many dollars do we get back?
- Translate Metrics into Value: Instead of just saying "website traffic increased," explain how that traffic leads to leads, customers, and revenue. For example, "Increased blog traffic by 20%, resulting in 50 new leads this month, worth an estimated $X in potential revenue."
- Show Costs vs. Returns: Present a simple calculation: (Total Revenue Generated by Content - Total Cost of Content) / Total Cost of Content = ROI.
- Highlight Specific Wins: Share success stories or case studies linked directly to content campaigns (e.g., "This e-book campaign brought in our biggest client of the quarter").
- Use Visuals: Simple charts showing trends in leads, conversions, or revenue over time, correlated with content efforts, are highly effective.
- Focus on Long-Term Value: Explain that content builds assets (like website authority and trust) that generate value over time, not just immediately.
Keep it concise, focus on results and revenue, and be ready to answer questions about how the numbers were calculated.
How to explain working with stakeholders in Salesforce?
When explaining how you work with stakeholders using Salesforce, focus on the value Salesforce brings to them and the collaboration it enables:
- Define "Stakeholder" Simply: Explain they are key people or teams who have an interest in or are affected by the data and processes managed in Salesforce (e.g., Sales, Marketing, Service teams, Management).
- Salesforce as a Central Hub: Describe Salesforce as the primary place where we manage our relationships with customers and track important business activities. Explain it provides a "single source of truth."
- How it Benefits Them:
- For Sales: It gives them a clear view of leads and opportunities, helps them manage deals efficiently, and tracks customer interactions.
- For Marketing: It helps segment customers, run targeted campaigns, and see campaign effectiveness.
- For Service: It provides a history of customer issues and interactions, enabling faster and better support.
- For Management: It offers dashboards and reports for clear insights into business performance, forecasts, and customer trends.
- Collaboration & Visibility: Explain how Salesforce allows teams to share information, collaborate on accounts, and provides visibility into what others are doing (e.g., "Sales can see notes from a Service call before contacting a customer").
- Data-Driven Decisions: Emphasize that by using Salesforce, we have reliable data to make smarter decisions that benefit everyone and the business as a whole.
Frame it around how Salesforce streamlines work, improves communication, and ultimately helps achieve shared business goals.
How would you explain APIs to non-technical stakeholders?
Explaining APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) to a non-technical audience requires using analogies they can easily grasp. Here are a few ways:
- The Restaurant Waiter Analogy:
- You (the customer) are at a restaurant and want to order food (information or a service).
- The Kitchen is where the food is made (the system or database that has the information).
- The Waiter (API) is the messenger. You give your order to the waiter (make a request to the API), the waiter takes it to the kitchen (the system), the kitchen prepares the food (processes the request), and the waiter brings the food back to your table (the API sends the data back to you).
- You don't need to know how the kitchen works, just how to communicate with the waiter.
- The Power Outlet Analogy:
- Think of a power outlet on your wall. It's a standard interface (an API) that allows various devices (different applications) to connect to the power grid (a system or service).
- You don't need to know how the power plant works, just that the outlet provides a standard way for your device to get power.
- The Universal Plug/Socket Analogy:
- Imagine you have different electronic devices (different software applications) that need to connect. An API is like a universal plug or socket that allows these different devices to "talk" to each other and exchange information easily and securely.
Key points to emphasize:
- APIs allow different software programs to communicate with each other.
- They enable sharing data or functionality in a secure and standardized way.
- They power integrations, like showing Twitter feeds on a website, or using Google Maps in a delivery app.
- They make things work smoothly behind the scenes without users needing to understand the technical details.
Choose the analogy that resonates best with your audience and relate it back to a familiar experience.
