As a result, they are outperforming their peers, according to a recent study by Forrester Research:
- Sales act on more leads. 46% of marketers at firms with mature lead management processes have sales teams that follow up on more than 75% of marketing-generated leads.
- Sales act quicker. 41 % of marketers report a one to three day lapse between lead generation and sales follow up. On average, only 1 0% of marketers say that sales follow up with leads within one day. Yet 2 5% of marketers that adopt mature lead management practices report that the sales team routinely contacts the prospect within one day.
- Sales close more deals. On average, 47% of B2B marketers say they close fewer than 4% of all marketing-generated leads or do not even track this metric. But the percentage of leads that result in revenue climbs steadily as firms’ lead management processes mature − 35% of mature firms say they close 10% or more leads.
|
The Solution:
Integrated Demand Generation
To drive marketing performance to new levels, B2B marketers have begun to embrace the concept of integrated demand generation and acquire the marketing knowledge and skills necessary to maximize their investments in underlying platform technologies. Unlike point solutions that enhance marketing in an individual channel, integrated demand generation platforms integrate and synchronize the whole spectrum of offline and online marketing channels, including email, direct mail, advertising, the Web, call centers, trade shows, partners and the sales force. |
An integrated demand generation platform can be defined as the system of record for marketers who are responsible for producing qualified leads and enabling the sales force to execute in the field. It should include:
- A central repository of prospect and customer profile information that aggregates and manages individual prospects behaviors, activities and interests;
- Tools that enable marketers to automatically pull, segment and refine lists and execute campaigns across online and offline channels;
- Comprehensive reporting and analytics for measuring campaign results and performance;
- Process automation capabilities that allow marketers to define and continuously execute a broad range of key marketing processes;
- Integration with other key systems for marketing and sales enablement including SFA (sales force automation) and CRM.
|
The integration of rich data and multiple channels is critical. Marketing research demonstrates that messages are reinforced and responses are amplified when prospects are reached through multiple media over time. Marketers are likely to have far better results, in other words, if they can reach their prospect with an e-mail, a phone call and a piece of direct mail than if they simply send three e-mail messages. The broader the platform, the more channels there are to help marketers execute campaigns that achieve a “swarm” effect: conversing with prospects across varying media to produce a desired behavior or outcome.
Such platforms are not “turnkey” solutions. They require marketing and sales teams to develop a common definition and understanding of key business processes. Thus a platform must be supported by an experienced vendor that provides strategic guidance, relevant insights and best practices to help customers fully leverage the power of the solution.
|
