“What you measure is what you get”
Performance based marketing and ROI brings complex issues – not only do you need to know what to measure and how best to measure it, but there are also multi-departmental issues that sometimes arise.
There are also softer aspects to B2B demand generation such as awareness and profile building, which ultimately need to be factored in when determining overall performance. Just as sales teams are measured by their ability to bring in or grow customer relationships, marketing are asked how they can contribute to revenue growth and market share.
Here are some key underlying profit drivers and best practices to improve demand generation through a result based mindset, addressing some key ‘day-to-day’ issues that organisations face as they strive to achieve maximum ROI.
Sales and marketing collaboration
From an organisational view point, marketing and sales must both be aligned towards profitably generating business growth from new and existing customers. However, it is still common in many organisations to find that marketing are dissatisfied with sales follow up and, conversely, sales are discontent with the quality or quantity of marketing generated leads.
This can usually be attributed to a lack of harmony and understanding in regards to qualification criteria, and low visibility of campaign performance. Sales and marketing must have a shared vocabulary and understand the quality and profile of an acceptable lead in order to minimise this disconnect. Regular feedback and reviews should be conducted, as well as mutual contribution and respect for CRM systems to promote visibility, performance and steer future activities.
Create reusable assets and campaigns
Creating repeatable programmes or marketing campaigns which require minimal adaptation for re-use, promotes maximum return on your investments. One specific example would be within channel based marketing, where a ‘campaign in a box’ framework of reusable campaigns is created for use by partners.
Another example would be to create repeatable campaigns to target new prospects entering specific stages in the buying cycle. Yet another would be where you are responsible for creating global reach, local campaigns can readily port across multiple geographies. Identifying opportunities for asset and campaign re-use will enable marketing investments to stretch further.
Demand cultivation – nurture long term prospects
Demand generation, especially for high value propositions, is not just about a running a campaign, reporting on the results, throwing some leads at sales and then plucking an ROI figure out of thin air and then walking away. It’s about building relationships, engaging with your target audience throughout their buying cycle, promoting and maintaining positive brand awareness, recognising cross sell and up sell opportunities, and retaining loyal customers who will recommend you and trust you with future projects.
Your leads that may not be fully qualified for sales must be nurtured by cultivating an ongoing long term dialogue of sharing information and building trust. After all, what you know about your prospects drives the way you communicate, it enables you to communicate with them at the right time, using the right message, and via the most appropriate form of media, both up until they become a customer and afterwards.
Get external suppliers on board
Marketers typically outsource a variety of services from PR, creative design, telemarketing, advertising to demand generation services. Just as you seek to drive greater performance from your own activities, you should also seek support from your chosen supply chain and consider how best to optimise their deliverables to optimise your overall marketing ROI.
Treat your suppliers as an extension of your business and solicit their advice and involvement. If you believe in the concept of “what you measure is what you get”, then share pertinent metrics with them as this will help them to focus on making you even more successful and improving your overall marketing ROI.
