TECHNOLOGY OPENS HUMANS CLOSE

OVERVIEW 

We helped the leader in communications and IP technology with the human-touch qualification of their top of funnel (TOF) leads to maximize their investment in digital campaigns and ensure that hand-raisers were actively followed up and no sales opportunities lost. 

CHALLENGE 

The $4.3Bn market-leading software vendor were lacking the necessary market insights to support their prospects through their buying journey.

They needed to develop a systematic, scalable approach to qualify leads coming from marketing efforts and avoid disrupting existing sales relationships that the person may have with the sales team. 

The sales team was at capacity from their existing pipeline volume, and they were unable to qualify and manage the higher lead volume.  

Prospects were at different stages in the buying journey, and intelligence was needed to understand their current situation so that the appropriate content could be provided to deliver a positive brand experience during this early engagement.  

But how do you create a personalized experience to meet the needs of the customer and the organizational needs? And how can you connect on a human level so that prospects are captivated and excited, regardless of how early in the buyer journey they might be. 

CLARITY 

The answer was in understanding the core of human nature and the clients’ values and vison. 

Using our business and customer service expertise, we designed a white-glove concierge program to engage with prospects where they were in their buying cycle and uncover what was important to them and their business drivers. 

The connection with these senior executives had to be timely and systematic, to deliver a best-in-class experience which was through a combination of telephone and email outreach.  

A partner was needed to understand the complex nature of the industry, have global coverage, and most importantly have the emotional intelligence to build positive connections in a sensitive environment.  

The brief was clear: maximize the digital investment to provide a personalized experience to the customer and deliver a higher return on investment without negatively impacting the existing sales relationship. 

Extracting customer insights to develop personalized nurture streams.

JOURNEY 

The journey started by using ELEVATE’s Data Alignment Methodology to consolidate multiple data sources, including webinars, content syndication, form fills among other lists into a single source of truth.  

Simultaneously, a Head-Start Session was conducted with the product marketing teams to understand the nuances of the different offerings, the stages in the buying journey and the probing questions and signals to facilitate discussion. 

Given the intention of this program was to gather intelligence and provide a good overall brand experience for these Top of Funnel leads — an agile approach was needed if a prospect expressed interest to take the discussion to the next level and meet with sales or ask questions about the existing relationship. 

Using our Lead Scoring & Process Alignment Framework we mapped the logistics of the campaign and how leads should be classified, routing rules after qualification, and the KPIs to track progress and constantly make improvements. 

Based on intelligence from Marketo combined with using the Art & Science of Communication techniques, we conducted tailored telephone & email outreach to the identified individuals. 

Each lead was validated, classified, and qualified, so that appropriate marketing collateral could be sent, and a personal relationship established. 

Based on the content they had engaged with and their stage in their buying journey, we adapted the cadence for each lead depending on the seniority of the prospect and the feedback retrieved. 

Contacts were then allocated to relevant nurture campaigns or routed to the appropriate salesperson for further follow up as required.    

This human level of qualification, was used to enhance the customers experience, whilst gaining a level of accuracy into their current situation and requirements that would have otherwise not been possible  

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” 

RESULTS 

• Development of a personalized connection
• Personalized insight of each prospect 
•  46% human-to-human engagement rate  
• 14% Immediate sales opportunity identified  
• Macro & Micro Analytics
  – Lead source
  – Sales stage
  – Pains
  – Business drivers
  – Buying intent 1–3-year timescale  
• Relevant and personalized content to assist each person in their buying decisions.
• Differentiation from competitors on both a product and corporate level.

“ELEVATE has proven itself as a results driven strategic implementor in their approach to lead management. We are pleased to have ELEVATE serve as an extension of our sales and marketing team.”

– Marketing Program Director   

IMPACT 

The customer experience was increased with contacts commenting that they had never received such a personalised experience from a large technology company. 

Increased visibility of potential pipeline impact from initial inquiry to potential revenue opportunity enabled expectations to be clearly aligned with internal stakeholders. 

Analytics of channel and content performance was key to adjusting targeting and messaging which resulted in increased double-digit ROI & reduction of spend.  

The sales team were able to focus on prospects that would impact the company’s revenues, whilst having the visibility and confidence that leads were being strategically developed to hit future goals. 

Contacts were now receiving information that would inform and educate them as they moved through the buyer journey, whilst developing a personalized connection to the company over time. 

Sales and marketing performance was now easily tracked at each stage, which enabled improvements to be made across the entire customer lifecycle and link each activity to impact on revenue generation.