B2B Web Strategy Blog - eMagine

Does your nurturing process leak leads?

July 10th, 2008 Posted by: Bill Gadless

It’s an article of well-placed faith among B2B companies – where sales cycles are nearly always lengthy – that lead nurturing is vitally important.

And that’s in good times, when you may have gotten used to picking off new business like it was low-hanging fruit.  But as Anne Holland says in her SherpaBlog post, How to Ride Out the Storm:  “In bad times, the branches raise themselves up.  Landing new customers is harder – more expensive – just at the time when your CEO holds that ‘How can we cut marketing costs?’ discussion with your department.”

Anne’s worthwhile piece goes on to discuss tactics for getting more out of your current customers …certainly a sensible tactic in uncertain times.  But another implication of the tougher new-business scenario is ensuring that those hard-won prospects are effectively nurtured through a probably longer-than-normal sales cycle.  You need a good sturdy bucket for this ..not a sieve.

“Marketing for the long haul”
That’s exactly the thesis – and title – of Christopher Hosford’s recent article for B2Bonline.  He’s observed an exciting confluence between increased interest in stopping “lead leakage” and the recent availability of tools to help with the job.

One such solution, from Rubicon Marketing Group, adds rigor to an analysis of customer behavior online.  The system understands that prospects fill roles (decision-maker, influencer, specifier, approver, supporter, etc.) and follow differing pathways through the buying process.  It then helps the marketer set up tracks for each customer type based on their role and online behavior, driving them to ever-richer interactive content and eventually to qualified lead status.  “It’s based on triggers, such as ‘If this person is willing to download this particular white paper, he’s ready to speak to Sales,’” said Robert Moreau, Rubicon’s Exec VP – Sales and Marketing.  Along with analytics tools (e.g., from Eloqua and Market2Lead) and feeding information to a CRM package, the process can double both lead pipeline volume and conversion rates, he added.

According to Clark Newby, VP/Marketing at security solutions provider (and Rubicon user) Fortify Software, a series of touches – consisting of sales sheets, technical white papers, case studies and e-newsletters – moves prospects “to the point where you want to become part of a live conversation.”

Another automated solution provider is U.K.-based Alterian.  Says their CMO, Jason McNamara:  “We have four or five case studies where there is an immediate 20% to 30% improvement in conversion.”

Oh, and don’t forget the organizational issues…
With all the focus on tools, it may be easy to overlook the other challenge in implementing an effective lead nurturing program:  reaching agreement between Sales and Marketing on what constitutes a Sales-ready lead, and instituting discipline around feeding that CRM.  Your Web marketing consultants should be able to help you with all aspects of lead nurturing.

Entry Filed under: B2B Web Strategy, Converting, Lead generation