STRONG B2B LEAD
GENERATION PROCESS
RESULTS IN STRONG ROI

CATEGORIES

B2B Lead generation, lead qualification, revenue generation.

THE CLIENT CHALLENGE

A large manufacturer that is a global specialist in energy management and automation had a lead generation process that wasn’t working. Marketing-generated leads came from disparate sources and were passed directly to Sales team without being fully vetted. Sales was very reluctant to work these leads. Frustration between both teams led to a lead generation process that was inefficient. ResponsePoint was brought on to collaborate on a solution that would improve the flow of qualified leads from marketing to sales—leading to more revenue.

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THE COLLABORATION

The client deployed Marketo at the top of their sales funnel. All leads were processed through this system. As “qualified” leads emerged from Marketo, ResponsePoint called each lead to further qualify potential opportunities. The criteria for this qualification were established through collaboration with the sales and marketing teams. This approach allowed for an efficient assessment of all marketing developed leads, and quickly channeled sales opportunities into the follow-up process. Immediate and defined product needs were routed to the internal Customer Care Center for order processing, larger scope opportunities were assigned to the appropriate sales contact for further development, and unqualified leads were routed back to various nurture paths in the marketing automation system to continue the nurture process. This assured that only highly qualified leads were passed on to and accepted by sales

PAIN POINTS

  
Lead generation process lacked consistent structure and strategy

  
Internal resources for outbound calling were not effectiveg
  
Legacy of poorly or unqualified leads coming from marketing

  
Consistently unqualified leads created lack of sales action

  
Lack of communication and trust between marketing and sales

  
Availability of analytics for measuring results
  
Marketing automation system leveraged to execute email nurturing campaigns targeting multiple industry-based segments
  
Each contact action or activity was given a score based on specific desired outcomes such as licking on a link, downloading a presentation, or attending an event

  
Qualified prospects were loaded into the client’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and each contact assigned to a member of the ResponsePoint team

  
Outbound telemarketing calls are made by RP team to further qualify the lead

THE GOALS

  
Develop a lead generation protocol for qualified contacts

  
Improve the process to produce opportunities that sales needed to generate more revenue
  
Improve response time for newly captured leads

   
Bridge the gap between marketing and sales teams
  
Each development call was designed to establish a human touch and relationship, determine level of interest, answer questions, and assess where lead was in the client’s defined sales cycle

  
Continuous assessment, tracking, measurement, and optimization is reviewed at regular check-ins with client

The ResponsePoint Result

ResponsePoint started generating results six months onwards and focused on further optimization of the lead generation process:
Client’s previously inefficient methods have been replaced with an efficient lead generation process producing significantly more measurable revenue with correspondingly higher ROIs. ResponsePoint was able to help the client connect with 6,942 prospects and create a 30% increase in qualified leads passed to sales.
Through increased efficiency of qualified lead follow-up and a focus on building a stronger streamlined pipeline, unqualified leads in the sales pipeline were reduced by 84% so the client’s sales forecasts are now accurate and reliable.
The new lead qualification process using ResponsePoint has become significantly more efficient than the previous internal efforts. The time between acquiring a lead and follow-up has decreased from weeks to hours.
Sales’ acceptance of marketing generated leads is now more than 90%.
The client’s average sales cycle is about 18 months to close a deal, yet the marketing-generated orders that came from the new practices resulted in revenues of $45 million in 2015, $67 million in 2016, and a forecast of $98 million for 2017.
The relationship between the marketing and sales teams has improved due to a stronger qualified lead process, increased trust, and a smoother sales funnel. Previously, over half of the leads passed to sales remained at the threshold between marketing and sales. Now only a small percentage of qualified leads are at this level as they leads are quickly accepted by sales and converted into active opportunities they are working to close.
Need some help with your lead generation process? Not sure how to get started? Contact ResponsePoint today to talk about how your firm can turn weak lead practices into a program that generates revenue.

BIGGEST TAKEAWAY

Creating a strong, multi-faceted approach to lead generation that includes telemarketing ensures more highly qualified leads, more trust between marketing and sales teams, and increased revenue.