Today we'll talk about what exactly Lead Nurturing and Prospect Engagement means. We'll talk about why you want to do these activities, and we'll talk about some how-to's and how CRM can help.
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www.quantacrm.com
844-244-6310
Hinweis der Redaktion
Welcome to today's webinar on Prospect Engagement, Lead Nurturing and CRM.Today we'll talk about what exactly Lead Nurturing and Prospect Engagement means. We'll talk about why you want to do these activities, and we'll talk about some how-to's and how CRM can help.I'm Brian Dunn, director of marketing at QuantaCRM, and with me is Mariam Florio, senior consultant. I'd like to thank everyone for taking the time to attend. And I'll just take a minute to cover some of the call logistics before we start our presentation.Everyone is currently in listen only mode, so if you have questions, just type them into the question box in the GoToWebinar control panel, and we will answer those at the end of the webinar.Also, this webinar will be recorded, so if you miss some details and need to view it again, or if you know someone you think might benefit from the information that we present today and they are not present, then you can just visit us on our events page at QuantaCRM.com later today and find the recorded presentation there.And while you're on the events page, you will see our upcoming webinars as well as recordings of past events, so if you find this presentation valuable or have interests in other topics concerning Dynamics CRM, then you can sign up for our other webinars there.Today's webinar should run about a half hour.
For attending today's webinar you qualify for our special offer.if you are a current ontrack subscriber and you act by december 30th, then you can receive a "3-Step Marketing Campaign Set-up and Configuration" for $750 - that's a $300 savings off our normal $1050 price - to receive the $300 savings, all you have to do is mention this webinar and use the promo code '3 steps to success' when you're schedulingthis initial set-up and configuration will get you started using Dynamics CRM campaigns and can serve as an example for when you're creating other future campaigns inside Dynamics CRMAnd now we'll get started with the presentation.
What is lead nurturing?Let's start with 'what is a lead'?A lead is someone who has raised their hand. Perhaps by attending a webinar or by downloading a white paper or filling out a form online. They've provided contact information, and in doing so, indicated that they are a potential sales opportunity for you.So that's what a lead is. Now onto lead nurturing.For an academic definition of lead nurturing I turn to Forrester Research who defines “lead nurturing” as “a sustained relationship with influencers and decision makers in a potential customer, through which relevant and valuable insight is delivered through integrated channels in a coordinated process, in exchange for increasing intimacy and influence.”So what does that really mean in English? It means lead nurturing is about education. It's about providing information relevant to the appropriate stage of the buyer's buying cycle until they convert to a "prospect" or until demand has built sufficiently to pass them over to a salesperson to handle a demo or a proposal or sale.So to sum up, a lead is someone who has indicated some sort of interest in your product or service and lead nurture is simply providing relevant information to them to aid them in their buying decision.
So then what is prospect engagement?Again, let's break it down and start with the definition of a prospect.A prospect is a lead who has expressed interest in your product or services by indicating in some manner that they're preparing to make a purchase decision.They're a qualified individual, meaning they fit your profile of a potential customer, they've expressed interest, and they've expressed that they're in the buying process.Prospect engagement, like lead nurturing, is also about education. It's about providing information relevant to the appropriate stage of the buyer's buying cycle until demand has built sufficiently to pass to a salesperson.
So what's the difference between prospect engagement and lead nurturing?The difference between Prospect Engagement and Lead Nurturing is where your buyer is in the buying cycle - which determines what information you're providing them.<show graphic>Leads are "top-of-the-sales-funnel" to middle of the funnel, so the information you provide is different than prospects who are lower in the sales funnel and closer to a purchase decision.<show graphic>In addition, with leads, it's predominantly one-way communication (where it's you to them) and it's done primarily through mass communications (like email blasts or webinars) Now prospect engagement is more two-way one-on-one communication (like providing relevant materials on an individual basis).
So why do you need to do nurture leads and engage prospects?The reason you should be doing prospect engagement and lead nurturing is simple. It's because these activities result in more sales at a lower cost.As sales funnels lengthen, buyers become more independent, and attention spans shrink, so the case for strategic, effective lead nurturing continues to grow. If you aren't nurturing a buyer, your competitors probably are, and you will lose sales and market share to their more attentive voice.In a 2014 study, Forrester Research found that companies that engage in lead nurturing generate 50% more sales at a 33% lower cost than those who don't. This is because these companies are staying at the "top of mind" of their leads and prospects through constant communication, and because more expensive, high value sales people aren't brought into the process until the point at which a prospect is ready to close or needs more personal one-on-one attention.A Market2Lead study found that nurtured leads have a 23% shorter sales cycle, because buyers had the information they needed to make a decision. The same study found that sales were 9% higher for nurtured leads due to cross selling uncovered during the nurture process.An InsideSales.com study found 35-50% of sales go to the vendor who responds first to an inquiry. So besides needing to have reasons for prospects to contact you (like compelling white papers and other information), you also have to respond quickly when they request that information.A Genius.com study found that 66% of buyers said that "consistent and relevant communication" is a key influence in choosing a solution provider.Another reason for prospect engagement and lead nurturing is that you build "thought leadership" through providing relevant information – because people do business with companies they know and trust. So, if your leads and prospects see you as an expert in your field, they are more likely to do business with you.In addition, through the engagement and nurture process, you learn what challenges your leads are facing and what pains they're experiencing so that you set yourself up to have a warmer sales conversation as your prospects begin to make their final purchase decision.And, it's a great way to maintain contact and remind the lead about your business after they've stopped visiting your website.Also, you can generate new leads through the nurture process if you're good at providing links to share your content. Providing the ability to share your content enables people in your nurture process the ability to forward your materials to others who might have similar interests or needs.So to sum up, prospect engagement and lead nurturing are valuable, because when done properly, they generate more sales at a lower cost, faster, and can result in new leads too.
So what information should you be providing?To effectively use content throughout the buying process you have to first understand the stages that your buyers go through when making a purchase decision. These purchase categories can be broken down into three basic levels:First is the Awareness Stage - this is when the prospect realizes that they have an issue that needs to be resolved. So they start researching to better understand and frame their problem.Second is the Consideration Stage - this is where the prospect has a clearly defined idea of the problem. Additionally, they have researched all of the potential solutions to the problem that they are facing.And then finally comes the Decision Stage, where the buyer has evaluated all of the different solutions and now has to choose a vendor to help them solve their problem.Understanding these high level stages that your buyers go through allows you to better map content to each one of these stages.And remember, individuals that are working through a purchase decision will be looking for different types of content depending on where they are in their research process.<Show graphic>The materials that you provide to leads at the awareness stage should be focused on describing the problem and introducing your solution.At this point the prospect is looking for educational content to help them frame the issue. So it’s essential for you to produce content that will help the prospect better understand their problem. Content that helps advance the buyers goals at this stage are things like Ebooks, White-papers, and Research reportsThis content helps to educate the prospect and brings context to the issue at hand. This higher level content will be important for things like: “top-of-the-funnel” lead generation, elevating the organization’s search engine rank, and increasing credibility within the industry.So, once the prospect has a clearly articulated idea of the problem they are facing then they have moved from the awareness stage to the consideration stage. At this point they are looking for content related to solutions.The prospect wants to understand all of their options as it pertains to their issue. What are the different ways that they can go about handling their problem? Do they need to purchase software to find a resolution?Do they need to hire someone in-house, or can they outsource to fix the problem?So as marketers we must be producing content that speaks to issue resolution. Content like Webinars, Case Studies, and Podcasts.By producing this “middle-of-the-funnel” content we help further educate prospects on potential solutions.And, finally, the last stage of the buyers journey is the decision stage. At this point in the buying cycle the prospect clearly understand all aspects of their problem, and potential solutions for helping them resolve their problem. It’s the decision stage where the prospect makes a determination on the right vendor to help them solve their problem.In this phase marketers need to be producing content that speaks to the differentiating factors that make their organization unique. So that's content like: Vendor comparison guides, Feature differentiator sheets and more granular product literature.This is the content that will help you posture your product or service against competitors - and should also include materials that are focused on "hands on proofs" like free trials or demos and incentives to purchase.
How can CRM help? Now we turn to our expert Mariam for answers, so I will pass control over to her.<pass control to Mariam>There are several ways CRM can help with lead nurturing and prospect engagement.Better targeting of customers and prospects (eg, lists) <- talk about quick campaigns Taking repetitive tasks out of marketers hands (eg, campaigns), allowing focus on activities with higher ROI (eg, new content creation). <- regular campaignMultichannel marketing (eg, campaigns?) direct mail and with email too and phoneReduce human error in campaigns (eg, forgetting to send email?)Automation to schedule next steps for marketing and sales follow up <- Automationcustomer experience - autoemail template (welcome workflow)Improved visibility (seeing where each prospect is in the process and what should happen next) <- dashboardsmarketing management - dashboards to keep finger of pulse of campaigns// maybe - Lead management (eg, what has each lead received, recording what materials they've seen so that salesperson can close sales more effectively?)// Better email marketing (eg, integration with MailChimp) // 3rd party solutions exist - avoids blacklisting// not for this webinar (Dynamics) - Improving customer experience (eg, CTI and/or more informed representatives - more informed reps better) // Associating calls, emails, and other marketing activity with campaigns to track ROI<take back control from Mariam>
I'd like to thank everyone for attending today. I know your time is valuable, so I hope you found the information we presented valuable as well.If you have any questions that come up after we end the presentation, please feel free to reach out to us at 844-244-6310. We would love to hear from you.Again, today's presentation was recorded and will be posted to QuantaCRM.com/events later today, so if you missed some details or if you know someone you think might benefit from the presentation, you can find the recorded webinar there.And don't forget for attending today's webinar you qualify for our special offer.if you are a current ontrack subscriber and you act by december 16th, then you can receive a "3-step marketing campaign set-up and configuration" session for $750 - that's a $300 savings off our normal $1050 priceto receive the $300 savings, all you have to do is mention this webinar and use the promo code '3 steps to success' when your're schedulingAgain, I'd like to thank everyone for attending and wish you all a fantastic day!
