Lead scoring & content marketing;squeezing more from your sales engine

Lead Scoring assigns a score to each of your sales leads to indicate their progress in your sales engine. A high score indicates they may be ripe and ready to buy, a low score suggests they should be nurtured.

Content Marketing is the creation of material that educates and informs your target audience. In exchange for their contact details, you agree to deliver interesting and relevant information... like this PowerPoint.

This presentation is in 3 sections:

1. The link between Scoring, Content and Lead Nurturing2. How to effectively Score and create great Content3. Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content Marketing

Lead Scoring and Content Marketing“ ”

On the journey from Suspect to Sale, the jump from Lead to Opportunity is perhaps the most challenging. Many leads fall into the Sales Gap.

The link between Scoring, Content and Lead Nurturing“ ”

Source: Sirius Decisions, 2011

Lead Scoring helps you to understand the position of the lead in the Suspect to Sales process. Are they an opportunity and ready to buy, or are they a prospect that needs nurturing?

The link between Scoring, Content and Lead Nurturing“ ”

Content Marketing helps to keep your leads engaged during a long sales process, positions you as an expert during that time and reveals their areas of interest. Ideal for lead nurturing.

There is a related video titled‘How to keep your sales leads alive’ at www.youtube.com/scisalesgroup

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”First, we will take a look at how to create great content.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”Develop content that is relevant for each stage of the sales process. At Prospect stage they are asking “what” will satisfy their need, so deliver impartial content.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”Now let’s take a look at effective Lead Scoring. SCi use a lead scoring system called B.A.D., it consists of 3 elements:

BANT – Budget, Authority, Need & Timescale

Activity – A persons online and offline activity; have they spoken to a sales person or downloaded content from your website?

Demographic – Are they the right fit; size of company, location, job title etc.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”

We start by adding points for Demographics. In this example, we could add 1 to 20 points (it depends on whether the target is a good ‘fit’).

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”

Next we add BANT. This requires a conversation, normally by phone. As they progress from Prospect to Opportunity the points increase.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”

Points are added for Activity. Note how a Product Sheet is worth more than a White Paper, and that email unsubscribing earns minus points.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”

Scoring should not stop after a person/company becomes a customer. Continuing to score will identify ‘active’ customers and evangilists.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”

The points are totalled to identify location within the sales process.

How to effectively Score and create great Content“ ”

The score is not important, what matters is the hierarchy

A low score may not mean a bad lead, it could just need nurturing

Analyse score algorithms against actual sales outcomes

Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content Marketing“ ”

Whenever you win a new customer, track the lead backwards to reveal the DNA of a successful lead. Consider multiple scoring models, perhaps one for each product or service.

Be aware that lead nurturing can take time. Research* suggests it can take 9 to 11 touches to close a deal with C-level executives. So build a library of inter-connected content to send them.

* Source: Act-On Software, 2012

Don’t be afraid to let your sales intuition over-ride the lead score, and be aware that external sales intelligence may also trump the score.

Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content Marketing“ ”

Ensure your content adds an element of original research or thought. Simply regurgitating other firms’ ideas says little about your leadership and will get minimal engagement.

Develop an Editorial Calendar listing subjects and media/channels to use. Be prepared to hijack any breaking news to make your content marketing relevant and current.

But you can recycle your own ‘original’ content. Some people may not have seen it first-time around, and you can use the same content in a variety of delivery mechanisms.

Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content Marketing“ ”

Get opt-in ahead of the EU Data Regulation (EUDR). Permission based marketing will always perform better than marketing that requires opt-out, but the EUDR will make it a legal requirement.

Make sure your content is mobile-friendly. We have seen a 201% increase in traffic from mobile devices. Here’s a few tools* worth looking at; JPEGmini.com, Litmus.com, ThemeForest.net, SparkPage.com

Seek out thought leaders within your organisation to add fresh ideas to your content marketing; but also use external experts to add impartial weight to your argument. Consider outsourcing the production of content.

* We do not endorse or warrant these websites and products

Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content Marketing“ ”Marketing Managers’

view

Bonus Tip

Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content Marketing“ ”Buyers’ view

Conclusion“ ”The link between Scoring, Content and Lead NurturingFor lead nurturing to be effective you need to keep the prospect(s) engaged over a long period of time and understand where they are in the sales process. This helps you to concentrate your efforts on leads that are ready to buy. Lead Scoring and Content Marketing give you that sales intelligence.

How to effectively Score and create great ContentAdopt a simple Lead Scoring method and keep checking it against actual sales outcomes to improve its accuracy. Award negative as well as positive points. The score is not important, it’s the hierarchy.

Develop different types of Content for each stage of the sales process. Keep your material original, but don’t be afraid to recycle content. Invite others to contribute. Ensure your content is optimised for mobile devices and encourage ‘opt-in’.

Top 10 tips for Lead Scoring & Content MarketingAn infographic of the tips is available at http://bit.ly/SCiInfo5

www.scisalesgroup.com

Established in 2002, SCi Sales Group began life as a B2B telemarketing agency and has grown to become a leading sales acceleration specialist within EMEA.

We have added other offline/online marketing tools to our portfolio, and can act as an outsourced extension of your sales force or a supplier of insourced sales talent.

For further information, please visit our website or sign-up to our newsletter – www.scisalesgroup.com/contact