Align Sales and Marketing with Lead Nurturing

1. Align Sales and Marketing with Lead Nurturing How-To GuideAlignment with Lead NurturingExecutive SummaryThe sales team complains that the tradeshow, web, or other leads they get are junk. Themarketing department says the sales team doesnt even call the quality leads they produce.Does this sound familiar? The basis for this common rift is a poor lead generation,qualification, scoring and nurturing program.This How-To Guide will outline the following:  What is lead nurturing  What are the benefits of lead nurturing  Action plan for getting startedIf you already have a deep understanding of lean nurturing, this guide isn’t for you.Instead, we recommend that you conduct a benchmarking exercise so that you can createa game plan for improving your lead nurturing capabilities. To learn more, read ourRevenue Marketing Transformation Guide.What is Lead Nurturing?Lead nurturing is about building solid relationships through consistent and meaningfulconversation with the right people regardless of their timing to buy. The intent is to raise acompany’s profile, making it more likely that a prospect will select your product/serviceover your competitors when it is time to buy. The technology used in lead nurturingencourages organizational alignment because it facilitates the pre-qualification of earlystage leads before they are handed over to the sales team.1 © 2012 Demand Metric Research Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

2. How-To GuideWhat are the Benefits of Lead Nurturing?  Reduction of Missed Opportunities Although many sales reps give up on an opportunity after one unsuccessful sales attempt, the stats show that people who take a vendor demo usually end up buying inside of 18 months.  Better Allocation of Resources By plugging your longer-term opportunities into a lead nurturing program, you can automate a drip-style email marketing campaign that provides useful information, webcasts, or other valuable material that will help your prospect make a decision. This is more cost effective than having a sales rep call every 2 months to check-in.  Sales & Marketing Alignment Working together to establish a lead scoring & nurturing system will better qualify opportunities, set proper expectations, and avoid the syndrome of fighting about how ineffective the other side is being. Assess the level of alignment between both functions by using our Sales & Marketing Alignment Tool.Action Plan: Getting Started with Lead Nurturing 1. Start Scoring Leads - use Demand Metrics Lead Scoring Template to help you analyze leads and identify strong prospects. The best possible score for a lead is 100, which is based on 6 criteria for evaluating explicit and implicit need for your product or service. Be sure to engage a leader in the sales department for this alignment- building project and consider using our Qualified Lead Definition Tool.2 © 2012 Demand Metric Research Corporation. All Rights Reserved. How-To GuideWhat are the Benefits of Lead Nurturing?  Reduction of Missed Opportunities Although many sales reps give up on an opportunity after one unsuccessful sales attempt, the stats show that people who take a vendor demo usually end up buying inside of 18 months.  Better Allocation of Resources By plugging your longer-term opportunities into a lead nurturing program, you can automate a drip-style email marketing campaign that provides useful information, webcasts, or other valuable material that will help your prospect make a decision. This is more cost effective than having a sales rep call every 2 months to check-in.  Sales & Marketing Alignment Working together to establish a lead scoring & nurturing system will better qualify opportunities, set proper expectations, and avoid the syndrome of fighting about how ineffective the other side is being. Assess the level of alignment between both functions by using our Sales & Marketing Alignment Tool.Action Plan: Getting Started with Lead Nurturing 1. Start Scoring Leads - use Demand Metrics Lead Scoring Template to help you analyze leads and identify strong prospects. The best possible score for a lead is 100, which is based on 6 criteria for evaluating explicit and implicit need for your product or service. Be sure to engage a leader in the sales department for this alignment- building project and consider using our Qualified Lead Definition Tool.2 © 2012 Demand Metric Research Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

3. How-To Guide 2. Evaluate Nurturing Tools – use Demand Metric’s Lead Generation and Automation content area for help selecting and implementing a marketing automation system and to figure out how you can create leads for your sales team. A few popular templates from this section include:  Marketing Automation Vendors Matrix  Marketing Automation Business Case  Marketing Automation ROI Calculator  Marketing Automation Vendor Evaluation 3. Create a Drip Campaign – use Demand Metric’s Lead Acquisition Model to outline and communicate your lead generation and nurturing process. Create your first drip campaign by writing a series of emails that will be sent to prospects on an on-going basis. 4. Measure the Results – Measure the results of your first drip campaign and adjust your strategy accordingly. The goal is to create a sophisticated lead nurturing program that includes multiple tracks for different buyer personas and buying stages. For more information, read our Content Marketing Plan Methodology.Bottom LineAvoid the common rift between sales and marketing by taking a collaborative approachto lead nurturing.3 © 2012 Demand Metric Research Corporation. All Rights Reserved. How-To Guide 2. Evaluate Nurturing Tools – use Demand Metric’s Lead Generation and Automation content area for help selecting and implementing a marketing automation system and to figure out how you can create leads for your sales team. A few popular templates from this section include:  Marketing Automation Vendors Matrix  Marketing Automation Business Case  Marketing Automation ROI Calculator  Marketing Automation Vendor Evaluation 3. Create a Drip Campaign – use Demand Metric’s Lead Acquisition Model to outline and communicate your lead generation and nurturing process. Create your first drip campaign by writing a series of emails that will be sent to prospects on an on-going basis. 4. Measure the Results – Measure the results of your first drip campaign and adjust your strategy accordingly. The goal is to create a sophisticated lead nurturing program that includes multiple tracks for different buyer personas and buying stages. For more information, read our Content Marketing Plan Methodology.Bottom LineAvoid the common rift between sales and marketing by taking a collaborative approachto lead nurturing.3 © 2012 Demand Metric Research Corporation. All Rights Reserved.