Modern marketing can sometimes seem a little impersonal, particularly in the business-to-business sector. When selling big-ticket items to be used by a company rather than an individual, it’s easy to forget that actual people are involved in the process.
Yet in order to be successful, a marketer must look beyond the numbers and realize that, when it all boils down, marketing is simply a different version of one person trying to communicate with another.
It may happen on a grander scale and through high-tech media, but essentially marketing is a dialogue. And it’s this dialogue between marketer and customer that can make or break the success of a marketing campaign.
In the industry, this dialogue is known as “lead nurturing.” Lead nurturing is a vital step in the overall lead management process.
The majority of people who investigate a product or service are doing just that: investigating, whether by visiting a website, requesting information, etc. They are not yet ready to commit to the purchase. These potential leads are vital to a lead management program. By opening up a consistent and meaningful dialogue with these prospects, marketers are solidifying long-term relationships with people that may eventually translate into sales.
Many marketers face a problem with lead nurturing. The sheer number of these prospective leads makes it difficult to establish a purposeful relationship with each and every one of them.
IDology, provider of verification technology solutions for consumer-not-present business transactions, was one such company that struggled with lead nurturing. Marketing director Jodi Florence realized a lead management solution could help her company forge relationships with potential leads and maximize marketing efficiency.
After trying several different marketing programs, IDology selected b2b marketing automation leader, Marketo as the lead management solution provider that fit its particular needs.
Software such as that provided by Marketo helps businesses to stretch marketing dollars and interact more frequently with leads. By automating many processes and organizing lead data, such lead management software allows companies to interact with prospects in a highly targeted, customized manner. In this way, relationships are maintained and nurtured throughout a potential customer’s purchase process.
With Marketo, IDology was able to double its marketing efficiency and increase return on investment, all without significantly increasing its marketing budget. Both small and large businesses can benefit from the automation lead management solutions offer, by focusing less on organizational tasks and more on developing meaningful customer relationships.
