Make Your Customers Come to You With Lead Generation

When you’re selling a product or service with a long sales cycle, you know that 90 percent of the industry is not buying at any given time, and 10 percent are. But how do you find that 10 percent?

That was the challenge that software consulting firm Brown Smith Wallace faced when it sought more buyers for its second annual online trade fair.

BSW knew that the weeks leading up to the show would be the prime time to get in front of buyers, and stay there, as that elusive 10 percent planned their vendor research. So, keeping in front of the industry with a lead-generation program would assure that buyers would get the message.

BSW wanted a story that would resonate with distribution software executives, one that would reflect the buyer’s state of mind during the research phase of their buying cycle, and yet be easy to understand. And they would need frequent and ongoing communications to keep in front of the industry.

So our approach was to gather BSW’s assumptions about how its buyers thought about software, test the assumptions by talking to BSW’s customers and prospects, and then tell a story reflecting our improved understanding.

Based on what we learned from interviews with BSW and their clients, we illustrated story that paralleled the buyer’s journey, metaphorically speaking. We kept the writing simple, with an emphasis on key words that customers said searched for.

We sent e-mails frequently, especially in the weeks leading up to the show. Colorful icons and illustrations engaged visitors to the site. We further enticed them to sign up for the show with a free, full-page illustration of the buyer’s journey to a new solution.

As show day approached, sign-ups were up over the previous year. Leads increased and so did quality.

Attendees were more highly qualified and more closely fit the buyer’s profile than in the prior year. Advertisers at the show found they were engaged more seriously by attendees, increasing the value of the event to them.

 Email     Print   

Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.

This article can be reproduced freely ONLY with the following attribution:

Originally published in 2008 by Bizmanualz, Inc. under the title Make Your Customers Come to You With Lead Generation. All rights reserved. Reproduction permitted with attribution only. www.bizmanualz.com