If you’re interested in how things like monitoring and measurement, great (video) content, LinkedIn, and targeted content can help with demand generation and get people into the B2B sales funnel, then this very interesting – and free- report from Marketing Sherpa and HubSpot makes fascinating reading.
It features seven case studies that explored varying ways B2Bs are using social media to (demonstrably) drive sales and what was particularly interesting was that the businesses in the report weren’t your typical “early adopters”. They were experienced marketers who needed to find more efficient ways of doing things. Their strategies weren’t radical or big budget. Often it was just a case of thinking smarter, rolling up their sleeves and getting on with the job, one step at a time.
Lots of the experiences resonated with me, but here are a few highlights.
- The executive who, faced with a 40% budget cut, ran the numbers and realised trade shows – his most expensive commitment – were actually generating fewest leads. The team started investing smarter, including experimenting in new activities, and actually increased the number of leads it generated by 12% over 12 months.
- The marketing manager who grew unique visitors to the company website by 155% using social media and establishing the website as the company’s top source of leads (55%). She reported that, while social media requires effort, it was a relief to get off the “treadmill” of constantly having to come up with more and more clever campaigns to drive demand generation.
- The accounting and consulting firm that woke up to the fact that people choose their providers online. The company revamped its website as thought leadership hub with capability to capture leads and implemented an online outreach program to drive traffic to the site. The site now generates 10 – 15 leads a month and the program has more than covered its cost.
