A fast, steady and predictable growth, that is what companies these days want. The fastest growing companies of today use repeatable marketing and sales 2.0 techniques to grow revenue predictably and reliably. They are embracing the shift from the selling process to the buying process, moving marketing from a cost center to a revenue generator. By replacing the old linear sales model with a new holistic approach, companies are redefining the way marketing and sales teams work together.
The new buying landscape has changed marketing’s approach to lead generation and management. This tectonic shift has created a need to improve upon outdated systems that can no longer keep up with the demand to increase lead flow, ensure lead quality, and prove program effectiveness and ROI.
Companies that implement a marketing automation system to support their marketing and sales efforts are better equipped to manage lead flow and process leads more efficiently. A whitepaper by Marketo outlines how marketing automation optimizes marketing programs and can help companies:
- Create a faster and more predictable revenue cycle
- Increase profitability with tactics that result in higher conversion rates
- Align the efforts of marketing and sales teams to substantially increase topline revenue growth
Source: Marketo Benchmark on Revenue Performance as of Sept 15, 2012
Optimized Marketing Programs
When companies implement a lead management process using a marketing automation system, they improve their interactions with prospects from the initial point of inquiry through closed deal. Through systematic digital profiling, and behavioral and demographic scoring capabilities, marketing automation systems can create highly-targeted campaigns that reach the right people, with the right message at the right time in the buying cycle.
Marketing automation systems also allow companies to produce complete marketing programs—from email creation and landing page design to launching complex drip and nurture campaigns—in a fraction of the time that it takes companies who are not using such systems.
Increasing conversion rates
The Demand Waterfall, developed by SiriusDecisions, illustrates the stages that leads go through from inquiry to qualify to close (Inquiries, Marketing Qualified Leads, Sales Accepted Leads, Sales Qualified Leads, Closed/Won Business).
Between each of the five stages lay conversion points. With the insight and methods available through a marketing automation system, marketing professionals are able to tighten the screws at the conversion point that will garner the most return. By little tweaks here and there most of the time results can go up. Systematically improving upon every stage in which a lead moves forward, or drops out, can result in a rapid increase in revenue.
Marketing Automation will provide a huge productivity boost for marketing. Additionally, marketing’s response time will be shorter, it gives marketing better metrics on how their campaigns are performing and more options to improve their campaigns.
All this leads to better qualified leads for sales, thus better business.
An absolute necessity is understanding between marketing and sales. In many companies interaction between marketing and sales are disconnected at best, resulting in a breakdown of communication. Marketing Automation aligns sales and marketing and streamlines the data collecting process. With marketing automations systems, both departments:
- Unite to optimize the revenue cycle
- Gain visibility and share accountability for leads and revenue
- Create dramatic improvements in marketing ROI, sales productivity and revenue growth
To maximize the profitability of every inquiry, be it from prospect or existing customer, companies need a solution that supports both the marketing and sales teams, such as funnel filling programs and laser focused campaigns that propel inquiries into prospects and prospects into customers.
Marketing automation systems achieve this goal quickly and easily. Companies that have implemented such systems have enjoyed highly aligned and optimized marketing and sales teams, faster and more predictable revenue cycles and increased profitability.
Read the full paper at www.marketo.com
