The last couple of years have been unusual and difficult for all of us. A lot of organisations and people have had to adapt to different ways of working. Through it all though it seems like businesses have generally faced those challenges head on and pushed through whilst also adopting the new ways of working along the way.
However, some things within business remain the same, and that includes the need for good preparation during the lead up to a sales or marketing campaign. In these current challenging times, it is more essential than ever to plan ahead and to focus on the preparation and lead up to a campaign in order to fully maximise it. This not only ensures a better success rate, but also a better return on investment and maximum use and benefit from your allocated budget.
What do we mean by preparation? At Next Call all of our campaigns with clients go through a rigorous planning phase, so that when the campaign starts the consultants are 100% ready and have the knowledge in place to fully integrate themselves into your organisation. That they understand the messaging of your solution and have the tools in place to get that message across to your prospects to generate quality leads.
During our numerous campaigns over the last 20 years of ‘C’ Level sales consulting we have adapted and utilised this methodology which has evolved into these five tried and tested steps.
For each campaign we work through this process from beginning to end to leave no stone unturned and to maximise every lead, prospect and opportunity that we uncover.
We start with step one: DEFINE
This is the part of the process where we agree and prepare the scope of the campaign, how it will be approached, who are the target accounts, ideal job roles and discover and learn what the key messages and propositions are.
Once the campaign has started we move onto the next step: MEASURE
During this phase we establish the reporting element of the campaign, how it will be tracked and by whom, including how it will be presented back to the sales and marketing teams to deliver clear feedback, outcomes and results.
Once we have defined the scope of the campaign and established how and when it will be measured, we move on to the next step, which is : ACTION
We are now at the stage of sourcing the data through a variety of industry leading tools such as LinkedIn and techniques in providing the most relevant targets based on the campaign proposition.. The campaign will then kick off with initial calls to develop the accounts and to test the messaging and the available assets.
At this stage and throughout the campaign we are monitoring and reviewing the messaging that we use and this can be very quickly assessed when working in Linkedin for example. As we send InMails and direct messages we are able to assess quickly whether messages are working and grabbing the interest of the recipient.
This next phase is a natural continuation of the Action phase, and that is to: IMPROVE
We continually work on the data, adding to it and refining what we already have whilst continually analysing what is working and what isn’t working, then changing and improving accordingly.
Our final stage of the methodology does not signal the end of the campaign, this is the stage where we analyse what we are doing and what to do next. This stage is: REVIEW
We use this stage to take stock, review, analyse and then improve and repeat. By reviewing and improving not only the data but also the messaging and approach we are ensuring that the campaign continues to run at the optimum level and continues to produce quality and viable results.
We are finding that Linkedin especially is proving to be a hugely valuable source of specific contacts when it is backed up with our diligent and effective approach in researching and finding relevant people within the target organisations.
The proof as the saying goes is in the pudding, and we are always pleased to get positive feedback from clients on the success of campaigns we have worked on with them.
We have been very pleased with the work that Next Call is doing for us. We recently introduced a new process to gather new data from existing users. Next Call took a very proactive and flexible can do approach and we have seen huge success with this project. We have already seen a major jump in meetings being booked from this activity. As a result we have doubled the Next Call staff to help us. I would have no hesitation in recommending them.
Geoff Hornsby, General Manager EMEA, iManage
The process is iterative, and as well as full preparation, we continually review, go back around and adapt and add improvements. Our attention is focused on this methodology and way of working and the results are exemplary feedback from many happy clients.
If you have campaigns planned for 2021, or even just some ideas of what you want to achieve but are not yet sure how to approach or tackle those goals, then please do get in touch and we can step you through our approach and how it can be adapted to fit your organisation and your needs for success in 2021.
We wish you all success in this new year, and we hope to be able to support you and be part of that success with you.
Are you looking for a cost-effective approach to your new business development or marketing activities, without compromising experience and knowledge?
Get in touch to talk to us about your next campaign and how we can support and ensure it gains maximum results.