For any campaign or event to be successful, it has to have a good foundation. That foundation is built on data; getting the right data in place at the start is essential to a campaign being a success.
To put that data in place, you have to step back further, and that is to the stage of determining who your campaign is targeting. Who are your target audience, who are the decision makers that are key to your solution, what organisations do they work in, which country or region are they based in, what is their job title? Or their area of expertise? The answers to these questions build a framework to build the data on to.
It’s also important to factor in the type of campaign, for example is this for an event (either virtual or live) or to set one-to-one meetings. The type of event will impact on who the target audience are, and we will manage our data gathering accordingly.
Your target audience may be at managerial level or at C level, either way we will establish a list of relevant contacts and work diligently to make contact with them.
Once your target audience persona has been established, the data can be sourced. Whilst the level of information for each contact can be added to, it is essential to find at least one and quite often up to four or five points of contact for each area in order to start opening the doors to more information, and to ultimately make contact and have a conversation, whether that be over the phone, via email or via direct LI messages.
But how do we go about finding the data in the first place. You may have a list already that needs expanding and enhancing. We may be starting from scratch, but we will source information from legitimate sources, using the relevant tools such as Linkedin Sales Navigator and others to support our searches.
We pride ourselves on being able to build a list of data that is usable, valid and that will produce results for you immediately.
Contact information can be basic or it can include additional information that is useful for a particular campaign and good research is important to bring together all the information needed into one place that is easy to refer back to.
This research and resource part of a campaign, ahead of kicking off any calling or contact, is essential to the ongoing success. It is the first step, and one of the most important steps, without the proper research and data building in place, the rest of the campaign will get off to a rocky unstable start and the results will reflect that.
Our methodical approach starts with DEFINE, which is where we establish the target audience and what it looks like. Working right through to REVIEW which actually takes place across all stages of the campaign where we will be reviewing the results as we go and adapting and updating the data accordingly to continually improve results.
By following an organised and methodical approach to data sourcing and data building we are able to provide the solid foundation that a successful campaign or event rests upon. By building the right data at the start we can ensure that we are setting up meetings and conversations with the contacts you really want to speak to as well as driving the right people to your event.
Data is the key to unlocking the full potential of any campaign or event!
All of the Next Call team have excellent experience in sourcing and managing data, and continuing our Meet The Team updates, here we focus in one in particular team member who is especially good and finding the right data.
Lisa has been a valued member of the Next Call team for more than four years and has brought with her bucket loads of experience as well as interesting skills.
Lisa's career started straight from college when she decided that, although there was an opportunity to go to Oxbridge, she wanted to get out into the work place instead and start forging ahead with a career.
Starting out via a temping agency Lisa was placed in a role managing events where she then spent seven years organising big events and mixing with well known faces including Lord Mountbatten!
During this time Lisa came to realise that dealing with and talking to people was something that she not only enjoyed but was good at as well as being very organised. However, working weekends and bank holidays became less appealing after a few years and Lisa moved on to a sales admin role at a computing company in Richmond where she ran the sales office for the field sales team. The office was moved to Bracknell and then acquired by HP.
By this time, Lisa realised that a role in sales was something that she wanted to pursue, but at the time it was very male dominated and she was told that it wasn't really a role suited to women. Lisa didn't let that stop her though and managed to secure a junior sales position and went on to sell hardware for HP.
When she then went on maternity leave HP were keen for to come back, and after a year's leave Lisa took on a contract telemarketing role that meant she could juggle her work and family life more easily.
Further contract work led Lisa to Hyperion where she was selling software support and Hyperion products, and a few years later she met someone who would then go on to refer her to Sarah and Next Call.
With her sales experience of software support, applications, Hyperion products and EPM Lisa was a perfect fit for the Next Call Team and has proved to be a very valuable asset during the last four years.
We went on to ask Lisa some fun things to find out a bit more about her...
What’s your favourite book?
I really like crossword puzzles - so tend to do those rather than reading novels.
If you could meet any historical figure, who would you choose and why?
Martin Luther King - such an inspirational person.
What item that you don't have already, would you most like to own?
An Audi TT sports car!
What would you most like to be remembered for when you are reminiscing about your life in your old age?
Being a good hostess. I love organising and hosting big family get togethers and also love cooking and entertaining.
What talent do you have that is not utilised successfully in your workplace?
I speak several languages; French, Spanish, Italian, and a bit of Russian.
Can you play any instruments?
I played the piano years ago.
What is the nerdiest thing you do in your spare time?
Crosswords and Italian translations.
What are three things still left on your bucket list?
Several countries on my list to visit with Italy being a favourite - particular Scilly.
If you could have any one superpower, which would you choose?
To be able to heal, to rid people of medical conditions.
If you'd like to know more about some of the others in the Next Call Team, you can find their 'Meet The Team' stories in these blogs:
Lawrence Keen is featured in 95 Days of January
Suzie Martin is featured in It’s a Team Effort
Lyn Stewart-Ashely is featured in What Does It Take To Be a Next Call Consultant
Alison Farrell-Price is featured in Improved Campaign Analytics: Getting Your Data Ready
Nikki Brooks is featured in As One Door Closes Another Door Opens: Looking ahead to 2020
Melissa Craven is featured in What it takes to really stand out from the crowd and be the best at what you do…
Are you interested in joining our dynamic experienced team?
We are currently on the lookout for business development consultants.
Do you have a background in IT with a pro-active approach to work and are looking for a new freelance opportunity that offers great support as well as lots of flexibility?
Find out more about what we are looking for and what we can offer here.