B2B demand generation is the process of creating demand for your company's products or services from other businesses. This can be done by creating content that is engaging for other businesses, developing mutually beneficial relationships with key decision-makers, or providing valuable information and advice on your niche / marketplace.
Regardless of method, B2B demand generation can be a complex and time-consuming process; moreover, developing high-performing B2B demand generation campaigns can be a quintessential part to your long term business success.
Firstly, “high” is subjective.
The definition of high will vary depending on the company and what they are looking for in a demand generation system.
Secondly, “performance” is relative.
High demand generation performance for a fortune 500 firm is going to look very different from high demand generation performance for your local pizza dough supplier. For example, 400 new prospects for the Fortune 500 firm may be just another Tuesday, but potentially identity shifting for the local pizza dough supplier.
That being said, however, there are some elements that stay true among all high performing lead generation campaigns across all scales.
The main elements that stay true across scale aim to achieve 2 things (h3):
These elements can be summarized by the 4 Ps acronym: Planning, Preparing, Publishing, and Performance.
As the old saying goes “he who fails to plan, plans to fail”.
This statement definitely holds true when it comes to demand generation campaigns as well.
Planning is the cornerstone of demand generation campaigns. It allows businesses to identify their target market, understand their needs and wants, and develop an action plan that will bring those needs and wants to fruition.
Without planning, it's easy for businesses to launch ineffective demand generation campaigns that won't produce the results they're hoping for.
By developing a clear strategy and following through with detailed plans, you'll ensure that your demand generation campaigns are both high performing and efficient.
Here are some aspects to consider including in your next planning session:
A roadmap is important during planning because it helps to identify the steps that need to be taken in order to achieve a desired outcome. It also provides a visual representation of the progress that has been made thus far.
A roadmap can be helpful in keeping everyone on track and ensures that all necessary steps are taken in order to reach the goal.
Further, a roadmap in the case of demand generation can also feature a customer journey. A customer journey details the progression or path your business would like your ideal prospect to go on after buying your product or service.
This can help your team predict, and plan for potential objections, roadblocks, or downfalls along the journey.
An ideal customer profile is important during planning because it can help your business identify and focus demand generation efforts.
By focusing on narrowing down your ideal customer, you can craft messaging techniques as well as content tailored towards your ideal customer.
In addition, by understanding what makes an ideal customer, you can better align your B2B offer with the needs and wants of the ideal prospect.
Lastly, by targeting a specific audience, you can decrease the likelihood of wasting resources on products or services that are not desired or needed.
( Read More About Ideal Customer Profiles Here )
Whether it's creating sales guidelines, or having regular team meetings, uniformity during planning is important because it helps to ensure that all participants in all departments of your business are working towards the same goal.
This eliminates the possibility of conflict and allows for a smoother, more efficient workflow. It also makes it easier to compare and contrast different plans, which can help to make informed decisions about which option to pursue.
One of the most important parts of preparing for a demand generation campaign is creating high-quality content. This content will be used to attract potential customers and convince them to learn more about your product or service.
There are many different types of content that you can create for your demand generation campaign.
Some of the most common types include blog posts, e-books, infographics, case studies, and white papers. However, you don’t need to stick to these standard formats – feel free to get creative and come up with something that’s unique to your business.
No matter what type of content you choose, make sure that it is relevant and provides value to your target audience. Further, a point of note is to make sure content is regularly updated and consistent among all your different departments.
Having inconsistent content and different offers across your business may come across as disingenuous or unprofessional.
TOP TIP: Remember. The content should be aimed at piquing interest in your prospects. The content does not need to sell right away. Make an appealing offer with your unique selling proposition to solve a prospect’s pain point. This can interest some prospects to learn more.
( Read More About How To Peak Interest In Your Prospects Here )
Now that you’ve gone through the effort of creating valuable content for your business, it’s time to decide where you want to put this content to good use.
As another old saying goes “The medium is the message” …. What’s with this author and his quotes… yet, the medium you choose to publish your tailored content is also very important.
Whether it’s a blog, a website, or a social media channel, the platform you use should be appropriate for your audience and purpose.
Some factors to consider when choosing a publishing platform include: the audience you’re targeting, your content’s format (text, video, images), accessibility, and your campaign budget.
In general, when it comes to high performing B2B demand generation campaigns there are usually two avenues: Organic Media and Paid Media.
Organic media is media that is generated by your business. For example, a regularly updated facebook page, A series of instagram reels, or a tik tok posting strategy. Organic media also can encompass traditional media outlets such as the newspaper or TV networks.
In our content of high performing B2B demand generation campaigns, organic media can work harmoniously with demand generation methods that involve your team doing the hard work. Cold outreach is a good example, LinkedIn prospecting, or Cold calling are among others.
Paid media is media that is generated by paying other people to drive demand to your business. This can come in the form of advertising, partnerships, or endorsements. However, paying for media doesn’t mean you wont need your own content, it just means paying to acquire more prospects to learn more about your product or service.
Although picking a channel to leverage your content on is tricky, including some form of organic, and paid media is usually a sure fire way to make sure your target audience is seeing your offer and unique solution to their pain points.
The success of a demand generation campaign hinges on the ability to identify and track the key performance indicators (KPIs) associated with it.
Knowing what is working and what is not can help determine where to make changes or adjustments in order to boost campaign results.
That being said, it is extremely important for your business and team to identify your own demand generation performance indicators.
Here are 3 KPIs we’ve found are important in a high performing B2B demand generation campaign:
Understanding how much it costs to generate a lead can be a tell tale sign of efficiency when it comes to targeting.
Cost per lead information can also give insight into market saturation, as well as hints for potential leaks at the top of your sales pipeline.
Ultimately, CPL is important because it gives you information on how much it costs to keep your sales pipeline full.
Cost per acquisition (CPA) is an important metric for B2B demand generation campaigns because it allows companies to compare the relative costs of various acquisition methods.
A high CPA can indicate that a campaign has unideal customer targeting or signal a saturated market , while a low CPA can suggest that you’re on the right sales track or using the sales channels for your ideal customer.
In high performing B2B demand generation campaigns return on investment (ROI) is one of the most important metrics to track. It measures how well your company is doing compared to the amount of money you have spent on the campaign.
ROI can help your business make decisions about where to better invest, adjust or divert resources.
One important point to remember is If your KPIs aren't meeting your goals, then you need to adjust your goals accordingly. This may mean changing your strategy or implementing new tactics. Constantly tracking your KPIs will help you navigate your campaign in the direction that fits your goals the most. Continue focusing on the strategies that work, and come up with new strategies to replace those that are lacking.
High-Performing B2B Demand Generation Campaigns are what we specialize at Dreamline. We’ve helped our clients generate over $20 million in 2021 alone. We believe they are one the most powerful and cost effective ways to lead your future outbound sales and marketing campaigns.
If you’re interested in how we can help you with planning your next High-Performing B2B Demand Generation Campaign, please don’t hesitate to contact us via Email or Phone. We’re looking forward to hearing from you.
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