Creating a solid demand generation model may not be very easy. 61% of B2B marketers say lead generation is their number one challenge.Â
As a B2B marketer if you want to strengthen your demand generation strategy there are a few options that you have:
- First, to create your own demand generation strategy learning from past campaigns, online research and using demand generation strategy templates that are available on the web
- Second, partner with a marketing agency which offers demand generation as a service.
While the first option may seem tedious, the second option although comes with some valid challenges can turn out to be a good investment in the long run. Read the guide on Choosing the Right B2B Lead Generation Agency to get started.
What is demand generation as a service?
Demand generation as a service is similar to a product platform which many companies offer as a service. The only difference here is that instead of a product, it is a service which guarantees to bring in high quality leads aligned with your customer profile, business strategy and ultimately brand awareness.
A good demand generation plan creates strong brand awareness and authority, which paves the way for driving high quality leads on an ongoing basis.
What is a demand generation strategy?
Demand generation strategy has three parts like most marketing strategy:
The audience: Understanding your audience based on their interests, demographics, geographic location and their needs are important to define your campaign touchpoints, messaging and develop interest in your target audience before pushing them through the sales funnel.
The approach: Once the audience is defined, the approach comes into play. What do you want to sell? Does the customer have a need for it and if not how will you create the need?Â
The goal: This is not a demand generation vs lead generation scenario, but both go together. Your goal should be to establish a demand generation process which brings in quality leads over time and improves the conversion rates from qualified to opportunities.
If you are working towards putting together a demand generation framework or you already have one, we have put together some strategies which work well across all B2B demand generation marketing scenarios.
10 best strategies to improve your demand generation framework
- Emphasize what’s working. If you find that a particular blog or landing page works especially well for converting high-quality leads, keep using it. If an initiative dramatically exceeds expectations, set everything else aside and leverage the success.
- Make data-driven decisions. Performing consistent leads analysis is essential for a robust sales pipeline. It ensures low-producing sales months are rare and informs where leads drop off so you can resolve any problems.
- Know how many leads and sales you can create month to month. Long-term goals are strategically important, but tactically not as useful. Knowing where you stand from a short-term perspective is a better way to inform realistic expectations on how you’ll do in the future.
- Build your funnel based on your customers’ needs. Customers don’t care about your company. They want to know if you understand their problems so they can decide if they can trust you to help them. To build their confidence in you, strive to give them content they would have gladly paid for.
- Purge bad leads. Understand early the difference between a high- and low-quality lead so you can add or pull back resources from channels and campaigns that don’t deliver.
- Pre-qualify your leads. Creating more detailed lead form questions can help you better determine prospects’ intent and help you generate better conversion rates.
- Test the primary conversion points throughout your funnel. There is no limit to what is testable, including the type of content you offer, the type of lead magnets you offer, your subject lines, your headlines, your CTA placements, and even the products or services you offer.
- Make it easy for leads to convert. Ensure your CTAs are well-written and show up in the right places to make it simple for visitors to leave personal information in exchange for content.
- Use marketing automation. Marketing automation is an important demand generation tool. Gain a clear understanding of who your best leads are and how prepared they are to buy by gradually profiling them over time. Also, moving your leads through the lifecycle stages enables you to view their actions and better segment them in ways that improve targeted communication.
- Take care of existing leads and customers. It’s cheaper to onboard an existing lead than bring in a new one. To keep customers happy, provide products and services as well as expert business information so that they’ll stay loyal to your enterprise.
Learn how Paula achieved a 60% conversion rate from lead to opportunity
Demand gen vs lead gen
It is important to understand the difference between demand generation and lead generation. Demand generation is the process of reaching new audiences and getting them interested in your products and services.Â
Lead generation is the process of nurturing a potential buyer and getting them interested in your product to the ultimate goal of converting them into a long term customer.
Demand generation activities are essential to acquire new markets and capture demand leads. There are companies that exist solely for the purpose of helping other companies drive demand and lead gen. Demand generation services can be useful for a number of reasons, but most importantly, they can provide businesses with the tools and expertise to drive demand gen and accomplish their marketing goals.Â
These services can be particularly useful for companies that are new to the demand gen game and need some guidance or inspiration on how to get started successfully.Â
Demand generation strategy examples
ViB is a top demand generation marketing agency that enables users to generate qualified leads, gaining marketable, sales-ready leads with an interest in their products. ViB Appointments uncovers opportunities and helps users find new audiences, allowing them to reach targeted, buying-ready members of ViB’s community of over 2 million professionals.Â
With ViB you can get verified outreach that’s aligned to your brand’s qualification criteria. In fact, some of ViB’s customers have experienced an 80% conversion from lead to opportunity.
With ViB you can secure qualified leads and conduct sales-ready meetings that your sales team will love. In addition, you gain access to marketing-sourced leads that are ready for your internal qualifications.Â
ViB helps users achieve the highest probability of conversion and provides them with a proven, results-oriented approach to achieving demand gen success. A few demand generation marketing examples for ViB is the work they have done for leading companies like Nutanix, PureStorage, and Veeam.Â
Ermetic worked with ViB to create a truly comprehensive inside sales program. They cut through the noise and meet prospects closer to where they are. They expanded their market reach, including people who don’t respond well to cold calls and cold emails. Here are the leading results:Â
âś” Converted 50% of appointments into opportunities
âś” Average opportunity size: $100kÂ
âś” Opportunities were 20% higher than any other source
“If you’re looking to have a comprehensive approach, and find every place where there’s a potential for good conversations, then ViB is an excellent supplement to your sales program.”
— Bruce Gibson AVP of Inside Sales, Ermetic
B2B demand generation strategy
Your B2B demand generation strategy should be tailored to fit your business needs. There isn’t necessarily a right or wrong way to design a demand generation framework, as so much depends on your specific goals and objectives. However, you can benefit from using demand generation tools to improve your process.Â
You might also want to explore various demand gen channels to see where you have the most success in generating and converting attention. Some of the best demand generation examples utilize a number of channels to achieve success.
ViB’s diverse community presents new demand gen opportunities and enables users to develop quality demand generation strategies that work best for their businesses. When coming up with a demand gen strategy, it’s important to look at the big picture and decide how you want to present your brand to the world.
What is B2B demand generation?
So, what is B2B demand generation? B2B demand gen is a marketing approach designed to drive awareness and demand for products and services within the B2B marketplace. B2B demand generation differs slightly from B2C demand generation in that its ultimate goal is to increase brand awareness among other businesses, not necessarily individual customers.
