Are They Hot or Not: Guidelines for Scoring Pipeline Opportunities Laura Patterson President & Author [email protected]-Twitter:@LauraVEM -Facebook: http:// www.facebook.com/pages/VisionEdge-Marketing/27870383215975
1. Are They Hot or Not: Guidelines for Scoring Pipeline
Opportunities Laura Patterson President & Author
[email protected] -Twitter:@LauraVEM -Facebook:
http://
www.facebook.com/pages/VisionEdge-Marketing/27870383215975
2. Improve Your Probability for Success |
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 2 Welcome and Program Agenda The Best-in-Class vs. The
Rest Developing a Scoring Schema and Model
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 3 Partners in Creating, Retaining, and Growing the
Value of Customers Marketing and Sales = the fundamental
relationship for attracting buyers The relationship > than a
simple handoff at the point a qualified opportunity is generated Is
Yours Broken?
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 4 9 Tell Tale Signs the Marketing and Sales
Relationship is Broken 1. Work from separate opportunity pipeline
or sales funnel models 2. Poorly defined handoff 3. Use and report
on different performance metrics 4. Few or No jointly defined
activities that will improve opportunity flow in terms of quality,
quantity, and timing 5. No common vocabulary or language 5.
Marketing doesnt solicit appropriate input from Sales when drafting
the Marketing plan, defining the opportunity pipeline, or creating
the opportunity scoring model 6. Sales keeps Marketing away from
customers 7. Sales & Marketing exclude each other from meetings
8. Too much time is spent on dispute resolution or the crisis of
the moment 9. Sales and Marketing attend different training
programs, events and other learning opportunities
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 5 Six Primary Culprits Lack of an integrated marketing
and sales prioritization and planning process Poor alignment
between the sales process and the customers buying process. No
formally defined steps for the selling process. An ineffective
process for qualified opportunity dispersion and management Lack of
marketing systems, data and reports to continuously modify and
adjust marketing spend to meet sales requirements or market
dynamics. No formal system for tracking marketings role in customer
acquisition, retention and value creation DONT TAKE JUST OUR
WORD
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 6 The State of Marketing Generated Opportunities
Marketing generated opps, 33.2% Non- marketing generated opps,
66.8% Where Do Opportunities Come From? 56% 40% 1% 3% 60% 35% 3% 1%
0% 50% 100% Needs Improvement Meets Expectations Exceeds
Expectations DK Lead Quantity Lead Quality Sales Perception of
MarketingGenerated Opps Source: CSO Insights, 2012 Marketing Not
Meeting Expectations Sales Needs to be a Better Partner
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 7 Opportunity Management Challenges 41% 30% 30% 28% 28%
28% 26% 0% 20% 40% 60% Lead quality Marketing data quality/accuracy
Lead quantity Conversion/response rate to marketing campaigns is
too lov Leads stuck in the funnel Marketing /sales alignment Funnel
leakage (qualified opps not getting actioned)
OpportunityManagementChallenges Aberdeen, May 2012, n= 163 Quality
Matters
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permission. 8 70% 69% 67% 50% 45% 39%38% 38% 29% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
50% 60% 70% 80% Process to establish/refine opp qual criteria btwn
sales & marketing Clearly defined process to transfer opps to
sales or return for nurturing Defined, standardrized and documented
opp management process BIC Ind Avg Laggards Aberdeen, May2012 n=163
The State of Opportunity Management CSO Insights, 2012 Systems and
Processes Yes, 42.6% No, 57.4% Has Your Organization Implemented
an
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 9 The Best-in-Class Outpace the Pack 70% 69% 67% 50%
45% 39%38% 38% 29% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% Process to
establish/refine opp qual criteria btwn sales & marketing
Clearly defined process to transfer opps to sales or return for
nurturing Defined, standardrized and documented opp management
process Opportunity Process Maturity 66% 59% 59% 42% 25% 25% 36%
28% 27% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% Ability to define multi-step
opp nurturing processes Utlize opportunity scoring to progress lead
Process bwtn sales & marketing to define opp scoring criteria
BIC Ind Avg Laggards Opportunity Scoring Aberdeen,May 2012,n=163
BIC Partner Define Processes, Criteria Standardize Implement and
Use
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 10 Traditional Sales Funnel Outdated The traditional
sales funnel is 112 years-old! Conversion rates are unsustainable.
Takes >1000 opps/sale. Time to convert is lengthening. The
average time to create a large B2B tech customer has lengthened by
15% in the last year. Buyers find online search and supplier
websites more valuable sources for buying information than F2F.
(IDC) The Empowered Buyer is killing the Traditional Sales Funnel
todays buyers more sophisticated may know more than sales people.
55% of buyers think sales people are only somewhat or not prepared
for initial meetings. MLC 2011 Study found that B2B buyers are 57%
of the way thu their purchase process before connecting with
sales,("Influencing the Newly Empowered Customer.")
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 11 Discard the Funnel Old -Stages defined by the
company and means a lot more has to go in at the top than what
comes out at the bottom. lots of opportunities drop away at each
stage of a long sales process. Old Sales Stages example: Initial
Inquiry Initial Communication - BANT Initial Meeting/Needs
Assessment Solution Presentation Customer Evaluation RFP
Negotiation Verbal Commitment Written Purchase Order/Contract
Delivery Payment The sales funnel is a common tool used by the
sales organization to understand the flow of business opportunities
Need a new approach customer buying process defines the
stages.
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 12 New Model: Customer Buying Behavior PLUS Fit The
term itself, customer buying pipeline, suggests this process is
something owned by BOTH sales AND marketing Its all about customer
buying signals ENGAGEMENT BEHAVIOR A pipe suggests that different
marketing programs may be needed at different stages along the way
and that segmentation, targeting, and qualification are extremely
important to reducing waste and customer acquisition costs.
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 13 Establish the Variables for the Behavioral Side of
the Model Contact - Demonstrates some degree of interest,
observable hello- share basic contact info. Doesnt mean they are
eager to get to know you better. Connect Establish some type of
rapport follow, friend, like Conversation - A steady flow of
information back and forth comments, demos, f2f meetings
Consideration - applying careful thought to your offer and company
and weighing their options rfq, rfp, due diligence Consumption
Trial, test, order Community Advocate, refer, rebuy Observable
Measurable Incremental Behaviors
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 14 Define When An Opportunity is a Good Match Size
Relationships Need Budget Problem Establish the Value Ranges Add
the Fit Side to the Model Creates Fit based Opportunity
Scoring
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 15 Concept Illustration Fit: Vertical In a target
vertical where we have domain expertise 5 pts In a target vertical
but we dont have domain expertise 3 pts Not in a target vertical 0
pts Problem Ideally suited to solve their problem 5 pts Our product
will solve their problem with some customization 3 ps Our product
will not solve their problem without a major investment on our part
0 pts Contact Contact is decision maker 5 pts Contact is
influencer/user 3 pts Contact is outside target buying/using group-
0 pts Size/Revenue Budget Behavior: Contact: Completes website
registration form 5 pts Follows on Twitter 3 pts Subscribes to
company newsletter 3 pts Connection: Attends third party sponsored
webinar 3 pts Attends company only webinar 5 pts Downloads white
paper 2 pts Conversation: Provides product specification and buying
criteria via email 5 pts. Requests and participates live online
demo 10 pts Consideration: Requests in person or webex meeting 5
pts Requests and Contacts references 5 pts Purchases paid trial 10
pts
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 16 Concept Illustration FIT BEHAVIOR low high high
Sales worthy and ready Nurture Minimal Future Effort &
Investment Revisit marketing mix
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 17 Scoring Model Development Process Step 1: Define the
customer buying process and each incremental behavior Step 2:
Validate Step 3: Define the Fit Criteria Step 4: Establish Values
and Metrics Step 5: Finalize, Document. Configure & Implement
Step 6: Monitor, measure and report results and payback
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 18 This is a lot of work, why bother? An integrated
marketing and sales prioritization and planning process Better
alignment between the sales process and the customers buying
process. Formally defined approach to the buying and opportunity
management process. An effective model and process for qualified
opportunity dispersion and management Better marketing systems,
data and reports to continuously modify and adjust marketing spend
to meet sales requirements A formal approach for tracking
marketings role in customer acquisition, retention and value
creation
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 19 Take the Leap: Create an Opportunity Scoring Model
Change can be daunting, but a scoring model is a key to success
What Does it Take? Data and collaboration with customers and sales
to build the model Start from the outside in, leverage an expert
Begin with a blank slate, not your current paradigm Test and learn
culture Dont Waste Your Bullets White Paper
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 20 Thank you and Resources Please email your questions
to [email protected] Learn More Download Dont Waste
Your Bullets white paper Purchase our e-Book Gone Fishin: Marketing
and Sales Alignment for Finding, Hooking, Keeping and Growing
Customers a concise book that effectively guides you through the
process of finding, hooking, keeping, and growing profitable
customers by explaining how to define, understand, and cultivate
this core relationship. Self-paced workbook, Using the Customer
Buying Process to Align Sales and Marketing & Create 3 Key
Sales Enablement Tools www.visionedgemarketing.com
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Proprietary. Not for reproduction or redistribution without written
permission. 21 Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Austin, TX,
VisionEdge Marketing, Inc. serves more than 100 customers, and
counting. VisionEdge Marketing, Inc. is a data- driven and
metrics-focused marketing firm that specializes in improving
marketing performance and creating competitive advantage designed
to attract, secure and retain profitable customers. Services
Include: Marketing performance management Marketing and sales
alignment Product and strategic marketing Pipeline re-engineering
Professional development About VisionEdge Marketing Experienced
Practitioners