Most B2B marketers I know are looking for more ways to generate leads faster. But here’s a question to think about:
Do you have a process for handing leads from sales back to marketing when they are not sales ready?
If not, you should.
Start by re-engaging the account-based leads already in your database, and pay special attention to those your sales team didn’t convert last year.
What is lead reengagement?
Lead reengagement is a type of nurturing where sales hands lead back to marketing to nurture until they are marketing qualified leads again. Use this approach in conjunction with account-based marketing.
Case study on lead nurturing with reengagement
I want to share what we learned from a lead re-engagement test we just completed for a large communications company.
Our nurturing program focused on re-engaging the following types of “old” leads:
- Accounts that were “open” but not touched by a salesperson in 90+ days
- Accounts worked by sales but marked as “closed – lost” meaning they didn’t buy
The lead nurturing process for reengagement
We started with a straightforward multi-touch lead nurturing program that included:
- Three touches via email nurturing
- Nurturing emails connected to educational articles related to their interest
- The sales development team made follow-up calls (based on engagement replies and clicks).
We equipped the sales development team with one-to-one emails and relevant articles designed to progress and continue the conversation.
Simple approach
Our strategy was simple:
- Be a resource for that prospect and offer relevant ideas
- Add value with each touch
- Don’t be a pest, and ask over and over, “Are you ready to buy yet?”
Finally, we qualified them as sales-ready leads according to their universal lead definition.
The results of lead re-engagement
The results were surprising.
After the 10-week test, we found the old account-based leads (some were over two years old) had a 10% higher conversion rate than the newer leads.
Our client expected the newer leads would have a higher conversion rate, but it was the older leads that performed better.
The older leads had advanced further in the buying process without our direct involvement. The nurturing touches added value but also gave us a valid business reason to re-engage.
In sum, lead re-engagement is a simple and powerful way to get more ROI from your previous marketing investment, especially account-based marketing.
You may also like:
How to Do Lead Management That Improves Conversion
How to Use Conversational Marketing to Get More Leads
Lead Nurturing in 6 Simple Steps
Stop Cold Calling and Start Lead Nurturing
How to Use Lead Scoring to Drive the Highest Return on Your Trade-Show Investment
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