Accelerating a high-quality lead pipeline often depends on generating a large volume of high-quality marketing qualified lead (MQLs). The tech marketer’s goal is to identify, as early as possible and at scale, leads that closely fit the ideal customer persona (ICP) and show credible purchase intent. Nurturing them till they are closer to a purchase decision and can be handed over to sales can be a long and complex process – so starting with the best possible MQLs makes it more productive and faster.
Unfortunately, tech marketers find it challenging to access comprehensive and relevant audience networks backed by strong intent data that help engage and nurture increasingly complex B2B buying collectives efficiently.
Here are 10 powerful ways technology marketers can generate more – and better quality – MQLs to accelerate the sales pipeline:
- More leads with better quality: successful tech marketers know that better quality intent data means better quality leads, and better quality leads generate more MQLs. To generate MQLs efficiently at scale, tech marketers go beyond owned sources and tend to invest in a reliable lead gen partner. Ideally, one that owns and operates the platforms where their target audiences tend to seek information, so they can access a wider network of relevant channels to optimize reach and relevance. Leads from such networks are based on stronger intent signals at the account, and often at an individual level; and are more likely to meet MQL criteria.
- Tapping into pre-qualified prospect pools: data-first demand gen agencies such as SWZD pre-qualify thousands of accounts showing interest in solutions across a large selection of technology categories, based on their best-in-class first and third-party intent data. Marketers can quickly tap into this pool of pre-qualified prospects, not only making more efficient targeting investments, but also shortening the time to find and engage the best MQLs.
- Data augmentation: tech marketers that already have a solid inbound and outbound strategy to generate leads can identify more ‘look-alike’ companies and contacts that meet their criteria. By augmenting their own first-party data with credible first and third-party data from a partner, they can significantly expand their top-of-the-funnel pipeline, drive more insight about leads, and qualify them as MQLs faster and with higher certainty.
- Data enrichment: every marketer is familiar with the challenge of data gaps (account or individual profiles may have incomplete information to start with) or data decay (where the integrity of currently complete profiles will naturally decay over time). Both can lead to inefficient campaigns that may cost the organization MQLs. Working with a reliable data enrichment partner helps to ensure all marketing data is clean, up-to-date, actionable, and result-oriented, and can make a significant contribution to the number of MQLs generated.
- Hyper-targeted content marketing: by optimizing reach and relevance on trusted industry-specific networks, the probability of the right message being seen by the right personas in target accounts is higher. Tech marketers can pre-select targeting criteria across solution categories, verticals, size and titles, and hyper-target syndicated and advertorial content directly to the best potential fits. This way, content marketing delivers a much higher ROI even at the top of the funnel.
- Contextual advertising: this strategy is becoming increasingly important in B2B marketing, with relevant messaging based on real-time audience actions as they progress through their buying journey. More precise targeting with contextual display, retargeting, and native ads can be a powerful way to reach more buyers and move leads to MQL faster. Aside from on-network display, audience and reach extension capabilities using credible, brand-safe first and third-party data can exponentially drive up qualified lead gen outcomes.
- Customized campaigns: tech marketers with limited budgets are better off working with pre-qualified audiences to optimize reach and relevance. However, for tech marketers whose solution is very niche and specific, creating customized campaigns in partnership with a relevant publisher network can help drive more bang for the buck. This approach not only offers access to trusted first-party data, but enables highly customizable data, targeting, and lead definition possibilities – all of which ultimately speed up the process of reaching and identifying MQLs.
- Reaching a wider base of channels: as much of the buying journey shifts to non-traditional digital platforms, tech marketers need access to diverse channels to find and engage leads. This approach also enables more conversations – via chatbots, behind-the-wall community and forums, events, telephone and video meetups, email, and content, and offers access to a wider pool of leads to identify in-market accounts that can qualify as MQLs.
- Lead scoring: it’s important to create a feedback loop with sales to make adjustments to your lead scoring based on their input (in addition to incorporating real-time intent data when possible). Giving sales reps the power to recycle leads and give feedback on lead scores will improve scoring and build trust in the scores being assigned. It also provides additional insight into the accuracy of your scoring model. Tech marketers can test their scoring system with existing pipeline leads and opportunities.
- Full-funnel nurture approach: tech marketers today need to deploy a multi-dimensional approach to engage with key members of the collective, at each stage of their non-linear buying journey. A full-funnel approach to nurturing keeps the brand top-of-mind through the cycle, and creates richer insights to pass on to the sales team for more effective conversion.
Relevance is still key to creating more human experiences. By leveraging the scale, quality, and diversity of intent data that a best-in-class demand gen vendor can provide, tech marketers can generate more high-quality MQLs based on better data and insights, better technology to act on those insights, and better omnichannel execution capabilities.
Learn more in our eBook on Generate More MQLs That Sales Will Love.