We all know by now that cold calls and promotional message blasts to prospects in an attempt to engage them has a slim chance of yielding valuable responses. And most of the time, them hanging up before you can even finish talking is already a response in itself.
Enter content-driven prospecting—and your seemingly futile outbound marketing efforts see a glimmer of hope.
Content is everywhere. From blogs, infographics, podcasts—content has different types that businesses can leverage to gain better understanding of their market and communicate highly tailored messaging. From what was once a standalone element of marketing, content is now more flexible and has even crossed over to sales.
But are content and sales really two separate functions? Well, experts say they don’t necessarily have to be.
While the two may be an unusual mix, harnessing the combined powers of both and devising a content prospecting strategy gives marketers a better opportunity to win over even the most discerning targets out there. Here’s how SaaS businesses like yours can navigate that strategic area where content marketing and sales prospecting meet.
Turning Content into Leads
When done right, content-driven prospecting will help you reach the right buyers in the right space as it allows you to dictate the narrative around buyer personas. You appeal to them by using content to put the spotlight on their role particularly as thought leaders or experts in the market segment they belong to. A content-driven prospecting call (or email) goes like this:
“Good day, Mr./Ms. [name]. I’m [name] from XYZ company. We’ve recently heard about your recent project this year, and we’re amazed at how much you’ve contributed to the SaaS industry in just a short span of time. We wish to feature you in the podcast series we’re working on to learn more about your project and other thought leadership insights you might have. Would you be interested in doing an interview with us?”
This technique will make you come off as more genuine in gathering information from prospects, as opposed to the traditional cold calling format that sounds too much of a hard sell that nobody really has time for.
How Does Content Prospecting Benefit Everyone?
For starters, capturing a lead through content-driven prospecting whether online or through a call benefits sales teams for the same reason stated above—it decreases their risk of being hung up on and allows them to immediately spark a desired conversation with ideal prospects.
This is also good news for marketing teams as they can now spring into action and craft the needed content, whatever type it is. The fact that you’re featuring an actual case study in the content is good—it’s an added bonus if you’re able to get in touch with key decision makers and leaders in their respective industries.
As for audiences, they are always on the lookout for high quality and relevant content. Your content piece will give them a glimpse of how things are moving in the space they’re in. But in trying to cater to a lot of audiences at the same time, it’s easy to fall victim to mass content generation so communication must be maintained at all times across all involved teams.
Randy Frisch, CMO at Uberflip, recommends delivering personalized content experience at scale to prevent buyer fatigue that results from having to go through so many steps to access your content. And internally, if you can create a multichannel campaign that spans across departments, why not?
“Consider how you can provide relevant, valuable content to your target buyers in a pressure-free way,” Randy suggests. “Make sure your marketing team is collaborating with your sales team, and that the rest of the organization can use and learn from the assets you create.”
Content-Driven Prospecting: A New Spin to Outbound Marketing
As demand for quality content continues to soar, content-driven prospecting provides you with a different way of reaching customers who can give your SaaS business high value in return. It also aims to boost alignment between your marketing and sales teams so that at the end of the day, everybody wins. Substantial content marketing, along with proper lead nurturing, are what would strengthen your customer base even after the sales are made.
Interested to learn more about content-driven prospecting and how it can help you reach high-value audiences? Register now for our 2021 Ascent Conference happening on October 6-8, and get insights straight from thought leaders in the SaaS space.
Photography by Leon via Unsplash.