As with all marketing and sales-related tasks, when it comes to outreach, you need a strategy. It’s important to start with your goals, defining what success will look like and how you’ll know you’re on the right track. Such measurements are often referred to as key performance indicators (KPIs). Once you know where you want to end up, you’ll build your strategy, defining all the steps you take between now, and your completed goal.
As B2B Tech Consultants, we understand the power such a partnership can offer technology startups. We’re also excited to meet with you to discuss your customized plan in greater detail. If you have any questions or are feeling inspired after reading this article, reach out. We’ll be happy to discuss more about using a B2B Tech Consultant can help you reach your goals.
FIRST, CLEAN UP YOUR PROSPECTS
Those new to outreach will send emails to anyone and everyone, just to see what sticks… sort of like wet spaghetti on a wall. After some time and plenty of emails, it’s easy to recognize that it doesn’t work. So we begin to edit our prospect list, cleaning it up a bit, ensuring contact info is correct, etc.
A better way to organize your prospect list though is by the type of contact it is. That way we can better construct an appropriate message to be used successfully in bulk. We recommend the following four categories for your prospect list:
- THE HIGH ROLLERS. As you can imagine, these are high-profile businesses or professionals that specialize completely and explicitly in what you do. They’ve made a name for themselves and have an extended reach because of that. Unfortunately, while they’re ideal, this group is also not likely to respond to emails from someone they don’t know (we’ll tell you how to fix that below, in email outreach).
- MID-SIZED ROLLERS. Not as specific a match as high rollers, mid-sized rollers are people who are still ideal to work with, but are more likely to read and respond to your message.
- SMALL ROLLERS. These are businesses or professionals who are trying to build up their audience. They’re not only likely to respond to your message, but there’s also a better chance they’ll let you guest post on their site or socials, taking your reach even further.
- THE NOT-QUITE ROLLERS YET. A group of people who are also looking for someone like you to swap content with. One thing that’s great about this group of prospects is that they’re great practice for reaching out to other, bigger prospects.
THEN FOCUS YOUR EFFORTS ON EMAIL OUTREACH
Email outreach is a marketing tactic that allows you to develop relationships with like-minded people and businesses, helping you grow your brand. Because of the vast amount of competition, it’s critical that your website and content stands out enough to get seen… and be remembered. Think about the dozens, if not hundreds of emails professionals receive in a day. Being proactive is great with a campaign, but it’s not enough to ensure your message is seen, or even arrives in the correct inbox.
The benefits of email outreach are astounding.
- INCREASED WEB TRAFFIC is likely if the email is enticing enough, sending direct links to your page. BONUS, this traffic can be tracked and measured to help know if your campaign is working.
- BETTER REACH comes when your content is shared with people beyond your subscribers.
- IMPROVED CREDIBILITY is experienced when other professionals link to your site, promoting your brand and making you appear more credible.
One tip that’s important for every business, no matter their history or following is to come up with the right subject line. Your subject line should be:
- CLEAR, AND CONCISE. Since space is limited it’s crucial you express the subject in as few characters as possible.
- EYE CATCHING. Think of the copious number of emails professionals receive, you’ll need something special in order to stand out in an inbox – or worse, spam folder!
- PERSONAL AND RELEVANT. It’s no longer enough to put the receiver’s name in the subject line, they need a reason to care there.
Try a subject line like “Loved your LinkedIn post and have some insights to share”. This post is personal, even though it doesn’t use a name. It’s relevant because they care about that post, it’s also short and understandable.
Forbes recommends a segmented email strategy for more targeted communications. For example, if a potential customer signs up for an email from your “press page” send them more news related content. However, if they sign up from a “current specials” page then you want to ensure the content they receive is more coupon and sales related.
LEAD GENERATION FOR CONTINUED GROWTH
I started my career in content as a business development rep (BDR). WIthin the first couple of months I was hitting 40 qualified meetings a month. Within six months I coached my team to the point where most reps were hitting 250% of quota. Since then, I have brought the same skill sets to multiple organizations, proving time and time again that lead generation is of utmost importance.
Part of the process for successful lead generation involves uncovering your unique value proposition, ideal customer profile, and various buying personas. As B2B tech consultants, MKC Agency improves this process by engineering outbound sequences. We A/B test, tweaking as necessary, all to build a pipeline that puts high quality leads in your sales teams hands.
In short, working with a B2B tech consultant will get you in front of your ideal audience sooner. We elevate your business process, helping to scale your business while you remain focused on what you love to do. If you’re looking to increase your growth, improve efficiency, and find a customized winning strategy that will work over and over again, then reach out for a free consultation. That way we can get started on improving your outreach tactics today.