Whether you should outsource your lead generation, or manage it in-house, has been widely debated across the Sales and Marketing industry for some years now.
Whilst there is no one-size-fits-all approach to lead generation in 2022, there are certainly ways to ensure the process is as efficient as possible for your business, especially when it comes to cost, resource and scalability.
In this month’s Q&A style discussion, Louise Howson (Managing Director) and Andrew Smart (Founder of VST and Solutions Director) draw from their experience of lead generation campaigns over the years. Discussing the difference between in-house lead gen and outsourced, the benefits of outsourcing the process and some of the pain points in-house lead generation functions often face.
What is Lead Generation?
Salesforce define Lead Generation as ‘the process of gaining the interest of potential customers in order to increase future sales’, Andrew Smart (Solutions Director) agrees with this definition but points out that many smaller companies focus solely on the opportunities and future sales created by lead generation and do not focus enough on the process, method and discipline required to create a consistent and scalable flow of quality opportunities
“I would define lead generation as a method or process that provides a business with a consistent and predictable number of new business opportunities.
If lead gen is to work, it needs to be a process. If it’s done correctly and professionally it will be a controlled process, which theoretically, can be turned up and down to suit the business’s needs.” – Andrew Smart.
Louise Howson (Managing Director) closed the point by naming some of the key characteristics VST look for in a well-managed lead gen campaign.
“To be successful, a lead gen campaign must be; targeted, controlled, consistent and predictable. That’s what we aim for.” – Louise Howson.
These are the core values that any VST campaign is built on, with our ‘adding the Science into Sales’ philosophy leaving as little to chance as possible. To learn more about our approach, contact us today for a free consultation.
How Outsourced Lead Generation Differs
Louise Howson (Managing Director) summarised the difference between outsourced lead generation and in-house efforts perfectly through using a real-world example:
“A client I was recently onboarding had tried the in-house route. Their company has a rich pool of experienced subject matter experts that are very successful in selling technical solutions to their target audience however, they were not experts in the sales process itself so the prospecting aspect of their sales had seen mixed results
The benefit you gain in outsourcing lead generation is, you’re going to experts in the sales process, that are just needing to learn the context and subject matter of your product/solution
The client we onboarded had excellent technical knowledge, knowing the Scientific ins and outs of the product that they’re selling, topped with decades of experience in that industry.
But they are coming to us as they need people that are disciplined experts in the sales and lead generation process. The company has given us enough information so that we can confidently conduct that process for them, because they understand that in-house campaigns often fail because of the sheer amount of work that needs to be put into the sales process itself, alongside this technical expertise.” – Louise Howson.
Benefits of Outsourcing Lead Generation
Building on the above point, we then discussed the benefits of outsourcing lead gen campaigns. With Andrew Smart (Solutions Director) talking about how outsourcing the process can help spread the risk, whilst making the approach more scalable than in-house functions.
“If you have a small in-house team managing your lead generation, and one of them leaves, you unfortunately lose a significant ratio of your lead generation opportunities overnight and have to start the process of recruiting/training/managing all over again. In the event you only have one person doing this in house, you would be back to square one.
When you outsource lead generation, you’re spreading the risk and making the process more scalable.” – Andrew Smart.
When your own internal resource and recruitment doesn’t affect your lead generation efforts, this in turn brings consistency to the whole approach. As Louise Howson (Managing Director), outlines below:
“The biggest benefit of outsourcing is consistency. Consistency of resource is invaluable because managing, recruiting and retaining salespeople in the current climate is a pain point many of our client’s face”. – Louise Howson.
By outsourcing lead generation campaigns, you add less variables to the process. Saving you time, effort (and pain) when campaigns are properly executed. Not to mention the cost saving benefits getting this process right can bring as well.
What makes a successful Lead Gen Campaign?
When asked about the contributing factors to a truly successful lead generation campaign, Andrew Smart (Solutions Director) outlined just how much emphasis VST place on ROI and transparency throughout the process.
“With the way we approach lead generation, we are continually measuring the ROI of how much the client is spending vs. the financial return they are receiving. When starting any campaign, we will always ask what ROI is required for the campaign to be classed as successful? What is the lifetime value (LTV) of these new clients?
Again, there are many variables that often get neglected. So having a partner with a vested interest on board that considers these metrics before the campaign starts is essential.” – Andrew Smart
As a closing point for the discussion, Andrew helped summarise the key aspects of a successful lead generation campaign, and the lead generation process in general.
“In our experience, preparation, partnership and patience equals performance, productivity and predictability.” – Andrew Smart.
With Louise Howson (MD) then adding that if the preparation isn’t there, and a partnership style relationship isn’t formed, the whole process will take longer to succeed.
“We are often used as a last roll of the dice by people needing a short-term injection of sales/revenue, however, our most successful clients are the most prepared, the most patient and those who really embrace us as a strategic partner as opposed to a supplier” – Louise Howson.
Do you want to get your next lead generation campaign right? Contact Andrew or Louise today for a free consultation.
Are you interested in joining a future Q&A?
At VST, we’re open to collaboration from industry experts across the Sales and Marketing industry. If you wish to participate in a future Q&A, be sure to contact us on LinkedIn or through our Contact Us page.
Don’t forget to connect with those involved in the Q&A on LinkedIn and continue the discussion:
