Optimise Your Database For A Real Return
Having spent more time recently helping clients understand what classes as real data and what classes as “it makes me feel good” data, I thought it a good time to turn to the blog and share good practices.
To fully understand your data you will need a process to identify where a customer is at in regards to buying from your business. To do this we set up a process called Lead Status or Loyalty Ladders (there are others but they follow the same method).
Lead Status or Loyalty Ladders are just a list of steps to show exactly where your contact is currently, this allows you to then market the best information to get that person to move up the ladder (eventually into a sale). Listed below is a typical process (regardless of it’s name) You will need to mark each of your connections with something like this so you can identify where they are in the buying process.
Suspect
Someone who is in your database but really doesn’t know much about you. They signed up for an e-book, free material, webinar (never attended) but haven’t done anything more with you.
Marketing Should Include: Brand, Value, Webinars, Seminars, Materials (all built to engage and identify who this contact is)
Prospect
Someone who knows who you are, have used a service, had a call or email communication with you, but haven’t progressed to date.
Marketing Should Include: Trust Building, Qualifying Tools (working to see how you fit together)
Shopper
Someone who has bought once from you, more if and when, usually low value items. They just aren’t ready to make the leap.
Marketing Should Include: 100% Personalised (send what they need and want)
Customer
Someone who has bought more than 1 product from you or the same product multiple times.
Marketing Should Include: Retention (send marketing that supports the product they have bought and ideas for improving their business further)
Fan
Someone who has been with you for several months and would if asked tell all their friends about you.
Marketing Should Include: 1-2-1 Support, Guest Speaking, Case Study (anything that will support your fan and showcase your relationship)
You can see by placing a contact into one of the five areas (you can have as many as you wish) you are splitting the database up and re-focusing where your time should be PLUS you are giving your contact a better overall marketing journey. Imagine being a Customer but receiving information that a Suspect would need or vice versa. It just doesn’t work, your job is to nurture your database and that can only be done by first recognising what each group needs.
The next point to think about is personalisation. As the contact moves down the ladder you should be gathering more information and insights about them. So what they have clicked on, read, calls etc. which means you can give them a more personalised journey which will help get them to buy from you.
The process itself isn’t new in any imagination but it is something that is forgotten over and over again, instead businesses blindly email generic marketing to everyone giving the wrong information to the wrong audience (probably at the wrong time too).
Where To Start!
To start this process you’ll need to be honest about your data and claim those contacts that you know about and have been in contact with. For the rest assume that they need to feel the love and move them back to the early stages based on your knowledge of their journey so far.
This strategy works for every business regardless of database size, getting it right from day one is obviously beneficial, if you do have thousands of connections then you’ll have to invest time in getting the records straight but trust in me when I tell you that is essential if you ever want your database to work for you. Remember treating everyone as generics will only ever find the odd person. Set up to market correctly and you could be filling up your lead funnel in no time.
Don’t Be Overwhelmed!
I mentioned at the start of the blog that this process was missed so many times when doing the initial review with a customer, well the main reason it wasn’t done was because lot’s of the customers databases were so large that businesses couldn’t find the time to sort them and not even for the future contacts!
I know it can be a timely job, but having your data how you need it and allowing you to focus where you should be can be a great way of boosting growth. Would you rather have 100 contacts that you know will buy from you or 10000 that you haven’t any idea about? What kind of data can you really manage? 100 for example seems feasible, where 10000 seems more unfeasible.
Help Me!
We have been an official Hubspot partner now for several years and have helped hundreds of businesses with their databases. We use the same methodology regardless of the CRM system that you use. If you would like help to optimise your database for a real return then book in with me below :)
