The Perfect Growth Formula PDF - LeadGen Compass...activities generated lots of sales, but even more...
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Transcript of The Perfect Growth Formula PDF - LeadGen Compass...activities generated lots of sales, but even more...
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ThePerfectGrowthFormulaAbalancedapproachtogrowingyourbusinesswithoutstressorstrain.
WilliamS.MatternandGregoryS.Chambers
Allrightsreserved.
ISBN:1548374989
ISBN-13:978-1548374983
“Growthisneverbymerechance;itistheresultofforcesworkingtogether.”–JamesCashPenney
CONTENTS
QUOTATION
1 WHATISTHEPERFECTGROWTHFORMULA?
1
2 INBOUND 3
3 OUTREACH 7
4 DATA 11
5 BEINGOUTOFBALANCE 15
6 PUTTINGITALLTOGETHER 19
7 FINALTHOUGHTS 21
8 THEPERFECTGROWTHFORMULASELF-ASSESSMENT
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ABOUTTHEAUTHORS
THEPERFECTGROWTHFORMULA
1.WhatisthePERFECTGROWTHFORMULA?
Thefirstquestionusuallyaskedabouttheperfectgrowthformulaiswheredidthiscomefrom?
Clientsaresurprisedtolearnthatitcamealmostentirelyfromthem.WecombinedtheirexperienceswiththestrategiesandtacticsGoLeadsemploysinregardtohowwegeneratenewbusiness.Themorewelookedathowwe’vegrownourbusinessinthelastseventeenyears,howourcustomersaregrowingtheirbusiness,andevenhowprospectstoldustheyhopedtogrowtheirbusiness,theGrowthFormulabegantoemerge.ItistheworldthatnotonlyGoLeadsislivingin,butthemajorityofourverybestcustomersarelivingintoo.
Referringtothegraphic,thewaywestartedintheworldofmarketingcanbefoundontheoutreachsideoftheequationorthebigyellowcircle.Astimewenton,wefocusedmoreontheinboundcircle,wherewetriedtogetcustomerstocometous(thebigredcircle).Bothofthoseactivitiesgeneratedlotsofsales,butevenmoresemi-interestedprospectsandtonsofdata.Thatiswherethebluecircle,Data,comesin.Toleverageallthatinformationweuseanalyticstolearnmoreabouttheseprospectsandcustomers.Weusedthatinformationtodirectourmarketingandeventakethatinformationto
ourcustomers,askingforreferrals.Thislearningloopgaveusinsightsthatmadeusmorevaluabletoprospectsandalsomadeiteasiertoreconnect.Astimewentby,wefoundthatwearen’ttheonlycompanyengagedintheseactivitieslookingfortoolsandhelp.ThisrealizationledtotheGrowthFormula—aneasywaytoexplainwhatwe’redoingtoanyonetryingtogrowtheirbusinessusingthesametools.
Let’sjumpintothefirstpartoftheequation.Inbound.
2.Inbound
Wehaveasimpledefinitionofinbound:gettingcustomerstocallus.Itcouldbefuturecustomerscallingus,qualifiedprospectscallingus,oranyoneelsewhoneedsourservicesorproductsfindingus.Today,thewaywemakethishappenistobewhereourcustomerscanfindusontheinternet,andthendirectthattraffictoourwebsite.That’sourprimarygoal–makesureourwebsiteisbeingfound.
Thereasonforthisissimple:alotofourpotentialprospectsareontheinternet,usingsearchenginestodoresearchabouttheveryproblemswesolve.Someareevenfarenoughintheirsearchtolookfortheproductsandservicesweprovidebyname.Ourgoalistomaximizetheamountofthattrafficthatendsuponourwebsite.Thisisachievedinanumberofways—pay-per-clickadsusingtoolslikeAdWords,pressreleases,writingarticles,andmore.Weareopentoplacinganythingonouronlinepropertiesthat
willenhanceourwebsiteandincreaseitschancesofansweringaquestionourclientsaskthesearchengines.Inotherwords,anythingthatwillincreaseouronlinevisibility.
Thisfocusonbeingwhereourprospectsaresearchingtransformedourbusinessfifteenyearsago.Today,eventhoughonlinemarketinghasbecomemorecomplicated,whathasn’tchangedisthefactthatit’sgoodtobevisibleduringonlinesearches.Andeveryoneagreesthatit’sgoodtohavequalifiedprospectsfindingyou,andkeepingyoursalespeoplefromhavingtoengageinalengthysalescycle.Ourrepsarehuman,andintheend,nobodyreallylikesmaking100interruptingphonecallsaday.Especiallywhenthealternativeisgettingaqualifiedprospecttocallthem,andsay,“Hey,youhavethisproduct,right?”Whatsalespersonwouldn’twantthat?
Tomakethishappen,weareleveragingthewebsite,leveragingthesearchengines,andmakingourproductsandservicesvisibletocustomers.
Let’stalkabouthowwecanhelpyoudothesame.
First,whenwestartlookingataclient’swebsite,therearetimesitfeelsliketheclientbuilttheirwebsitebecauseonedaysomebodywalkedin
andsaid,“Hey,business,youneedtogetawebsite.”That’snotwherewewantyoutostart.Wewanttodiscern,forthisparticularbusinessandtheircustomers,thepurposeoftheirwebsite.Unfortunately,itisnotFieldofDreams;justbecauseyouhaveit,doesn'tmeanpeoplewillcome,eventoday.
Westartbyconsideringwhathastohappentomaketheirwebsitevisibletoprospects.Whatdoweneedtodotomakesurethatwebsiteisfrontandcenterontheresultpagesofthemajorsearchengineswhenaprospectsearchesforinformationrelatedtotheproblemsourclientissolving?Toincreasevisibility,wecreatecontent,weincreaseactivityonsocialmediaandweinvestinpay-per-clickadvertisinglikeGoogleAdWords.
Weknowwhatyou’rethinking,“pay-per-click?”
Ifyousellacomplicatedproductorservice,pay-per-clickisagreatwaytogetimmediatefeedbackfromlikelyprospectswhoaretypingsomethingintoGoogle.Ifyouradcampaign’skeywordphrasesareamatchandyouradshowsup,youcancollectthatinformationandlearnmoreaboutwhatyourfuturecustomersareactuallysearchingfor.Andbelieveme,whatyouthinkthey’dsearchforandwhattheyactuallysearchforarerarelythesamething.
Asyouknowifyou’vetriedpaidadsinthepast,itcangetexpensive.Especiallyifyouareadvertisingusingphrasesthatareearlyinaprospect’sbuyingcycle.Therefore,oncewelearnwhatourprospectsaresearchingfor,wefocusonmakingsurethesearchengineknowsourclienthastheanswerstothatquery.Wedothisbycreatingcontentandusinglinkingstrategiestogettothetopofthenaturalsearchresults.Typicallyreferredtoasorganictraffic,weemployalittlescience,alittlefocusedeffort,andalotofbasicblockingandtacklingtoearnaspotatthetopofpageone.Onceyoucanbefoundinthetopresults,you’rethere24/7.What’sbest,youdon'thavetopayforthatimpressionorforgettingthatprospecttoclickonyourwebsite.
ThemostimpressiveinboundexampleisAmazon.Right?Itfeelslikenomatterwhatproductorserviceyoutypeintoasearchengine,Amazonshowsupinthefirstthreeorfourspotsinthatorganicsearch.IfAmazonsellsit,andthesearchenginethinksyouwantit,they’regoingtodirectyoutoAmazon.It’sinthesearchengine’sbestinteresttodosobecausethebettersearchresults,themorelikelyyouwillcontinuetousethatsearchengine.
Considerthis,withserviceslikeAmazonEchoandGoogleHomebecomingmoreandmore
prevalent,yourinteractionwithasearchengineisliketalkingtoavase.TheanswersthatAlexagives?Theyarethetopresultsfromthesearchenginesortheorganicresults.Atsomepointinthefuture,thiswilldriftintobusiness-to-businesstransactionstoo.
Beready.Today’sadvantageistomorrow’sassumption.
Lastly,considertheexampleofGoLeads.There’sagoodchancethatifyou’rereadingthisbooklet,youinitiallyfoundusonlinethroughasearch.Thatisinboundmarketing.
3.OUTREACH
Outreachisbestunderstoodastraditionalmarketingandsales.It’swhereweactivelyreachouttotheprospect,incontrasttowaitingfortheprospecttocontactus.Thinkface-to-faceofficevisits,directmailandtelemarketing.Whileitisallrelative,thenewesttacticsthatbusinesseshaveimplementedsurroundemailmarketing,SMStextmarketing,andeven-accountbasedmarketingwherewepushadsoutbasedonIPaddressesandotherregisteredonlineactivity.Whilethenewesttacticsareborderlinecreepy,whatalltheseexampleshaveincommonisthattheyinvolvereachingouttocustomers.Ortoputitanotherway;wearefindingcustomersinsteadofcustomersfindingus.
Althoughweledthisbookletwithinbound,weknowthatmostofourclientsrelyonoutreachtogeneratemuchoftheirnewbusinessactivity.Ifthereareanydrawbackscomparedtoinboundmarketing,it’sthatoutreachisalengthysales
cycle,andanyattemptstospeedupthebuyer’sdecisionleadstomargincompression.Inotherwords,discountsorpricematching.However,thatdoesn’thappeneverytime,andoverall,prospectinginatraditionalformatisincrediblyvaluable.It’sjustwhenyouhavealloftheelementsofthePerfectGrowthFormulaworkingtogether—inbound,outboundandleveragingyourcustomerbase—marginstendtobehealthieranddiscountinglessfrequent.We’llcovergettingallelementsworkingtogetherincomingchapters,butfornow,let’sfocusonoutreach.
Thenumberonereasoneveryoneshouldbeusingoutreachtacticsisbecauseofonething:marketpenetration.Youstartwithsizinguptheentiremarket,thendetermineyourpercentageofpenetration.Literally,outofthisentireuniverseofpeoplewhocanpurchaseourproductsandservices,howmanycustomersdowecurrentlyhave?Let’sgooutandconnectwitheveryoneelse.IntheGrowthFormulawetakethatastepfurtherandcombineitwithinboundbysaying,let’sreachthemandinspirethemtocallusback.Thewaywedogetthemtocallisthroughtelemarketing,directmail,knockingondoors,andavarietyofothertacticswhetherit’stargetingconsumersorreachingbusinesses.
Wedon’twantto“reachout”tojustanyone,though.Inourdefinitionofoutreach,weuseasmuchmarketinformationaswecanfindinordertomakeeachtouchmorevaluable.Forexample,insteadofdoingapostcarddroptoanentirezipcodeorsetofcarrierroutes,wedoacustomeranalyzerorabestprospectanalyzerandtargetouroutreachveryspecifically.Oncewe’veidentifiedasetoflook-a-likeprospects,westarttesting.We’lltest500leads,ormaybe1,000leads.We’llgroupthemandleaveaspecificmessageforthisgroupthentestitagainstasimilarmessagetoanothergroup.We’retryingtolearnwhatworksbest.AclassicA-Btest.Wearen’tafraidofspendingalittlebitofmoneyupfrontaslongasthetestgivesusthemarketingintelligenceweneedtojustifyalargerinvestmentinthefuturethatiscapableofgeneratinglong-termsalesgrowth.
Forthemostpart,mostcompaniesalreadyaredoingsomepartofoutreachmarketing—eitherthroughtelemarketing,on-sitevisitsbysalespeopleordirectmail.
Thenewertacticsincludeemail,especiallyontheB2Bside.Theresultsdependheavilyonwhoisontheprospectlist,whatisbeingofferedandhowcloselythetwoarealigned.Wefocusonthesubjectline,thenthetextpreview,thenthetext
onlyemail,thentheimage,thenthecall-to-action.Emailcanhelpyoufindthe“lowhangingfruit,”butmostlyithelpsyoucreateequityinyourbrand,andovertimeitcanhelpmoveprospectsthroughtheirdecision-makingprocess.
Notonlyisthedecisionaprocess,butsoisemailmarketingandallofoutreach.Ittakestimebutitworks.
Withmanyindustries,products,andservices,outreachistheprimarywaytobuilddemand.Itworks,soitmakessensetokeepthattheprimarymarketingorsalesfocus.
We’vecoveredinbound,andwe’vecoveredoutbound.Nextisdata.
4.DATA
DataisourlastgroupinthePerfectGrowthFormula.Inouropinion,it’sagroupthatisoftenoverlookedwhenitcomestonewbusinessdevelopment,becauseitholdsallthepeopleandorganizationsthatwemarketedtointhepast.Itincludesourdatabaseofcustomers–thegroupthathasalreadypaidus–butitalsoincludesthoseprospectswhomwehavespokenwithbutwhohaveneverboughtfromus.Forourmarketingandsaleseffortstoproducethebestresultsfromtheleasteffort,weusetheDatabuckettoholdeverythingtogether.
Thewayweapproachthisisthroughanalytics.Wetakealltheinformationwe’vecollectedoncustomers,pastcustomersandprospects,andwefocusonconnecting,educatingandinspiringthemtoworkwithusinadeeperway.Wewanttoconnectwitheveryoneinourdatabaseanddeepentheconversation.
Thisdoesn’tmeanwe'recontinuouslypoundingthedatabasewithsalesmessages,butratherweprovidethemwithinformationtheyneedtomakegooddecisionsinthefuture,whetherit’swithusorsomeoneelse.Ifweapproachthesepeopleintherightway,theyallowustoeducatethem,andhopefully,overtime,theyareinspiredtoact.Whentheyarereadytoact,wearethereviaourinboundeffortsandwebenefitfromnamerecognition.Ourcompanybenefitsfromfamiliarityorweareinfrontofthemattherighttime.
Thisstepistheglue.Actually,it’sanincrediblyimportantpieceoftheequationforafewreasons.First,wehavespentthemoneyoncapturingthenewcustomerorintroducingourselvestotheprospecteitherbydirectinvestmentinadvertisingorindirectinvestmentswithourpeopleandprocess.Ifweonlystarttheconversationwithprospectsandcustomerswithoutanalyzingtheresultsandre-approachingthatdatabase,ourcostofsalesishigh.Wearerecommendingyouinvestinlearningfromtheresultsyou’regenerating.
Thesecondreasonisthatwedohavesomesortofrelationship.Itmaynotbeastrongrelationship,butallrelationshipsstartsomewhere.Ifwearenottakingadvantageof
thisloosenetworkofpeoplewhoknowofusorhaveboughtfromus,wearemissingpartofthepuzzle.Somethingmayhappeninamonth,somethingmayhappeninayear,andsometimesitmaytakeevenlonger.Whenansweringthequestion,isitbettertobegoodortobepresent,wealwaysdefaulttoitbeingbettertobeingpresent.
Thismeansthatinourdatabase,wehavepeoplewhohaveinvestedtensofthousandsofdollarsayearwithus,butwealsohaveagroupwhohasnotpaidusadime,andthat'sokay.Whentheyareready,theyarereadyandwewanttobethere.
ThewaywedothisstartswiththreetermswerepeatoftenatGoLeads:wewanttoconnect,educate,andinspire.Toconnectmeanswedon'talwayswanttobeselling.Wewanttomakeaconnectionthatestablishesacommonlanguageandacommonunderstandingofwhatwe’retryingtoaccomplish.Toeducatemeansthatwewanttohelpprospectsandclientsliketheywerefriendsasking,“Ifyouwereme,whatwouldyoudo?”Therearemanypathstoasolution,whichonewouldyouchoose?Ifwecandownloadourexperiencesandknowledgetoourclientsandprospects,weareaddingvalue.Andtoinspiremeansthatifaprospecthasneverconsidereda
particularsolutionorencounteredacertainproblem,wewanttobetheonesthatenlightenthatprospectbecausethere’sachancetheywillturntouswhentheyneedhelporwanttoaccomplishaparticulargoal.
Wecombineallofthisinformationontheinbound,theoutreach,andpastexperiencesandanalyzeittogetapictureofwhatthefullmarketpotentialis.HowmanycustomersdoIhaveinthisvertical?What'sthetotalmarketofthisvertical?What'smyROI?What'smypenetration?Areweprofitableinthisniche?DoIwanttocontinuetogoafterthismarket?It'stakingallofourhistoricalsalesandmarketingworkthat’sbeendone,bringingitinandanalyzingit,thenasking,“WheredoIgofromhere?”
Weusethisinformationtoinformtheelementsofinbound,outreach,andleveragingdata.Wemakeourselvessmartergoingforward.
Let’sgiveanexample.Wehaveaclientthatinitiallyaskedusforourfulldatabase,butit’srarethatanyoneneedsmillionsofrecords.Theyareamagazinepublishingcompany,sowepausedthatinitialrequestandstartedbylookingattheirsubscribers.Wepulledtheminandbumpedthemupagainstourdatabases,everythingwehadaccessto,andwedida
marketanalysisandacustomeranalysis.Theyhadapastresponderfiletoo,soweusedthattodoaprospectanalysis.
Wehadtwogoals,thefirstbeingthatwewantedtoconfirmwhattheirinitialguesseswere.Theyknewwhotheywantedtotargetbasedonhistoryandanecdotes,sowetriedtoputsomedatabehindthehypotheses.Simplyconfirmingthatwewereontherightpath.
Thesecondthingwewantedtoaccomplishinthatanalysisistouncoverwhatwerefertointernallyasthe“Wow”factor.Inthiscase,thewowfactorhappenedwhenwetookadetailedlookattheircurrentsubscribers.Theentirefilewasover55yearsold.Beforetheinformationhadbeenlaidoutinfrontofthemlikethat,theyhadaninklingthattheirsubscriberswereaging,butwhenlookingatdetailedreports,thedirectorofmarketingliterallysaid,"Ohmygosh.We'reabouttoloseourentire..."andhervoicedriftedoff.Itwasdramatic.That’sthewowfactor.
Withtheanalysisinhand,theycalledanallhandsondeckmeetingandsaid,"Wehavetotalkaboutthisbecauseoursubscriberbasehasagedfasterthanwethoughtandtherewillcomeatimewhentheywon'tneedourpublication."
Thatinformationforcedustorethinkthebigdatabaserentalideaandpayattentiontorebuildingthesubscriberbaseforthefuture.Itshapedtheirstrategygoingforward.That’sthepowerofleveragingyourdata.
5.BEINGOUTOFBALANCE
We’vebeendescribingeachsectionofactivityintheGoLeadsGrowthScoreindividually,butnowlet’stalkabouthowtheyallworktogether.Wewantallofthesectionstobeinbalance,andthebestwaytodescribewhyistotakealookatwhathappenswhenactivitiesareoutofbalance.
Tokeepusontrack,we’regoingtorefertothenumbersintheGrowthFormula.Inbalanceisnumber4.Let’stalkaboutwhathappenswhenyouhavestronginboundactivity,strongoutboundactivity,butyou’renotleveragingthedatabases.Themostcompellingreasonforspendingtimeandeffortleveragingthecustomerandprospectdatabaseisbecauseyouhavealreadyspentmoneyattractingthatprospect.Ifyouforgetaboutthemyourcostofsalesistoohigh.You’vealreadymadetheinvestmentinattractingnewcustomerswhichmeansyouhaveasetofprospectswhohavebeenexposedtoyourbrandnameandsolutions.
Thefuturecostofsalescomesdownwitheachsubsequentbrandexposureandeachadd-onproductorserviceyourcustomerspurchase.
Thequestionstoaskyourselfwhensomeonedoesn'tbuyrightawayare,“Whatareournextsteps?Howdoweconnect,educate,andinspireovertime?Howwillwekeeptrackofthatactivityandmakesuretheinitialinvestmentisn’twasted?”
Aquickexampleisaconsultantweworkedwithwhousedeventmarketingtomeetnewbusinessowners,citybycity.Hewascallingintorenewhislicensewithusandhappenedtocatchmeonthephone.Aswewaitedforhisinformationtopop-up,Iaskedifhewantedustosuppressattendeesandrespondersfromthelastmailing,thinkinghehadaseparateapproachwithprospectsthathadrespondedinsomeway.
“WhywouldIdothat?”heasked.Hedescribedhisapproach,whichwasmultiplemailings,multiplefollowupcalls,andanonlineregistrationsystem.Idescribedtheworkwedidwiththepublishingcompany,howitmightbringdownhiscostofsales,anditwaslikeIturnedonalightbulb.“Wait,youthinkIcanbringdownmycosts?”herepeated,andwesketchedoutaplanonwhotore-approach,whotoavoidandwhotoincreasethenumberoftoucheson.Weshowed
himthathissweetspotisinbusinesseswithover50employees,inmetropolitanareas(MSAs)51through200,andshowedhimhowtoretargetvisitorstohisregistrationpage.
Hisresultsweredramatic.Dueinparttoouradvice,hefilledtheroomtwiceasfastandwasnearlyabletoeliminatethediscountingthatoccurredtheweekoftheevent.Itturnsoutthatheusedtore-visitcitiesonceayear,butarmedwithnewinformationfromhisdatabase,hecutthenumberofcitieshetraveledtoinhalfanddoubledthenumberofevents.
Ifyourdataeffortisn’tequaltoyourinboundandoutboundeffort,you’respendingtoomuchonfuturesales.
Whataboutwheninboundisoutofbalancewithoutreachanddata,numbertwoonthelist?Togetrighttothepoint,ifnoone’scallingyou,internally,wethinkofyouasinvisible.You’reabestkeptsecretandtheonlywaysomeonefindsoutaboutyouisbecauseofoutreachtothem.Weseethisalotinbusiness-to-businesssales.Thesalesteamfocusesonmakingnewcontacts,outreach,andthemarketingteamfocusesonkeepingintouchwiththem.Therestofthemarket,othersthatcanbenefitfromyourservicesorneedyourproduct,can’tfindyou.
Thebigbenefitfromaddingafocusoninboundisthatyouwillshortenyoursalescycle.That’sbecauseyourprospectsarehelpingtoqualifythemselves.You’renotstartingatthebeginningofthesalescycle,you'restartinginthemiddle.Maybeevenclosetotheendifyourmaterialsdoagreatjobofeducatingthecustomer.
Anexampleofthishappenedwithahomehealthcarecompanythatworkedwithfamiliesofelderlyparents.Theysellthroughanetworkofadvisorsandphysicians,andcametouslookingforanupdatedlistofinternalmedicinedoctorsandlicensedsocialworkers.Theyneverhadasinglefamilycontactthemdirectlyandassumeditwouldneverhappen.
Wehelpedthemtestacontentstrategytogetincomingcalls.Itstartedwithwritingaseriesofarticlesonthemostcommonquestionsfamilieshadabouttheirservicesandfeatureduniqueanswersfromtheirteam.Wepromotedthesearticlesviapressreleases,linkstotheirwebsite,andteachingstaffhowtoprovidepdfversionstofamilies.Within90daystheystartedgettingcallsandquestionsthatwecouldusetofine-tunethematerials.Within180daysthefirstleadsstartedcomingin.Todaythisactivityaccountsfor15percentoftheiropportunitiesanditcontinuestogrow.
Though,ifyoutalktothemtoday,theleadsaren’twhatthey’remostimpressedwith.Themostimpressivepartoftheeffortistheeffectitishavingonreferralsandrecruiting.Theyfoundouttheyreallywereabestkeptsecret.Today,theirbrandnamerecognitionandreputationareontherise.
Finally,whataboutnumberthree,animbalancewherethefocusisoninboundanddata,butthereislittletonoactiveoutreach?Youareleveragingyourcustomerbase,andyou’regettingincomingcalls.Whywouldweneedtofocusonoldfashionedoutreach?
Thesimpleansweristhateventhebestinboundeffortwon'tbringineverybody.Wehaveyettorunintoacasewhereabusinesshas100percentmarketpenetration.Acustomerpenetrationreportwillshowprospectsthatworkwithcompetitors,thatareunawareoftheneedforyourservices,orwerenotinthemarketbeforethatday.Adirectoutreachefforttothesegroupswillbeeasybecauseyouhavethematerialstheyneedtoeducatethemselves,buttheywon’tfinditontheirown.
Theotherbenefitwe’veseenisthatbusinessesthatareoutofbalancewithoutreachtendtohavelessabilitytoforecastmorethanoneortwosalescyclesintothefuture.Aretheygoingto
averagethirtyincomingphonecallsthisweekorwillitonlybeten?Balancingoutreachhelpsyoutakecontrolofthemarket.Itmakesyoulesspassive.
6.PUTTINGITALLTOGETHER
Whenyouhaveallthreecirclesinbalance,wesaythatyouaremaximizingtheresultsfromyoursalesandmarketingefforts.It’sasimpleidea,butnoteasytoimplement.
TakeGoLeadsforinstance.Therearetimeswecanpointdirectlytobeingoutofbalance.Whetherit’slosingpeopletonewopportunities,customerdefections,orbeingdistractedbyacompetitor,it’seasytofeelalittlewobblyandoff-kilter.It’sduringthesetimesthatIfindcomfortanddirectioninthisgraphic.Itorientsus.Itforcesustogobacktothebasicsandthink,“Okay,let’sfixthis.What'sourstrategyontheinboundside?What'sourstrategyontheoutreachside?Howareweleveragingcustomers?”
Thisdidn’thappenovernight.Westartedthisbusinessoverfifteenyearsagowiththestrategythatweknew.Afullfocusonoutreach.Nooneknowsus,sowehavetogetoutandstarttalking
tocustomers.Weneededtotellourstory.
Whatwasinterestingwasthatfifteenyearsago,aftercreatingawebsite,wekindofstumbledintoinbound.Wedidn’tplanonattractingthousandsofprospectsfromonlineactivity,butthatisexactlywhathappened.Asyoucanimagine,oncewedidn’tneedtoworksohardatoutreach,weletitgo.Asamatteroffact,webecameobsessedwithgettingGoogletraffictothedetrimentoftherestofourmarketingandsalesefforts.Adecadelaterwelookedupandthought,“Isoutreachstillrelative?Isitweirdthatweselloutreachtoolsbutalmostallofourbusinessiscomingfrominbound?”
EnterthePerfectGrowthFormula.ThisequationallowsGoLeadstodoamuchbetterjobofhelpingourclientssettheirownmarketingandsalesstrategies.That’sbecauseourclientslearnfromourexperiences—especiallythechallengeswefaced.thatcomefrombeingoutofbalance,becausethathappenedtous.Weweretoooutofbalanceontheinboundsideandonedaywelookedupandthebusinesshadleveledoff.
Itdidn’thappenallatonce.Wealwayshaveinboundcallscominginbutwedidn’thaveanyonereachingouttoourdatabase.Wedidn’thaveanyonepenetratinghotmarketsdirectly.Weweren’tmaximizingourgrowthor
maximizingourresources.We’reasmallbusinessanddon'thaveanAmazonbudget,butwewanttomaximizeoursalesandmarketingspendingandwedon’twanttobeafraidtomakeinvestmentsinpromisingtactics.
ThePerfectGrowthFormulahelpedusframeourinternaldiscussions,askingourselves,“Whatdowewantfromourcustomers?Whatdowewantfromourprospects?Whatarewedoingtomaximizeoureffortineachandeveryarea?”
Bydoingthat,aplanemergeseffortlessly.IthelpsusavoidthefateaCEOthatIusedtoworkfordescribedwhenhesaid,"Theabsoluteworstbusinessiswhenyouhavetogetnewbusinesseverysinglemonth."
Weknowwhathemeant,becausewewerelivingitbeforeusingtheGrowthFormula.Westartedatzeroeverymonth,andthatcausedstress.Wewantedmorevisibilityintothepipelineandwelookedatwaystofindsomerecurringrevenuesowedidn’thaveeverythinginonebasket.
ThePerfectGrowthFormulaforcedus,andstillforcesus,toaskquestionsabouthowwewanttogrow,andthebestwaystogetthemostfromourfiniteresources.
7.FINALTHOUGHTS
ThisbookletisanoverviewofthePerfectGrowthFormulaanditshouldgiveyouanideaofhowyourteamcanuseittoframediscussions.Thislastchapterwillanswerafewquestionsthatourclientshavehadwhenfirstintroducedtotheframework.
We’vemadetheclaimthattheGrowthFormulahelpswithgrowth,butitgoeswellbeyondthat.Thewaywerecommendusingitisbythrowingthegraphicuponthewhiteboardandtalkingabouteachsection,comingupwithexamplesthatfityourindustry.You’llbesurprisedwithwhatcomesout.Forinstance,inanearlydiscussionwithoursalesteam,wesaid,"HereintheDatasection,whydoesn’tsomeonedescribeourbestcustomers?Giveussomeadjectives.”Andnokidding,wefilledupawhiteboard.
Herewasthesurprisingthing,wefilleditupwitheverytypeofadjective,andwhatwasamazingwasthatnoneoftheadjectiveshadanythingtodowithrevenue.Noneofthemwerefinancial.Ithadeverythingtodowithopen,honest,goodperson,workswithme,takesmycall,thingslikethat.Onlyattheveryenddidsomebodyspeakupandsay,"Well,Idolikeitwhentheypay.”
That’sthepoweroftheGrowthFormula.Itgets
yourteamtalking.Inthatcase,wegotdeepintodefiningourbestcustomersandasking,"Okay,howdowefindthosepeople?Canwemimicthemsomehow?Canwedescribethemwithdata?”
Inourcase,wedecidedthatthedatawasn’tdeepenough.Itjustwasn’toutthere.Thatforcedustothinkabouttoolslikethisbooklet.Weneedednewwaystofindourbestcustomers.Weneededtoconnectwiththem,educatethemtothebestofourability,andtheninspirethemtotakeaction,lettingtheresultsspeakforthemselves.
Itwaseyeopeningforallofusandchangedourbusiness.
Thelastideawe’llleavewithyouisusingtheGoLeadsGrowthScoreasaquickassessmenttool.Thewaywesuggestthatyoutaketheself-assessmentistodoitintwosteps.
Thefirststepistoaskyourteamtosetamarkerforwhereyouaretoday.Rankyourselfoninbound,outboundanddata.Useascaleofonetofive.OnebeingnotsogreatandfivebeingIdon’tknowhowwecangetanybetter.
Thesecond,orfollow-up,stepistoaskyourteamwhereitwantstobe.Withthosetwoscoresinhand,starttalkingaboutthebestways
tomovetheneedle.Thebestwaystomovefromatwotoathreeinoutbound,forinstance.
ThePerfectGrowthFormulaisapowerfultoolbecauseit’sbasedonwhatwe’velearnedfromourclients.Itwasdevelopedbycombiningourclients’experienceswithhowweatGoLeadsgeneratenewbusiness.Italsoillustrateshowwe’vegrownourbusinessinthelastfifteenyearsandwherewe’dliketotakeitinthenextfifteenyears.
Goodluckusingtheframeworkandifyouwanttoshareyourexperiencespleasefeelfreetocontactus.
8.PERFECTGROWTHFORMULASCORINGTOOL
(ThissectionmayappearabrokenintheKindleedition.Pleasecontactusathttp://www.goleads.comtorequestapdfcopy)
Tohelpoursalesteamassessclients,wedevelopedascoringtoolthatassessesanybusinessontwolevels.Thefirstisaphysicalinventoryofsalesandmarketingtoolsandtactics.Thesecondisameasureofyourtemperamentforgrowth.Helpinganswerthequestions“DowehavethestructuretotakeadvantageoftheGrowthFormula?And“DowehavethetemperamenttotakeadvantageoftheGrowthFormula?”
ItshoulddeepenyourunderstandingoftheGrowthFormulaanditsdirectapplicationtoyourbusiness.Usedcorrectly,itisdesignedtogeneratequestionsandlivelydiscussionaroundwhatyou’recurrentlydoingandthedirectionyouwanttogo.
Instructions:Thereare36totalquestions.Usethescoringsystem,totalyourscorebysection,addupthetwosectiontotals,andcheckthescoringlegendattheend.
QUESTION SCORING YOUR
SCORE
I-1
Websiteanalyticsinstalled?
0–Noanalyticsinstalled
1–Analyticsinstalled
2–Analytics,tracking,andlandingpages
I-2
Lastsocialmediaactivity?
0–Nosocialmedia
1–Monthlysocialmediaactivity
2–Regular,relevant,activity
I-3
Howmanypagesareonyoursite?
0–Under50pages
1–100pages/blog
2–200+pages/blog/downloads
I-4 Wouldyouratherhavenewcustomersormorebusinessfromexistingcustomers?
0–Don’tknow
1–Focusedonboth
2–Wemeasureallactivity,newandexisting
I-5 Whatisthesourceofmostofyourleads?
0–Wehavearoughidea
1–Weuselasttouchattribution
2–Wehaveawaytomeasurealltouchesandweightattribution
I-6 Whatistheleadsourceofmostofyoursales?
0–Wehavearoughidea
1–Weuselasttouchattribution
2–Wehaveawaytomeasurealltouchesandweightattribution
TOTALforINBOUND
O-1
Doyouhaveanewsletteroremailcollectionapponyourwebsite?
0–Nonewsletter,don’temail
1–Semi-regularnewssent
2–Regularemail,activesegmentingof
clients/prospects
O-2
Whatisyourpreferredmethodofprospecting?
0–Onlineonly
1–Mixofonline,offlinetactics
2–Weusecustomerprofiles,marketanalysis,activetracking
O-3
Howmanyprospectsdoyourneedtotalktoforasale?
0–Wedon’tknow
1–Ruleofthumbused
2–Ratiobychannel,segmented
O-4
Whatdoesyourcompanydowiththenon-convertingprospects?
0–Keptinfiles
1–KeptinCRMwithallprospects
2–AseparatemarketingCRM
O-5
Doyouregularlyusepressreleases?
0–No
1–Onoccasion
2–RegularPReffort
O-6
Howmuchdoesitcosttobringinanewcustomer?
0–Roughidea
1–Accountingtracksit
2–WetrackandmanageCostperAcquisition(CPA)
TOTALforOUTBOUND
L-1 Doyouhavepublishedtestimonialsonyourwebsite?
0–Nopublishedtestimonials
1–Namelessquotes
2–Wehaveatestimonialstrategy
L-2 Eachyear,whatpercentageofyourbusinessisrepeatbusiness?
0–Roughidea
1–Lessthan20%isrepeat
2–Over20%,wehaveaCRM,andtrackcustomer
lifetimevalue
L-3 Whatisanexpectedlifetimevalueofanewcustomer?
0–Roughidea
1–Accountingtracksit
2–Wetrackit,trackCPA,andmeasureallactivity,inboundandoutbound
L-4 Areyourcustomerslocal,nationwide,orworldwide?
0–Roughidea
1–Wehaveaspecificgeography
2–Specificgeography,trackCPA,anduseCRM
L-5 Whatcustomerrelationshiptoolortoolsdoyouuse?
0–Excel
1–WeuseaCRMtool
2–WepullregulardetailedreportsfromourCRM
TOTALforDATA
AddInbound,Outbound,DatascoresforTOTALSTRUCTUREforGROWTHScore
GROWTHTEMPERAMENT SCORE
G-1
Ourdemandisgreaterthanourabilitytodeliverproductsorservices.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
G-2
Ourcompanyhasexperiencedeconomicupsanddowns.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
G-3
Wehavetherightteaminplace.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
G-4
Wehaveasolidbusinessplaninplace.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
G-5
Wehavecapitalavailabletofuelgrowth.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
TOTALforGROWTH
C-1
Weknowourcustomer’spurchasingdecisionprocess.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
C-2
Weconductregularcustomersurveys.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
C-3
Weknowourbuyer’sreading/mediaconsumptionhabits.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
C-4
Whenwefirstmeetprospects,wehavetoteachthemabouttheproblemswesolve.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
C-5
Ourcustomersexperiencefast,earlysuccesswithourproducts.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
TOTALforCUSTOMERFOCUS
P-1
Wehavedetailedperformanceresultsfrompastmarketingcampaigns
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
P-2
Weencourageexperimentation.
1Stronglydisagree
2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
P-3
Weconsiderriskinallplanning.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
P-4
Wetracktotalsalesbytimeperiod.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
TOTALforHISTORY
S-1
Wehaveascalablegrowthplaninplace.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
S-2
Wehaveaclearpictureofthecompany’sstrengths,weaknesses,andopportunities.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
S-3
Ourgrowthneedstobeprofitable.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
S-4
Eachbusinessunithasitsownaimsandobjectives.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
S-5
Weconsidermultipleoptionsforgrowth.
1Stronglydisagree2Disagree
3Agree
4StronglyAgree
TOTALforSTRATEGY
AddGrowth,CustomerFocus,History,StrategyscoresforTOTALTEMPERAMENTforGROWTHScore
SCORING:
Theassessmentisbrokenintosections.Thefirsthalfisfocusedonyourcompany’sgrowthstructure.It’sbuilttoanswerthequestion,“IfwewantedtoputthePerfectGrowthFormulatowork,arewesetuptomakeithappen?”
GROWTHSTRUCTURETOTAL
Addupyourinbound,outbound,anddatascores.Thisisyouroverallstructurescore.Outof34possiblepoints,ascoreof29to34indicatesastronggrowthstructureisinplace.Youcaninvestinnewgrowthtacticsandyourcompanywillbeabletomeasureandmanageresults.Ifyourscoreisbetween20and28,youhavesome
structureinplace,butonceyouputstressonthesystem,leakswillbegintoshowwhichmakegrowthlongerandmoreexpensivethanitneedstobe.Shoreuptheareaswhereyouscoredlowest.Ifyourscoreisunder20points,planyourstructurebeforeinvestingheavilyingrowthtactics.
TheassessmentisorganizedintotheGrowthFormulasectionstomakeiteasyforyourteamtodrawupuniquestrategiesthatwillworkforyourcompany.
INBOUND
Thefirstsixquestionsareoninboundstructure.Ifyouscorebetween9-12,yourinboundgrowthstructureisgreat.Ifyouscorebetween5and8,growthpressurewillcausesomestressintheorganizationasittriestokeepup.Ifyouscorebetween0and4,beforeyouinvestininbound,focusonstructure.
OUTBOUND
Thesecondsixquestionsarearoundoutboundstructure.Ifyouscorebetween9-12,youroutboundgrowthstructureisreadyforinvestment.Ifyouscorebetween5and8,growthpressurewillcausesomestressintheorganizationasitscramblestokeepup.Andifyouscorebetween0and4,beforeyouinvestin
outbound,focusonstructure.
DATA
Thelastsetofstructurequestionsarearounddatastructure.Ifyouscorebetween7-10,yourdatabaseisreadytobeleveragedforgrowthstructure.Ifyouscorebetween4and6,tryingtoleverageyourdatabaseforgrowthwillcauseorganizationalstress.Andifyouscorebetween0and3,beforeyouinvestinleveragingyourdatabase,focusonstructuringthedatabaseforanalysis.
GROWTHTEMPERAMENTTOTAL
Addupyourgrowth,customerfocus,history,andstrategyscores.Thisisyouroverallgrowthtemperamentscore.Outof76possiblepoints,ascoreof68to76indicatesthatyourcompanyhasastrongtemperamentforgrowth.Coupledwithastrongstructurescore,youareafighterjetonthetarmacreadyto“kickthetiresandlightthefires.”Ifyourscoreisbetween55and67,youhavesomehurdlestoovercomeinthequestforgrowth.Startlookingineachsectionanddeterminewhereyoucanshoreupthecompany’stemperamentasyouworkongrowth.Ifyourscoreisunder54points,yourcompanymayhavethedesiretogrow,buttherearegoingtobesomeseriouschallengesinplace.Takea
carefullookateachsection,makeplanstoimprovethoseareas,andthengobacktoworkongrowth.
Theseparatesectionstofocuson:
GROWTH
Thissection’squestions(G1-G5)giveyouanideaonhowmuchexperienceyourcompanyhaswithgrowth.Ascoreof17-20tellsusyouhave“beenthereanddonethat.”You’rereadyfortherollercoaster.Ascoreof12-16tellsusthattheremaybesomechallengesaheadandascoreofunder12suggeststhatyourcompanymayanswerthequestion,“whydoyouwanttogrow?”withashruganda,“whynot?”
CUSTOMERFOCUS
Thissection(C1-C5)showsushowstrongyourcurrentcustomerfocusis.Thisisimportantbecausethinkinglikeyourcustomerisakeytogrowth.Ascoreof17-20tellsusthatyouareactivelyembracingtheideathatyouneedtothinklikeyourcustomer,knowingtheirdecisionprocessbetterthantheydo.Ascoreof11-16suggeststhatyourcompanyisapplyingenergyinternallyasmuchasit’sapplyingenergytothecustomer.It’snotaterriblething,butitlimitsgrowthbecausenewopportunitiesforgrowingcomefromthecustomers,notfrominternal
focus.Scoreunder10andyou’realmosttotallyfocusedinternally.Takethatenergyandspendmoretimeinthecustomer’sbusinessbeforeinvestingtoomuchinnewtacticsorstrategies.
HISTORY
Thissectionisallabouttheideathatifwecanlearnfrompastefforts,we’llgrowfasterthanifwe’realwaysre-inventinggrowthefforts.Score13-16andyourcompanyisbuiltonhabitsthatwillleadtorapidlearningfrompasteffort.Growthwillbefasterandlessexpensive.Score9-12andyouhavesomethingsinplace,butchancesareyouneedtoplanbothsuccessandfailurealittlemorebeforestartinganynewtactics.Scoreunder9andwesuggestdoingmoreresearchintoagilegrowthstrategiesandteachingyourpeoplehowtothinkaboutrapidtestingofgrowthtactics.
STRATEGY
Thissectionfocusesonyourcompany’sinternalstrategicplanningprocesses.Areyoumorestrategicorareyoumoreplanningoriented.Growth,byitsnature,isinthefuture.Itreliesmoreonstrategythanpastperformance.Ifyouscore17-20,youhaveafutureorientationandcanrapidlyre-adjuststrategiesasyoulearnmore.Ifyouscore12-16,you’rerelyingonthe
pastmorethaninventingafuture.Workongettingrapidstrategyinplace.Ifyouscoreunder11,teachyourpeoplethedifferencebetweenstrategyandplanning.
Whenweusethisscoringsystemwithourprospects,we’vefoundthathighscoresinbothstructureandtemperamentareourbestindicatorforhowquicklytheproject’sresultsaregoingtoshowup.Ifwe’reworkingwithalowstructurescoreandlowtemperamentscore,webuildinextratimeandexpensebecausewe’velearnedthatevengrowthtacticsthathaveworkedlikemagicforaverysimilarorganizationwilltakealittlemoretoworkwithalowscoringcompany.
Ifyouhavequestionsorwanttoknowwhywe’vesetuptheGrowthFormulathewaywedid,pleasecontactusviaemailorbyreachingusatGoLeads.com.We’rehappytosharewhatwe’velearnedandlistentostoriesofsuccessortroubleshootchallenges.
Thankyouforreading.
ABOUTTHEAUTHORS
WilliamMatternisthePresidentandCEOofGoLeads/USFarmData,acompanyhefounded,owns,andhasmanagedthepast18years.AnativeofNebraska,helivesinOmahawithhiswifeandthreechildrenandstilllovesallBigRedsports.Thisishisfirstbooklet.
GregChambersisthePresidentofChambersPivotIndustries,asalesandmarketingconsultingcompanyinOmaha,NE.Aserialentrepreneur,Chambersco-foundedGoLeads,foundedMadGringoapparel,inadditiontohisconsultancy.HeistheauthoroftheAMALGAMATE:Amixofbusinessideasbooklets,thenovelTheLegendofMadGringo,andthesoontobepublishedTheHumanBeing’sGuidetoBusinessGrowth,whichcanallbefoundonAmazon.HisweeklyRightFITNewsletterisreadbythousandsofsubscriberseachweek.YoucanfindoutmoreaboutGregatchamberspivot.com.
