One of the big challenges these days is the increasing difficulty of getting the email into the prospect’s inbox.  According to an Aberdeen group survey if major ISPs, as much as 90% of email sent today consists of SPAM.  As a result, ISPs need to filter out much of this junk before it gets anywhere near an inbox.

As companies use multiple tiers of SPAM filtering, some of these emails may not even be visible to the end user even in their “junk” box because it is filtered out further up in the chain.

Here are 5 key tactics that B2B Marketers can use to increase sales eads by improving email deliverability:

1. Clean Content.  Avoid using spammy words in subject lines or email bodies (words such as “free” may trigger spam filters.  Many email marketing systems have tools to analyze content for potential spam flags.
2. Dedicated IP Address.  Make sure you’re on a dedicated IP address – if you have a shared IP, other companies using the same IP may be polluting it
3. List Hygiene.  Remove hard bounces from your list – continuing to send emails to dead email addresses makes you look like a spammer.
4. DKIM & SPF Records.  Make sure you have Domain Keys and SPF Records set up in your email system (if you don’t know what these are, get help from the provider of your email system). These confirm your identity, and if you have a reputation for sending good email (not SPAM), they will benefit you.
5. Target Your Emails.  Recipients of email are notorious for hitting the “SPAM” button on email if they think it does not apply to them – even if it is not spam.  By making your emails more relevant and targeted, you reduce this from happening and improve your reputation, which ISPs use to determine whether to let your emails through or not.

Let’s talk a bit more about “Targeting,” because this is not just about increasing deliverability, it’s also about increasing the Quality of your Sales Leads and about getting the most ROI out of your email marketing.

Better targeting makes your message more relevant to the recipient, improves open rates, improves your email reputation, and produces higher quality leads – just what every marketer and every sales team wants!

 Are the rumors true? Is the old-school method of telephone lead generation really extinct? Critics say: cold calling is obsolete and a waste of time…that it simply doesn’t work…or does it?

There is a good case to be made for personal contact, and there are some smart strategies that can underpin a successful cold call campaign: 

• Target, Target, Target! 
  The marketing “rule of thumb” says that 40% of results are driven by the list; this holds true for cold calling, as well. Are you calling on the right level contact, in the right industry with the right offer?
• Consider Cold Calling as Part of an Integrated Campaign
  Cold calling is often most effective when complemented by email and direct mail. Have you used integrated campaigns for demand generation?
• The Right Offer Based on the Right Understanding
  Are you calling with an offer that is compelling–one that addresses the major challenges that prospect is likely facing? Researching and knowing who you are calling and understanding their business is critical. Consider tapping into a sales intelligence service in order to boost sales effectiveness and cut down on sales rep time spent researching prospects.

Remeber that cold calling offers additional benefits:

• It saves time. By using the telephone in your sales prospecting strategy, you can contact a large number of prospects in a short amount of time. The telephone also cuts down on the cost and time involved with traveling to meet customers and prospects.
•  You can conduct business research. The telephone is one of the easiest ways to research businesses. With one quick call, your lead generation team can collect the most accurate and up-to-date information on the companies you want to call on.
• You can add a personal touch. Unlike an email, a telephone call allows you to deliver your sales message personally and persuasively. Use your personality to get your point across, and use your patience and empathy to answer questions and concerns.
• Companies can get to know you. Even if your prospect isn’t ready to buy, the telephone offers an excellent opportunity to introduce your company. By promoting brand awareness and leaving a positive image, you can plant the seed for future sales.
• You have a direct line to the decision-maker. The telephone gives you the opportunity to find and speak directly to the decision-maker. Remember, if you’re not speaking to the decision-maker, you’re not making the sale. That leads to the question: How to get past the gatekeepers?

Getting past the gatekeepers

There are two types of gatekeepers – individuals who are “chartered” to block or prohibit access to the buyer, and those who are self-designated gatekeepers.

Personally, I love the former and stay far away from the latter.

I use different techniques depending on the type of gatekeeper. For administrators and assistants, it’s important to ask them something very specific, such as referring to a speech or presentation given by the person I’m trying to reach. I also tell them I do NOT know their boss. No point in pretending you do when they know everyone their boss knows! Also, I never ask questions such as, “Who would your boss recommend I speak to…?”  Rather, I ask, “Who do YOU recommend…?” Their referral is often every bit as valuable. 

• Question: What are some techniques that you have used with any type of gatekeepers to solicit their help while achieving your goal of getting “access to power”?

Indeed, according to a recent corporate travel spending survey by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE), 33 percent of the 131 companies surveyed indicated they would be spending less on travel year over year.

But oftentimes there’s no substitute for meeting a prospect in person – especially if your competition is going to make the trip. Deals are made on relationships because customers want to work with vendors they know they will be able to trust, and familiarity through face-to-face meetings helps build that trust.

So while web meetings and video conferencing may play a role, they are not a substitute for meeting in person. Does that mean that organizations cannot save on sales travel? Well, they might still be able to save through smarter planning of sales trips.

A Better Approach

If you don’t want to risk deals by reducing face-to-face meetings, and you still need to save on travel budgets, your best option is to optimize trips to meet as many customers or prospects during a trip. Here are some steps to accomplish that:

1. Develop target lists by metro area using radius searches
2. Pick a travel window for each metro area and start planning early
3. Call prospects by geography and use your planned trip as a reason to meet

Of course, one of the challenges to this type of approach is that not all of the prospects you will be meeting are going to be ready to purchase something from you. After all, you’re arranging this trip based on your schedule, not their purchasing plans.

But there’s a way to address this issue.

1. Spend the weeks up to the trip using web conferences and phone meetings to build interest
2. Adjust meeting lengths to spend more time with the most interested prospects
3. Start planning for a future trip 3 months out for prospects early in the cycle

Using this approach, you can build a regular rhythm of trips to particular metro areas and really get the most out of each visit by planning ahead of time and meeting the greatest number of prospects. And because you’re building a regular schedule beyond just one trip, you can plan where each of your prospects is in the pipeline and what you need to do in the next meeting to move them forward.

And, an added benefit is that you can save on travel fares by booking ahead of time, since you will be planning these regular visits more in advance and on a more regular schedule.

Adjusting for Your Sales Cycle

In the example noted above, a 3 month return trip was used, but you may need to adjust this for your sales cycle. If you sales cycle is short, you may need to return more frequently. If you have a longer sales cycle, you may adjust it up slightly, but be careful not to push it too much on the other end. After about 3 months, prospects may start to forget about you. If you do a great job staying in touch with the prospect between trips, you can probably push it to 4 or 5 months, but getting beyond that can be tough.

Putting it into Practice

To get going on this type of approach, start by looking at your pipeline and see where you would potentially want to have some trips about a month out already. Also look at your territory and see where your prospects are concentrated.

If you work with an inside sales rep or a telemarketing rep who helps you set up your sales meetings, it’s critical to discuss this approach and build out a plan jointly with that person.

1. Get the “Golden Nugget” Before the Call

30 seconds. That’s the most time a caller has to hook the prospect into a more in-depth conversation. Getting the golden nugget to make the hook is critical.  The ideal nugget is a quote from the prospect you are trying to reach, but those are not always easy to find.  If you find one, and it’s relevant, you’re in good shape.  If not, then by combining networking with a smarter way to do research, you can still hit the bullseye.

2. Network – Not Just for Who they know, but for What they know

Using the best research sources can give you some good ideas about what matters to your prospect. Add to that insight by calling other people in the company – perhaps peers or even people that work for the prospect.

• Call other people in the organization not to sell to them, but to understand what motivates your prospect, to get the right hook for that critical call
• Use these calls in conjunction with your company research to truly understand needs at the corporate level as well as what is important to your prospect.

3. A Smarter and Faster Way to do the Research

Everyone knows how important it is do research before calling, but doing research is time consuming, so we often don’t do enough.

If you don’t have access to a business information service, bookmarking your favorite financial research sites can be helpful to quickly gain access to SEC filings and company reports.

Business information services can be a big time-saver (and cost-saver). A good service can offer searchable company profiles, financial metrics, executive biographies, analyst reports, and relevant news – and even pull data directly into a CRM system with the click of a button.  Having more comprehensive research resources speeds up the calling process, allowing companies to reach more prospects with targeted and relevant messages.