Factors Blog

Business success isn’t just about attracting leads—it's about converting them into loyal customers. That's where lead tracking comes in. With lead tracking, you can seamlessly monitor and analyze customer interactions across all touchpoints, from social media to email campaigns. You can determine who's interested in what you're offering and how likely they will buy from you.

Without much ado, let’s understand more about lead tracking.

Lead Tracking Vs. Lead Scoring

While many use “lead tracking” and “lead scoring” interchangeably, they’re distinct concepts. Here is a list of differences between the two:

Read more about lead scoring software tools for B2B SaaS here.

Consider a software company specializing in customer relationship management (CRM) solutions. The company can leverage lead tracking to monitor when prospects download a lead magnet on your website. Subsequently, these leads receive targeted emails with relevant content and invitations to attend webinars on CRM best practices. Meanwhile, lead scoring assigns higher scores to leads who engage with multiple resources, attend webinars, and request product demonstrations, indicating a higher likelihood of conversion.

So, are the two interrelated?

Lead tracking and scoring are closely intertwined and complement each other in several ways. Here’s how:

1. Data Collection 

Lead tracking provides the necessary data and insights for lead scoring. Businesses gather valuable information about lead behavior, interests, and engagement levels, which serves as the basis for lead scoring by monitoring and documenting lead interactions.

2. Behavioral Analysis 

Lead tracking allows businesses to observe how leads interact with various marketing channels, content, and touchpoints. This behavioral data forms the basis for lead scoring criteria, helping identify key indicators of lead interest and readiness to purchase. For example, if a lead spends time on your pricing page, watches a demo, and engages with your emails, they're likely ready for a personalized sales pitch.

3. Scoring Criteria Refinement 

As businesses track leads' interactions and analyze their behavior over time, they gain insights into which actions and behaviors correlate most strongly with conversion. This information can be used to refine and optimize lead scoring criteria, ensuring that the scoring model accurately reflects lead quality and likelihood of conversion.

4. Continuous Improvement 

Lead tracking and lead scoring are iterative processes that feed into each other. The data collected through lead tracking informs lead scoring models, while the results of lead scoring provide feedback that informs adjustments to lead tracking strategies and criteria. This continuous cycle drives ongoing improvement in lead qualification and conversion rates.

5. Effective Lead Management 

 lead tracking and lead scoring enable businesses to manage leads more effectively throughout the sales funnel. Businesses can ensure that their sales teams focus their efforts where they are most likely to yield results by identifying high-value leads early in the process and prioritizing follow-up based on lead score and behavior.

Why do Sales and Marketing need Lead Tracking?

Lead tracking is the backbone of effective sales and marketing strategies. It provides valuable insights into customer behavior, preferences, and engagement levels, allowing teams to tailor their efforts accordingly. By tracking leads, sales and marketing teams can:

Maximize Efficiency

In the hustle and bustle of daily operations, time is money. Lead tracking streamlines the process by allowing teams to zero in on high-value prospects. Instead of casting a wide net and hoping for the best, sales and marketing teams can focus on leads with the highest potential for conversion. This targeted approach reduces time wasted on unqualified leads, allowing teams to allocate resources more efficiently.

Improve Conversion Rates

At the end of the day, it's all about conversions. Lead tracking provides valuable insights into lead behavior, preferences, and pain points, enabling teams to tailor their communication and follow-up strategies accordingly. By delivering personalized messages at the right time and through the right channels, teams can significantly increase the likelihood of converting leads into paying customers. It's all about striking the right chord and nurturing relationships that lead to conversions.

Enhance Customer Experience

Lead tracking enables teams to understand leads' needs and interests on a deeper level. Armed with this knowledge, teams can deliver relevant and timely information, providing a seamless and satisfying experience for potential customers. Whether it's sending a personalized email, offering a tailored solution, or addressing a specific pain point, lead tracking allows teams to create meaningful interactions that leave a lasting impression.

Optimize Resource Allocation

Every dollar counts in sales and marketing. Lead tracking helps teams identify which marketing channels and campaigns are yielding the best results. Teams can pinpoint the most effective strategies and allocate their resources accordingly by analyzing lead data and conversion metrics. Whether it's doubling down on a successful social media campaign or tweaking the messaging of a lackluster email campaign, lead tracking empowers teams to make informed decisions that maximize ROI.

Measure Performance

You can't improve what you can't measure. Lead tracking provides teams with comprehensive data on lead interactions, conversions, and sales pipeline progression. Armed with this data, teams can evaluate the effectiveness of their sales and marketing efforts and make data-driven decisions for improvement. Whether it's identifying bottlenecks in the sales process, optimizing the performance of a landing page, or fine-tuning the messaging of a sales email, lead tracking enables continuous improvement and optimization.

Understanding the Sales Funnel to Track Leads

The sales funnel represents the journey that prospects undertake from initial awareness of a product or service to make a purchase decision. While the exact steps may vary depending on the industry and business model, the typical stages include:

1. Awareness 

At this stage, prospects become aware of a company's products or services, often through marketing efforts such as advertisements, content marketing, or social media.

2. Interest 

Prospects show interest in the offerings and seek more information. They may visit the company's website, download resources, or subscribe to newsletters.

3. Consideration 

In this phase, prospects evaluate the value proposition and compare the company's offerings with competitors. They may communicate directly with sales representatives or request product demos.

4. Decision 

Prospects reach a decision point where they decide whether to make a purchase. This stage often involves negotiating terms, addressing objections, and finalizing the transaction.

After making a purchase, customers enter the retention phase, where efforts focus on providing excellent post-sales support, fostering customer loyalty, and encouraging repeat business.

By aligning lead tracking efforts with the stages of the sales funnel, organizations can tailor their communication strategies to address prospects' specific needs and move them seamlessly through the buying journey.

Retention 

After making a purchase, customers enter the retention phase, where efforts focus on providing excellent post-sales support, fostering customer loyalty, and encouraging repeat business.

By aligning lead tracking efforts with the stages of the sales funnel, organizations can tailor their communication strategies to address prospects' specific needs and move them seamlessly through the buying journey.

Capturing Leads: Where and How?

Before we start tracking leads, it’s important to understand where and how to capture these leads. Capturing leads involves enticing potential customers to provide their contact information or engage with your brand in some way. 

Here are some common channels and methods for capturing leads:

Website Forms

Embedding lead capture forms on your website allows visitors to submit their contact information in exchange for valuable content, such as ebooks, whitepapers, or webinars.

Landing Pages

Designing dedicated landing pages optimized for lead generation can help capture leads from specific marketing campaigns or promotions.

Social Media

Leveraging social media platforms to promote gated content and engage with followers can generate leads and foster relationships with potential customers.

Email Marketing

Including calls-to-action (CTAs) and lead capture forms in email campaigns encourages subscribers to take the next step and provide their contact information.

Events and Webinars

Hosting events, webinars, or workshops provides opportunities to capture leads from attendees interested in your topic or industry.

Networking and Referrals

Building relationships with industry peers and existing customers can lead to referrals and introductions to potential leads.

By diversifying lead capture channels and methods, organizations can reach a broader audience and generate a steady stream of leads for their sales and marketing efforts.

Types of Leads for Tracking

Not all leads are created equal, and it's essential to track different types of leads based on their stage in the buyer's journey and their level of engagement. Some common types of leads to track include

Cold Leads

These are leads who have shown minimal interest or engagement with your brand. Tracking cold leads allows teams to nurture them over time and gradually build trust and rapport.

Warm Leads

Warm leads have shown some level of interest or engagement with your brand, such as downloading a whitepaper or attending a webinar. Tracking warm leads helps teams prioritize follow-up efforts and tailor their messaging to address specific needs and pain points.

Hot Leads

Hot leads are highly engaged and have demonstrated a strong intent to purchase, such as requesting a product demo or submitting a contact form. Tracking hot leads allows teams to capitalize on buying signals and expedite the sales process.

Qualified Leads

Qualified leads meet specific criteria set by the organization, such as budget, authority, need, and timeline (BANT). Tracking qualified leads helps teams focus their efforts on prospects who are most likely to convert into customers.

By tracking different types of leads, sales and marketing teams can tailor their approach to each segment of their audience, delivering personalized and relevant content and increasing the likelihood of conversion.

Collecting Lead Infomation

Collecting lead information involves gathering relevant data points about potential customers to facilitate communication and relationship building. 

Here are some key pieces of information to collect from leads:

Basic Contact Information

This includes name, email address, phone number, and company name, enabling teams to initiate and maintain communication with leads.

Demographic Information 

Gathering demographic data such as location, industry, job title, and company size helps teams segment and target their audience more effectively.

Behavioral Data

Tracking lead interactions with your website, emails, and marketing campaigns provides insights into lead engagement and interests, allowing for more personalized and relevant communication.

Lead Source 

Identifying how leads found your company, whether through organic search, social media, referrals, or other channels, helps measure the effectiveness of your marketing efforts and allocate resources accordingly.

Purchase Intent

Assessing the level of interest and intent to purchase allows teams to prioritize follow-up activities and tailor their messaging to meet the needs of each lead.

When collecting lead information, it's important to strike a balance between gathering enough data to personalize communication and respecting the lead's privacy and preferences. Providing clear and transparent explanations of how their information will be used and giving them control over their data builds trust and fosters positive relationships with potential customers.

How to qualify leads and prospects?

Qualifying leads involves determining their suitability and readiness to engage with your sales team and move through the sales process. 

But wait, why qualify leads?
By qualifying leads effectively, sales and marketing teams can focus their efforts on leads with the highest potential for conversion, improving efficiency and driving revenue growth. This, in turn, prevents the organization’s resources from being drained out.

Now since that’s out of the way, here are some common criteria and methods for qualifying leads:

BANT Criteria

BANT stands for Budget, Authority, Need, and Timeline. Assessing leads against these criteria helps determine their readiness to purchase and their fit with your product or service.

Lead Scoring

Assigning numerical values to various lead attributes, such as engagement level, company size, and purchase intent, allows teams to prioritize leads based on their likelihood of conversion.

Behavioral Signals

Monitoring lead behavior, such as website visits, content downloads, and email interactions, provides insights into their level of interest and engagement, guiding qualification decisions.

Qualification Questions

Asking specific questions during lead capture or follow-up conversations helps uncover key information about the lead's needs, challenges, and buying timeline.

Sales and Marketing Alignment

Establishing clear criteria and processes for lead qualification ensures alignment between sales and marketing teams, preventing leads from falling through the cracks and maximizing conversion opportunities.

Methods of Lead Tracking

Lead tracking can take various forms, depending on the nature of the business and the preferences of the organization. Some common methods of lead tracking include

Manual Tracking

This involves recording lead interactions and information manually, using spreadsheets, notebooks, or other documentation methods. While simple, manual tracking can be time-consuming and prone to errors.

CRM Software

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software automates lead tracking processes, capturing and organizing lead information in a centralized database. CRM systems offer features such as lead scoring, activity tracking, and pipeline management, streamlining lead management and improving efficiency.

Marketing Automation Platforms

Marketing automation platforms automate lead tracking and nurturing processes, allowing teams to create targeted campaigns, track engagement metrics, and analyze lead behavior. These platforms integrate with CRM systems to ensure seamless data synchronization and workflow automation.

Website Analytics

Website analytics tools track visitor behavior on a company's website, providing insights into traffic sources, page views, and conversion rates. By analyzing website data, teams can identify patterns and trends and optimize their website for better lead generation and conversion.

Call Tracking

Call tracking allows organizations to attribute inbound calls to specific marketing campaigns, enabling accurate measurement of campaign effectiveness. By recording and analyzing phone calls, businesses gain valuable insights into customer conversations, helping to refine sales approaches and improve the overall customer experience. Integrated with CRM systems, call tracking enhances lead management, streamlines the sales process, and facilitates effective lead qualification, ultimately driving revenue growth.

Lead Tracking Metrics

By measuring key metrics, businesses gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of their lead generation efforts, the health of their sales pipeline, and the overall performance of their sales and marketing initiatives. Let's explore some of the essential lead tracking metrics that organizations need to measure to drive success.

1. Lead Generation Metrics

• Number of Leads

This metric quantifies the volume of leads generated within a specific timeframe, providing a high-level overview of lead generation efforts.

• Lead Source

Understanding where leads are coming from—organic search, social media, email marketing, or paid advertising—helps organizations optimize their marketing channels and allocate resources effectively.

• Conversion Rate

The conversion rate measures the percentage of leads that convert into qualified prospects or customers. It provides insights into the effectiveness of lead generation strategies and the quality of leads being generated.

2. Lead Quality Metrics

• Lead-to-Opportunity Ratio

This metric compares the number of leads generated to the number of opportunities created, highlighting the quality of leads and the effectiveness of lead qualification efforts.

• Sales Accepted Leads (SAL)

SALs are leads that meet specific criteria and are accepted by the sales team for further follow-up and engagement. Tracking SALs helps measure lead quality and alignment between sales and marketing efforts.

• Marketing Qualified Leads (MQL) and Sales Qualified Leads (SQL)

MQLs and SQLs are leads that meet specific criteria and are deemed ready for marketing or sales engagement, respectively. Measuring MQL and SQL conversion rates provides insights into lead nurturing and qualification processes.

3. Sales Pipeline Metrics

• Pipeline Velocity

Pipeline velocity measures the speed at which leads move through the sales pipeline, from initial contact to closing. It helps identify bottlenecks and inefficiencies in the sales process and informs sales forecasting efforts.

• Average Deal Size

This metric calculates the average monetary value of closed deals, providing insights into the revenue potential of individual leads and the overall health of the sales pipeline.

• Win Rate

The win rate measures the percentage of leads that successfully convert into customers. It helps evaluate sales effectiveness and the quality of lead management practices.

4. Lead Engagement Metrics

• Email Open Rate and Click-through Rate (CTR)

These metrics measure the effectiveness of email marketing campaigns in capturing leads' attention and driving engagement.

• Website Traffic and Engagement

Tracking website traffic, page views and engagement metrics such as bounce rate and time on the page provides insights into lead behavior and interests.

• Social Media Engagement 

Metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and click-throughs on social media posts help gauge audience engagement and the effectiveness of social media marketing efforts.

5. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

CLV quantifies the total revenue generated from a customer over their entire relationship with the organization. By understanding CLV, businesses can prioritize high-value leads and tailor their marketing and sales strategies accordingly.

6. Return on Investment (ROI)

ROI measures the profitability of lead generation and marketing campaigns by comparing the revenue generated to the cost of acquiring leads. It helps organizations evaluate the effectiveness of their marketing spend and allocate resources to initiatives that deliver the highest ROI.

Benefits of Lead Tracking for Businesses

The benefits of lead tracking extend far beyond merely organizing contact information. 

Let's see why lead tracking is essential for business success:

Improved Targeting 

Lead tracking enables organizations to segment their audience based on demographics, behavior, and interests, allowing for personalized communication and targeted marketing campaigns.

• Enhanced Lead Nurturing 

By tracking interactions with leads over time, businesses can identify their interests, pain points, and preferences, enabling more effective lead nurturing and relationship building.

• Optimized Resource Allocation

Lead tracking helps prioritize leads based on their level of engagement and likelihood of conversion, allowing sales teams to focus their efforts on high-value opportunities and maximize their productivity.

• Data-Driven Decision Making 

With comprehensive data on lead interactions and conversion metrics, organizations can make informed decisions regarding marketing strategies, product development, and sales tactics.

• Increased Revenue 

By effectively tracking and managing leads, businesses can streamline the sales process, reduce lead leakage, and ultimately increase revenue through higher conversion rates and customer retention.

Why should you care about Lead Tracking?

When customer acquisition costs are rising, and customer loyalty is increasingly elusive, lead tracking has become a necessity.

Here are some reasons why businesses of all sizes should prioritize lead tracking

• Gain Insights into Customer Behavior

Lead tracking provides valuable insights into customer behavior, preferences, and pain points, enabling organizations to tailor their marketing messages and sales pitches for maximum impact.

• Maximize Marketing ROI

By tracking the effectiveness of various marketing channels and campaigns in generating leads and conversions, businesses can allocate their marketing budget more efficiently and achieve a higher return on investment (ROI).

• Shorten Sales Cycle

With timely and targeted follow-ups based on lead tracking data, businesses can accelerate the sales cycle and minimize the time between initial contact and conversion, thus increasing revenue and improving cash flow.

• Build Long-Term Relationships

Effective lead tracking allows businesses to nurture relationships with prospects over time, earning their trust and loyalty, which can result in repeat business, referrals, and positive reviews.

• Stay Ahead of the Competition

Lead tracking gives businesses a competitive edge by enabling them to anticipate customer needs, adapt quickly to market trends, and deliver exceptional customer experiences.

Challenges of Lead Tracking

From data management woes to organizational alignment hurdles, navigating the complexities of lead tracking requires a strategic approach and a deeper understanding of potential roadblocks. 

Here are some of the key challenges of lead tracking and how organizations can overcome them.

• Data Overload and Management

One of the most significant challenges of lead tracking is dealing with a deluge of data. With leads coming in from multiple channels and touchpoints, organizations often struggle to manage and organize the vast amounts of information effectively. From contact details and interaction history to demographic data and behavioral insights, keeping track of it all can quickly become overwhelming.

Solution

Implement a robust CRM system that centralizes lead data and provides tools for segmentation, categorization, and analysis. Invest in data management best practices, such as regular data cleansing, deduplication, and data validation, to ensure data accuracy and integrity.

• Lack of Integration and Siloed Data

In many organizations, lead tracking systems and processes operate in silos, leading to disjointed data and fragmented insights. Marketing teams may use one platform for lead generation, while sales teams rely on another for lead management, resulting in a disconnect between departments and duplication of efforts.

Solution

Foster cross-departmental collaboration and alignment by integrating lead tracking systems with other sales and marketing tools, such as marketing automation platforms, email marketing software, and customer support systems. Establish clear processes and communication channels to ensure that lead data is shared seamlessly across departments.

• Inaccurate or Incomplete Data

Maintaining data accuracy and completeness is another common challenge in lead tracking. Leads may provide inaccurate or incomplete information during the initial capture process, leading to errors and inefficiencies downstream. Additionally, data decay over time can result in outdated or stale lead information, diminishing the effectiveness of lead tracking efforts.

Solution

Implement data validation mechanisms, such as real-time form validation and automatic data enrichment, to ensure that leads provide accurate and complete information during the capture process. Regularly update and cleanse lead data to remove duplicates, correct errors, and refresh outdated information.

• Difficulty in Lead Attribution

Attributing leads to specific marketing campaigns or channels can be challenging, especially in multi-channel marketing environments. With leads interacting with multiple touchpoints and engaging in cross-channel journeys, accurately attributing conversions to the appropriate source can be a daunting task.

Solution

Implement multi-touch attribution models that assign credit to multiple touchpoints along the customer journey, rather than relying solely on last-click attribution. Utilize advanced analytics and tracking tools to track and analyze lead interactions across various channels and touchpoints, providing a holistic view of the customer journey.

• Ensuring Compliance with Data Privacy Regulations

With the increasing focus on data privacy and security, organizations must navigate a complex landscape of regulations and compliance requirements when collecting and managing lead data. From GDPR in Europe to CCPA in California, failing to comply with data privacy regulations can result in hefty fines and reputational damage.

Solution 

Stay informed about relevant data privacy regulations and ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations when collecting, storing, and processing lead data. Implement robust data protection measures, such as encryption, access controls, and data anonymization, to safeguard lead data and mitigate the risk of non-compliance.

Lead Tracking and Accuracy

While lead tracking offers a multitude of benefits, its effectiveness hinges on the accuracy and reliability of the data collected. 

Here are some strategies for ensuring accuracy in lead tracking

• Standardize Data Collection

Establish standardized processes for capturing and recording lead information across all touchpoints, ensuring consistency and accuracy in data entry.

• Use Automation Tools

Leverage automation tools such as customer relationship management (CRM) software to streamline lead tracking processes, minimize manual errors, and ensure data integrity.

• Regular Data Cleansing

Conduct regular audits of lead data to identify and rectify inaccuracies, duplicates, and outdated information, maintaining a clean and reliable database.

• Train Sales and Marketing Teams

Provide training and ongoing support to sales and marketing teams on the importance of accurate lead tracking practices and the use of CRM tools effectively.

• Monitor Key Metrics

Continuously monitor key metrics such as lead conversion rate, lead velocity, and lead-to-opportunity ratio to assess the quality and accuracy of lead tracking efforts and identify areas for improvement.

Consistency in Lead Tracking

Consistency is paramount in lead tracking to ensure that no potential opportunities slip through the cracks. 

Here are some strategies for maintaining consistency in lead tracking

• Establish Clear Processes

Document standardized processes and workflows for lead tracking, outlining roles, responsibilities, and timelines to ensure consistency and accountability.

• Implement Cross-Departmental Collaboration

Foster collaboration between sales, marketing, and customer service teams to ensure seamless handoffs and continuity throughout the customer journey.

• Regular Communication

Facilitate regular communication and alignment between sales and marketing teams to ensure that lead tracking efforts are aligned with overall business objectives and strategies.

• Utilize Technology

Leverage technology solutions such as CRM software, marketing automation platforms, and communication tools to facilitate real-time collaboration and information sharing among team members.

• Monitor and Measure Performance

Track and measure key performance indicators (KPIs) related to lead tracking, such as lead response time, follow-up frequency, and conversion rates, to identify any deviations from established processes and address them promptly.

Conclusion

As you can tell, lead tracking is all about understanding your audience, anticipating their needs, and delivering value every step of the way. It’s an indispensable tool for sales and marketing teams, enabling them to understand customer behavior, optimize lead generation efforts, personalize communication, and drive revenue growth. 

By using different methods of lead tracking, capturing relevant lead information, qualifying leads effectively, and integrating call tracking into the lead tracking process, businesses can maximize the value of their leads and achieve sustainable growth in today's competitive marketplace.

We hope this article helped you understand lead tracking and become an ally in your sales and marketing journey.

Happy Tracking!

With a market share of 83% and its brand name officially a verb in the dictionary, it's no secret that Google is the most dominant search engine on the planet. This, in turn, makes search ads or PPC one of the most popular marketing channels for marketers as well. In fact, as much as 65% of SME businesses run PPC search ad campaigns on Google — with nearly 80% of teams claiming it's a necessity for success.

That being said, Google ad campaigns are not without their drawbacks, especially for B2B marketers. Google ads primarily rely on keywords and searcher intent in deciding when and where to display ads. Account-based marketers, however, would rather have a say in who to display their ads too as well. 

For example, rather than blowing through budgets by displaying ads to everyone that looks up “CRM software”, an ABM marketer may prefer showing their ads only to a list of 1,000 specific target accounts. This way, wasted spends may be eliminated and bids may be raised, given the narrow target audiences.   As it stands, however, Google supports a rudimentary and largely ineffective approach to audience building and segmentation for its ads. The following blog explores these limitations and highlights a better way to build audience segments with Factors.ai.

Let’s dive in.

As it stands: Google Ads audience targeting

Google Ads supports the ability to to reach people based on who they are, their interests and habits, what they’re actively researching, or how they've interacted with your business via Audience Segments.

How Audience Segments works

Google’s audiences are made up of segments of people with specific interests, intents, and demographic information based on Google’s database. Advertisers may choose from a wide range of segments such as “music fans”, “people shopping for bicycles”, or “people that have visited your website”. This data is estimated based on people’s engagement with Google’s own products and third-party websites. Specifically to Search ads, Google supports 4 types of Audience Segments:

1. Affinity segments: Reach users based on their passions, habits, and interests
2. Detailed demographics:  Reach users based on long-term life facts.
3. In-market: Reach users based on their recent purchase intent
4. Your data: Reach users that have interacted with your business.some text
   1. Website and app visitors: Reach people who have visited either your website or apps.
   2. Customer Match: Reach your existing customers based on your CRM data.‍
   3. Similar segments: Reach new users with similar interests to your website visitors or existing customers.

In addition to this, Google also supports Custom Segments and Life Events as segment types for it’s other ad channels (Display, Videos, etc).

Limitations with Audience Segments

In theory, Audience Segments sound super valuable. Based on your selection of Audience segments, Google’s AI models will automatically choose the right audience to best fit the needs of your campaign. However, a closer inspection reveals inherent limitations with each of the four approaches: 

• Affinity segments, detailed demographics and in-market segments are primarily tailored for B2C and D2C use-cases. That is, they’re built to cater to audiences based on individual interests, as opposed to account-level buying intent. They may work well to identify and target “skiing enthusiasts”, these audience segments often struggle with “B2B SaaS teams looking for a CRM”.
• Your data audiences segments do a slightly better job in that they attempt to target audiences based on existing brand engagement. Still, it’s fraught with limitations. According to Google’s advertising policy, Google advertisers may only upload customer data, not prospecting data from their CRM. This is of course, extremely limiting given that the majority of your total addressable market may not be actively engaging with your brand. Furthermore, Google’s own retargeting capabilities are limited to a vague set of website visitors (via Google Analytics) as opposed to comprehensively enriched audiences across website traffic, LinkedIn ads, and other channels. 

That being said, if you provide Google enough data about your target audience members via Customer Match lists, it can spot your target accounts and serve them, and them alone, your ads.

‍Long story short, Google’s native targeting mechanisms exist by the name of Audience Segments. However, this isn't, in its current form, very helpful to B2B marketers. In the following section let’s explore how Audience Segments may be used as a jumping off point in tandem with an account intelligence and activation tool such as Factors.ai to make the most of your targeted ads.

Better Google audiences & targeting with Factors.ai

What if you could retarget existing customers with personalized ads on upselling opportunities? Or vary your bids based on buying stage and ICP fitment? Or re-engage with long gone MQLs and lost opportunities with YouTube ads or GDN? These are a few examples of the powerful use-cases supported by Factors.ai for your Google Ads. Here’s how it works:

1. Identify and enrich: Factors identifies and enriches anonymous companies engaging with your website, LinkedIn ads, and G2 pages. These companies may be segmented via a combination of granular engagement and firmographic criteria within Factors. These segments may be as straightforward or involved as you’d like. A straightforward segment may look like: “US-based software companies” while involved segments may look like: “US-based software companies with 100-999 employees that have viewed at least one LinkedIn ad and visited the pricing page”. Create as many segments as you’d like depending on your intended objectives and granularity. 
2. Fire into Google Analytics: The next step involves firing relevant events (in this case, an event is an engaged company that matches your segment criteria) into Google Analytics. As you might recall, Google Ads will only retarget website visitors and contacts that have been recorded in GA or your CRM. Pushing these audience segments from Factors into GA acts as proxy to this. 
3. Push from GA into Google Ads: Now that you have built up segments in Google Analytics, it’s a simple matter to push said accounts into Google Ads for further targeting across search ads, videos ads, display ads, and more. Here are a few more ways in which you can use this flow:

How you can use Factors.ai + Google Ads

In addition to the aforementioned use-cases, here are a few more ways to leverage Factors.ai:

Variable RSA

Regardless of the size of your business, your marketing team is working with a budget. Accordingly, most marketers focus their efforts on specific, relatively low-volume keywords so as to not blow their budgets on irrelevant clicks from high-volume keywords. With Factors, however, you can have the best of both worlds by bidding on broader keywords and response search ads only for the companies you care about. For example, you may bid $2 for the long tail keyword “CRM software for US-based SMEs” but bid $6 for the short tail keyword “CRM software” only for the Audience Segment you care about. This way, the higher bid ads will be displayed only when your target accounts are searching for it — as opposed to the entire internet.

Granular targeting 

Given marketing’s limited budgets, you could choose to focus your ad spend only on companies that meet a super specific engagement and ICP criteria as the one highlighted earlier (“US-based software companies with 100-999 employees that have viewed at least one LinkedIn ad and visited the pricing page”). This way, you know that your ads will be served only to highly engaged accounts with explicit buying intent. This smaller pool of target accounts also enables you to raise bids more aggressively given the focused scope of audiences.

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Cross-channel targeting

A key aspect of the account-based market is targeting (and retargeting) accounts across channels. At the moment, Google Ads only supports the ability to target accounts visiting your website or in your CRM. With Factors, this reach may be expanded to companies viewing your LinkedIn ads, engaging with your G2 pages, or simply part of your ABM target accounts list. These segmented accounts may then be automatically targeted across your search ads, display ads, videos ads, LinkedIn ads, mail outreach, and more with Factors’ code-free workflow automations. 

If you’re part of a sales team, chances are you’ve considered paying for LinkedIn Sales Navigator at some point. LinkedIn Sales Navigator seemingly ticks all the boxes– whether it's accurate data, intuitive, time-saving prospecting, or effortless sales outreach". But do its features justify its steep pricing? 

In this blog, we take a close look at LinkedIn Sales Navigator, its pricing, features, benefits, and limitations to see if you should invest in the platform.

What is Linkedin Sales Navigator?

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a valuable tool for sales professionals and businesses, It facilitates lead generation and relationship management on LinkedIn. 

With Sales Navigator’s features, users can efficiently target promising prospects and stay informed about their activities and organizational changes. As compared to the basic/free plan, sales navigator is far more robust. It provides additional data that helps optimize sales strategies as and when the opportunity presents itself:

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Features:

1. Personalized lead recommendations: Sales Navigator offers tailored lead suggestions based on criteria like industry, company size, and job title preferences.

2. Advanced search functionality: Conduct detailed searches using filters such as location, job title, and company size to pinpoint prospects matching your ideal customer profile.

3. Account and lead insights: It provides valuable insights into prospects, including recent LinkedIn activity, company news, and job changes, aiding in better understanding and engagement.

4. InMail messaging: It helps you reach out to prospects via InMail, even without prior LinkedIn connections, expanding your outreach capabilities.

5. Sales Navigator Pages: Utilize customizable pages to track, save, and receive real-time insights on leads and accounts, optimizing your sales strategies.

You’re probably thinking “But this sounds suspiciously similar to LinkedIn Premium”. Well, you’re not entirely wrong. While they do aim to provide similar benefits such as access to InMail etc, they do have some differences:

What is the difference between LinkedIn Premium and LinkedIn Sales Navigator?

LinkedIn Premium is a whole lot cheaper and seemingly offers similar benefits. Considering you can get LinkedIn Premium at 1/3rd the price, LinkedIn Sales Navigator cost sure seems a bit much. But when it comes to prospecting and outreach in particular, Sales Navigator has so much more to offer. 

LinkedIn Premium is designed for a broader audience, including job seekers and recruiters, and offers features such as increased InMail credits, the ability to see who viewed your profile, and access to valuable training courses. 

On the other hand, LinkedIn Sales Navigator is designed specifically for salespeople. Accordingly, it offers advanced search filters, lead recommendations, and granular analytics. So, while LinkedIn Premium may be a good choice for job seekers and recruiters, LinkedIn Sales Navigator is certainly the better choice for salespeople.

Let's pit these two against each other:

Why choose LinkedIn Sales Navigator? 

Given its reputation and popularity, LinkedIn has to be one of the best social selling tools for B2B businesses. 134.5 million people use LinkedIn daily. It's the first place you go to when you want to post a career update, look for new teammates, or simply post company news. Social selling is a great way to supplement traditional channels. Social selling cannot replace these channels. 

The community and trust are certainly the primary appeal of the platform. Here are some other benefits of using LinkedIn Sales Navigator:

Advanced Filters

LinkedIn Sales Navigator has more than 40 advanced search filters. You can filter your search based on company, role, workflow, and keywords. What's unique about this feature is its spotlight filter option. Here are some of them: 

1. The Job Changes spotlight identifies prospects who have changed jobs within the last three months.

2. The Shared Experiences spotlight uncovers prospects who attended the same schools, worked at the same companies, or belong to the same LinkedIn Groups as you.

3. The LinkedIn Activity spotlight shows prospects who have posted or shared content on LinkedIn in the past 30 days.

4. The Mentioned in the News spotlight uncovers prospects who have been mentioned in the news in the past 30 days.

5. The Leads that Follow Your Company spotlight uncovers prospects who follow your company on LinkedIn.

6. The TeamLink spotlight finds prospects who are already connected to your colleagues. (not available on all plans)

This feature establishes Sales Navigator as a great “social” selling tool, taking searches a step further and helping sales teams establish connections with leads. 

Recommended Leads  

LinkedIn recommends leads on Sales Navigator through three methods: on specific company pages, at the top of a lead's profile, and via a recommended leads list.

The Recommend Leads list in Sales Navigator offers an auto-generated list of up to 100 recommended leads based on past user activity, such as searches and saved leads. 

Note: This feature relies on AI and functions optimally with increased data input. Therefore, you need to save relevant leads to your lists manually. The more interactions and saved profiles, the more refined your recommended section becomes on Sales Navigator.

Intent Identification and Alerts

LinkedIn Sales Navigator helps sales teams identify buyer intent by monitoring their company interactions– if the prospect has connected with you or your team or if they’ve engaged with your LinkedIn Ads. It sends real-time alerts for each of these activities and helps you make the most of an opportunity. 

Note: you need to manually save prospects in a list to ensure you get alerts for activities on their account.

Smart Links

One of the best features of Sales Navigator is the smart link. It allows you to simply create their deck online using this feature on LinkedIn Sales Navigator or even upload an existing PPT. A smart link is shareable and trackable for opens and clicks so you won’t need to switch to your CRM or another software for analytics. 

This brings us to the final benefit of the tool: 

Performance Analytics

Sales navigator allows you to track user groups and performance trends– you can analyze usage patterns to pinpoint areas of improvement, such as low InMail acceptance rates. Your training programs can be tailored to address these gaps and enhance sales team proficiency.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Cost

LinkedIn Sales Navigator has a tiered pricing structure. It has three plans: Core, Advanced, and Advance Plus. At the time of writing, the prices for each plan are as follows:

Here are the additional features you get with each of the pricing plans:

Limitations of LinkedIn Sales Navigator

While there are numerous benefits of using Sales Navigator, users have reported some issues with the following:

1. Steep Learning Curve

Some users may find Sales Navigator to have a steep learning curve, especially if they are new to LinkedIn or CRM tools. It may require significant time and effort to fully grasp and utilize all the platform's features effectively, and the complex user interface needs to do more to help. It potentially delays the realization of its benefits apart from taking a lot of resources to set up.

2. Limited InMail Credits

While Sales Navigator provides InMail credits, users are allocated a limited number of Inmail credits each month. 

Once you exhaust these credits you need to purchase additional ones or upgrade your plan, adding to the overall cost of using the platform and potentially constraining outreach efforts.

3. Data Inaccuracy

LinkedIn's data, including contact information and job titles, is user-generated, leading to potential inaccuracies or outdated information in profiles. This can undermine the effectiveness of outreach campaigns and result in wasted time and resources.

4. Integration Challenges

Despite offering integration with popular CRM systems like Salesforce and Hubspot, some users encounter difficulties in setting up and maintaining these integrations. Sales Navigator's inability to expert lead or account lists is another challenge for users. These challenges can disrupt workflow efficiency and hinder seamless data management between platforms.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Cost: Final Verdict

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a premium service, which can be expensive for individual users or small businesses. This cost may pose a barrier to entry for some potential users, impacting adoption rates and accessibility.

When it comes to social selling, LinkedIn has a unique proposition that can’t be matched by other tools. It is an extension of a professional networking platform and provides insights on “shared experiences” and “commonalities” allowing you to build a rapport with your leads. So if you already have a prospecting or sales intelligence tool and you’re looking to add a social selling tool to your tech stack- we highly recommend LinkedIn Sales Navigator. 

Having said that, LinkedIn Sales Navigator leaves you wanting more in terms of data accuracy and lead generation. Anecdotal evidence suggests it's clunky and has surface-level integrations with CRMs. So if you’re building your sales tech from scratch, we recommend you steer clear of LinkedIn Sales Navigator. Here are some tools we recommend instead- 

1. Factors.ai 

Factors.ai is a tool that facilitates account-based selling. It not only delivers industry-leading enrichment rates of up to 64% but also helps qualify and target the right accounts based on intent data. Factors.ai takes into account website engagement, intent signals, and firmographic information to qualify leads and expedite the sales process. 

In comparison, LinkedIn provides a detailed however limiting view of the customer journey, due to its primary focus on LinkedIn activity. Most of the decisions are made based on interactions with the product’s website, its social channels, G2 reviews, etc. Factors.ai (due to its partnership with Clearbit) provides an extensive database and accurate intent identification as well. 

If you want more than a primary database and prospecting solution, Factors.ai is a great tool that provides analytical insights that help you identify target and close leads. 

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2. Cognism 

Cognism serves as a sales intelligence solution and data provider, offering cell phone numbers, direct dials, and emails across multiple regions. Its browser extension operates seamlessly across various corporate websites, including LinkedIn.

In contrast,  LinkedIn Sales Navigator is effective for targeting prospects active on the LinkedIn platform, aiding in the identification and connection with decision-makers within an Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). It provides access to public emails and phone numbers of these prospects.

Moreover, Cognism boasts phone-verified mobile numbers, ensuring an 87% connection rate with listed contacts. This surpasses LinkedIn's reliance on user-provided data, which, as indicated by Sales Navigator reviews, may lead to data inaccuracies and user frustration.

If you are looking for a global database and want to reach out to decision-makers through the same solution, Cognism is a great choice for you.

3. Zoominfo

Zoominfo is a leading B2B data provider and is a suitable alternative to Sales Navigator- 

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is specialized for targeting known prospects, while ZoomInfo excels at identifying decision-makers within targeted accounts. Sales Navigator emphasizes specific personal details, sourced from user updates, whereas ZoomInfo offers more up-to-date macro-level data, collected from web scraping.

Sales Navigator enhances contact targeting with network tools and professional news updates, while ZoomInfo facilitates bulk contact list exports and offers additional tools like ZoomInfo Engage, Chorus, and Chat for comprehensive sales support. If you are looking for a tool that puts equal emphasis on collaboration along with sales prospecting and lead generation- Zoominfo is the way to go. Competitors like Factors.ai are more powerful account intelligence solutions that can make your lead generation cycle seamless. Know more about Factors.ai here.

For eons—or at least what felt like it—artificial intelligence (AI) lingered on the fringes of our daily existence, hovering like a futuristic mirage that seemed always just out of reach. That is, until it bulldozed its way into the mainstream, proving to be not just a fleeting fascination but a fundamental shift in the way we approach business, technology, and, indeed, life itself.

Suddenly, AI is not just for the nerdy elite or the futuristic dreamers. It's also for the pragmatic marketer who wants to decode the enigma of customer behavior, tailor experiences to perfection, and, yes, finally figure out what B2B customers actually want before they do. This could explain why, presently, a whopping 84% of B2B marketers are either leveraging AI, planning its integration, or eyeing it with keen interest.

But despite AI's proven prowess and the buzz that surrounds it, the leap from acknowledgment to action remains a chasm many businesses are hesitant to cross. That's why, in this blog, we'll take you through the lens of AI in B2B marketing, exploring not just the "what" and the "why," but the all-important "how."

So, without further ado, let's get started!

What is AI?

At its core, AI in the B2B arena is about leveraging machine learning, natural language processing, and other sophisticated algorithms to analyze data, predict trends, automate tasks, and enhance decision-making processes. It's about transforming raw data into gold—insights that fuel smarter strategies, more engaging content, and ultimately, sales that don't just close but smash expectations.

Unpacking AI's Appeal in B2B Marketing

Why are so many B2B marketers turning to AI? Let's dive into how leveraging AI for customer insight mining can revolutionize your B2B strategy.

Real-time Feedback Monitoring

Imagine a world where your business can adapt its strategies at the speed of conversation. AI transforms this into reality, offering a continuous stream of customer feedback across various platforms. It's like having a conversation with the market itself—dynamic, ongoing, and incredibly enlightening. In turn, this agility ensures your strategies are always in lockstep with customer expectations, fostering a level of trust and loyalty that's the stuff of marketing dreams.

Effective Product Development

With AI, every customer interaction becomes a clue to unlocking the next big innovation. The AI listening tools meticulously comb through the vast expanse of digital discourse, seeking out the precious nuggets of customer insights—those unarticulated wishes that'll herald your next breakthrough. This visionary approach guarantees that your inventions transcend mere market expectations to foresee them, establishing a foundation for offerings that not only echo with your target demographic but also sculpt the contours of the industry anew.

Enhanced Sentiment Analysis

AI goes beyond mere words, delving into the finer points of customer sentiments. It reads between the lines, picking up on the subtleties of tone and context that most old-school analysis tools would totally overlook. This deep dive into the emotional undercurrents of your customer base allows for a nuanced approach to customer engagement, transforming mere interactions into genuine moments of connection.

Elevated Pricing Acumen

Pricing isn't just about covering costs and adding a markup. Thanks to the advent of AI tools, enterprises can now embrace dynamic pricing models that intelligently adapt to market fluctuations, competitive landscapes, and the ever-evolving perceptions of value among consumers. This sophisticated approach ensures that pricing is perpetually poised at the sweet spot—maximizing both sales volume and profit margins by balancing the scales of affordability with the allure of perceived value.

Continuous Improvement

AI is the perpetual motion machine of business improvement. It continuously feeds on customer data, offering fresh insights that drive ongoing refinement and innovation. This relentless pursuit of enhancement fosters a culture steeped in excellence, cascading through every stratum of your organization. It positions you not merely as a player but as a trailblazer, fostering a culture of agility, responsiveness, and forward-thinking that keeps businesses at the pinnacle of their game.

Example of AI Tools That Are Changing the Marketing Game

The AI toolbox is vast and varied, but here are five tools that are making significant inroads in the B2B marketing arena:

ChatGPT for Conversational AI

Chatbots and virtual assistants have come a long way from their humble beginnings as rigid, scripted responders. This AI-powered chatbot can engage in conversations so fluid and human-like that you might just forget you're talking to a machine. ChatGPT's proficiency in learning from and adjusting to dialogues in real time epitomizes the blend of technical sophistication and intuitive functionality that marks a new era in customer interaction.

Freepik AI Image Generator

Freepik AI image generator stands as a notable advancement in the realm of digital design and content creation. Leveraging cutting-edge AI image generation technology, it offers users the ability to generate unique and high-quality AI images based on textual descriptions and in different styles, including digital art, anime, vintage, AI photos. Freepik AI Image Generator is particularly beneficial for graphic designers, marketers, content creators, and anyone who seeks to produce visually compelling images without the necessity for extensive design skills or resources. 

OneUp

Keeping your social media presence vibrant and engaging is a full-time job. AI-based tool OneUp makes this task not only manageable but downright enjoyable. It automates the scheduling of posts across a plethora of platforms. From the professional plains of LinkedIn to the community-focused spaces of Facebook groups, it even allows for posting to multiple GMB locations. With OneUP, your digital presence is always buzzing, always relevant, and unbelievably streamlined.

Zapier

Zapier acts as the glue that binds different web applications together, enabling a seamless flow of information between them without the need for custom coding. Want to add new email subscribers to your CRM automatically? Or perhaps trigger a welcome email sequence upon a new lead entering your system? Zapier makes these tasks, and countless others, not just possible but effortlessly simple. 

Salesforce Einstein

Rounding off our lineup of innovative AI tools is Salesforce Einstein, a CRM assistant that uses machine learning to personalize customer interactions, run sales data analytics, and predict future behavior. Einstein's AI capabilities are integrated across the Salesforce platform, making it smarter and more predictive of your customers' needs and desires. From sales and service to marketing and commerce, Einstein ensures every customer touchpoint is informed, insightful, and impactful, elevating the customer experience to new heights.

Stroydoc

The Storydoc marketing & sales collateral management platform is set to transform the way modern marketing and sales teams create content and how this content is consumed. This tool is built on an advanced AI engine to tailor any content to the target audience to maximize its business impact. Storydoc collateral can be automated and finely personalized through advanced integrations with CRM, sales, and marketing tools. Storydoc significantly accelerates content creation, improves engagement, removes friction from the sales funnel, and gives whoever uses it a significant edge.

How to overcome the AI Integration Hurdle?

The path to AI integration is undoubtedly compelling, lit by the promise of efficiency, personalization, and insight. Yet, it's also strewn with obstacles that can trip the unwary. Here's how savvy B2B marketers are leaping over these hurdles, turning potential pitfalls into stepping stones toward innovation:

Data Privacy

As marketers, it is our duty to do no harm and respect the sanctity of the data entrusted to us. This means conducting rigorous data impact assessments to determine the necessity of every byte of data collected. Anonymizing data where possible, providing clear opt-out options, and explaining your data use policies in plain, jargon-free language are steps that demonstrate respect for privacy and autonomy. 

Another layer of safeguarding this trust involves adopting penetration or vulnerability testing platforms. Think of these platforms as the digital equivalent of a health check-up for your data security - they poke, prod, and push to uncover any weaknesses before the bad guys do. By regularly subjecting your systems to thes cyber check-ups, you can patch vulnerabilities, fortify your defenses, and ensure your data practices are as ironclad as they claim to be.

Equity and Accessibility

AI has the potential to personalize the customer experience in ways previously unimaginable. However, this promise of personalization must not come at the cost of equity. The reality of data disparities can lead to uneven benefits, concentrating advantages among certain groups while sidelining others. 

Proactively design your AI models for equity, ensuring data samples are inclusive and benchmark tests for fairness are routine. This approach not only broadens your market reach but also champions a more inclusive digital ecosystem.

Skill Gap

The world of AI can seem daunting with its jargon and complexities. But here's a secret: you don't need to be a tech wizard to harness AI's power. Many AI tools today are designed with user-friendliness in mind. 

Think of it as learning to drive; it might seem complicated at first, with all those pedals and the steering thing, but with practice, it becomes second nature. Additionally, partnering with AI providers who offer robust support and training can further smooth the learning curve, making AI integration a less Herculean task.

Accountability and Responsibility

It's essential to draw clear lines of responsibility, ensuring that there's always a human in the loop, ready to take the helm should the AI veer off course. This isn't about undermining AI's capabilities but about ensuring that its power is wielded with wisdom and oversight. 

Document models comprehensively, establish rigorous oversight procedures across departments, and ensure there are policies in place for reporting unethical AI behavior. This framework of accountability ensures that AI serves your audience's needs ethically and responsibly, reinforcing your brand's integrity.

Marketing Data and Tool Security

The responsibility of safeguarding access to your AI tools and the marketing data they hold falls squarely on the shoulders of businesses. Employ AI tools designed with privacy in mind while encrypting and authenticating your data. 

Moreover, embracing innovative security measures like QR codes for access control adds an extra layer of defense, ensuring that the keys to your AI tools are well-guarded yet readily available to those authorized. However, the performance of this mechanism hinges on the reliability and integrity of the free QR code generator used. Opt for generators known for their robust security features to ensure the gateway to your marketing data remains impenetrable to invaders.

AI Tool Allocation

Ensuring that your cutting-edge AI tools don't become a cause of high-tech tug-of-war between different marketing departments requires a blend of diplomacy and strategy. The secret to avoiding a digital debacle? Transparent communication and straightforward guidelines on who gets to play with the cool tech toys and when. You can achieve this by setting up a centralized AI tool management hub, where access and allocation can be monitored and adjusted based on real-time needs and results. 

You can also use resource management tools like ResourceGuru or Float to make this process simpler. These platforms are the go-to solutions for B2B agencies and businesses craving to dish out their tech treasures without causing a booking brawl. By deploying them, you ensure that your AI goodies are spread evenly across the board, allowing every team to bask in the glow of AI enlightenment without tripping over one another's power cords.

Setting a Course for B2B Marketing Success with AI

Remember, the future belongs to those who are ready to embrace change, and in the realm of B2B marketing, that change spells A- I. Don't be left behind, wondering what happened. Jump on the AI bandwagon and watch your marketing strategies transform from bland to brilliant. After all, who doesn't want to be a part of a future where marketing is not just about selling but truly connecting?

The Challenge With Google Search Ads

Search advertising has established itself as the go-to channel for B2B marketers to capture low-hanging demand — and it’s easy to see why. As a marketer for an account intelligence product such as Factors.ai, it makes sense for me to bid on product keywords such as “ABM software” or “visitor identification tools” and competitor keywords such as “leadfeeder alternatives”, so I can attract relevant, in-market customers based on searcher intent. 

That being said, a closer look at the numbers reveals that conversions from search ads can actually be pretty disappointing (and expensive). For context, the average click-through rate (CTR) for search ads across industries is only about 3.17%. It’s even slimmer in the technology industry, at a meager 2.09% (Wordstream). Out of the few ad impressions that do translate into clicks, the average landing page conversion rate (sign-ups, demo form submissions, etc) is around 6% (HubSpot). And of the handful of visitors who do convert, only a fraction go on to become SQLs, opportunities, and ultimately, customers. 

Even the most optimistic benchmarks find that:

• Only around 30% of Leads become SQLs
• Out of which, 40% of SQLs become opportunities
• Out of which, 30% of opportunities become customers 

There are countless reasons for such significant drop-offs along the sales funnel:

• Most lead that land on your website, won’t sign-up
• Leads that do sign-up, may not schedule a meeting 
• Leads that do schedule a meeting, may not show up 
• Leads that do show up, may not be qualified (non-ICP)
• Leads that are qualified, may not be sales-ready (timing, budget, etc)
• Leads that are sales-ready, may choose to go with an alternate solution

All these factors suggest that to earn a single customer from search ads, you’d need more than 500 paid clicks (of course, this number varies widely based on category). That’s a lot of clicks…and a lot of money. 

To solve for this, marketers typically rely on three levers: 

1. Improve ad performance by optimizing keywords, budgets, etc
2. Improve website conversions with conversion rate optimization (CRO)
3. Improve quality of clicks via Google Click ID (GLCID) and conversion feedback

In this article, we’ll be exploring the latter of the three. Specifically, we’ll highlight an improved approach to training Google Ads to find the right clicks and traffic for your business via GCLID and conversion tracking. But first, let’s briefly discuss the current approach to Google conversion tracking — and its limitations. 

Google Conversion Tracking & GCLID: As It Stands

As a B2B marketer, you’re probably familiar with how conversion tracking and GCLID work to share conversion feedback with Google, but here’s a quick refresher:

Not all ad clicks are equal. A buyer that matches your ideal client profile is probably more valuable to your business than a student looking for an internship. However, to Google and other ad platforms, a paid ad click, regardless of whether it's by a buyer, a student, or a competitor, is a paid ad click.

To avoid the risk of burning through budgets on irrelevant paid engagement, Google supports the ability to digest feedback on the quality of clicks based on Google Click ID (GCLID) and preconfigured conversion actions. Via GCLID, Google assigns each click with a unique identifier. If the user behind a specific click goes on to perform a favorable action, marketers can flag that click to Google as a “high-quality lead”. Google’s algorithm then harnesses countless factors and historical records from its own database to surface your search ads to other audiences that match this criteria for a “high-quality lead”. Marketers typically tag sign-ups, MQLs, SQLs, and opportunities as favorable conversion actions. This lead-level feedback improves the quality of audience that receive your ads, which in turn, improves conversions. 

In theory, ad optimization with conversion tracking and GCLID sounds fantastic — a feedback loop between advertiser and advertising platform to continually improve ad performance and conversions. That being said, there are two challenges with Google Conversion Tracking and GCLID as it stands today:

1. Limited data: Google Ads recommends at least 30 conversions in 30 days for its algorithms to take effect in understanding what’s valuable and what’s not. In fact, for minimum CPA fluctuation and a quick learning period, Google suggests a whopping 500 conversions in 30 days. For early and mid-stage companies that are yet to hit these volumes of conversions, this lack of data can be a limiting factor. 
2. Lagging metrics: B2B sales cycles are notoriously lengthy and non-linear. After a visitor submits a demo form, for example, it might be a couple of days before their demo call, a few weeks before they become an opportunity, and more than a month before the deal is closed. Given that most marketers prefer quick iterations and experiments to squeeze the most ROI out of their campaigns, these extended periods between conversions lengthens the feedback loop when sending lead-level data back to Google. This lagging lead metrics is another limiting factor. 

With bids and cost per clicks becoming increasingly expensive as a result of growing competition, we need a fresh approach to overcome limitations with lead-level conversion tracking. Our hypothesis? Leverage traffic-level conversions to ensure sufficient, leading data availability for Google to work with.

Traffic-level Conversion Tracking: A Better Approach

Most marketers typically use sign-ups, M/SQLs, or other lead-level conversions as their conversion action goals. However, as noted earlier, only about 6% of visitors typically submit a form, with fewer still converting down funnel, after a delay. This results in small, lagging data sets for Google to work with. 

Rather than sending back lagging conversion data for 6 out of a 100 visitors on your paid landing pages, what if you could send leading data for 60? This is exactly what Traffic-level conversion tracking seeks to achieve via IP-based account enrichment, engagement tracking, workflow automations, and GCLID.  

Here’s how it works

Even though only a fraction of the traffic on your paid landing pages will sign-up, there’s still variable value in the remaining ninety something percent of visitors that are yet to convert. Say that 10 visitors land on your website from a search ad. Out of these 10, 2 are in-market ICP buyers that immediately sign up. 5 are ICP buyers that would make a good fit for your business, but decide that now is not the best time for a demo, so they drop off without submitting a form. And 3 are non-ICP visitors: a student, a job seeker, and a competitor — who also drop off without submitting a form.

The typical approach suggests sending the 2 ICP visitors that converted back to Google Ads as feedback. While this is helpful, it doesn’t encapsulate the full extent of data collected here. It fails to acknowledge the 5 clicks (50%!)  that albeit didn’t convert but matched our ideal client profile. While these clicks may not be as valuable as the 2 ICP clicks that converted, they’re certainly more valuable than the Non-ICP clicks. If ICP converted is worth $20, ICP not converted could be worth $10, while Non-ICP could be worth $2. This is valuable data for Google to make sense of ad clicks, even in cases where an explicit “conversion action" may not have taken place. By supplying Google with a larger set of relevant data, its algorithms will have a better understanding of what kind of visitors you value most. This data needn’t be limited to ICP data (firmographic) alone; it may be based on engagement (time-spent, scroll%) as well. 

Accordingly, traffic-level conversion tracking seeks to identify, qualify, and feed Google with a larger volume of granular, leading data by de-anonymizing website traffic and engagement at an account-level. This is where an account intelligence tool (*ahem* Factors.ai) comes into the picture.

How Factors Fits In: Your Data + Our Data = Ad Magic

The process we’re exploring here involves identifying website traffic, qualifying that traffic based on their firmographics (for ICP fit) and engagement (for intent fit), and pushing that data back to Google as feedback to attract better, more relevant audiences that *we hope* improves conversions and pipeline. Accordingly, we’ll need the following:

1. An IP-based intelligence tool to identify and enrich landing page traffic at an account-level 
2. Assign conversion value to incoming traffic based on your ICP and engagement criteria 
3. Automate a workflow that pushes this traffic-level conversion data to Google

As luck would have it, Factors.ai supports all three requirements with industry-leading account identification, engagement scoring, and workflow automations. Here’s an example of what a Factors-powered Search ads conversion tracking process could look like:

1. Identify up to 64% of anonymous companies landing on your website via search ads but are yet to convert 
2. Qualify and segment identified companies based on firmographics (industry, size, etc) and engagement (time-spent, scroll-depth, etc)
3. Push traffic-level conversion action data (along with lead-level data) back to Google automatically with the likes of Make, Zapier etc 
4. Google leverages a larger set of leading data to improve the quality of clicks and traffic
5. Improved audience quality results in better conversions and cost-effectiveness

Interested to see it in action? We’d be more than happy to set up a similar process for you over a trail with Factors.ai. 

While most of us may have studied or heard about the 5 Ps of marketing, a quick revision wouldn’t hurt, right?

This time, imagine marketing your grandma’s secret recipe - each ingredient is carefully chosen to create a yummy dish that leaves you craving for more. In her special recipe marketing, there's a tried-and-true formula that has stood the test of time: the 5 Ps. Think of it as your secret mix for success in the kitchen!

Did you know?

Prof. James Culliton of Harvard University cooked up this concept in the 1940s. He called it the "4 Ps of the marketing mix." But just like any great recipe, it evolved, adding one more essential ingredient to the mix.‍

These five Ps are

1. Product

The main dish that everyone's here to taste.

2. Price

Price sets the tone, like the price tag on a menu, signalling whether it's a budget-friendly meal or a gourmet treat.

3. Promotion

Promotion is your chef's special, the aroma that draws customers in, whether it's through flashy ads or word-of-mouth.

4. Place

The cozy restaurant tucked away on a street corner or the trendy food truck parked in the heart of the city. It's all about convenience and accessibility, making sure your customers can feast on your offerings wherever they are.

5. People

The friendly faces behind the counter, the enthusiastic servers, and the satisfied customers and influencers singing your praises. They're the ones who bring your brand to life, turning first-time visitors into loyal fans with every interaction.

As legendary marketer Seth Godin once said, "Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell." And the 5 Ps? Well, they're the mix that helps you cook up those irresistible stories, leaving your customers hungry for more.

So, grab your apron and sharpen those knives. Let's dive right in to uncover the secrets to crafting a recipe for success.

I. Product

The product is the essence of any business; it's what you offer to fulfill your customers' needs or desires. Without a compelling product, the other elements of marketing lose their significance. Your product is at the heart of your brand identity and the primary way you create value for your customers.

Your product encompasses everything from the physical attributes of what you're selling to the intangible benefits it provides. This includes features, design, quality, branding, packaging, and even the customer experience associated with your offering. It's about crafting something that meets a specific need or solves a particular problem for your target audience.

Types of Products

• Digital Products

As you may already know, these are intangible goods or services delivered electronically. Examples include software, e-books, online courses, and digital downloads. Digital products offer scalability, low distribution costs, and the ability to deliver instant gratification to customers.

• Physical Products

These are tangible goods that customers can touch, feel, and use. Examples range from consumer goods like electronics and apparel to industrial products like machinery and equipment. Physical products often involve manufacturing, inventory management, and distribution logistics.

Points for Consideration

• Product Development Activities
  

These include market research, ideation, prototyping, testing, and refinement. By understanding your target market's preferences and pain points, you can develop products that resonate with them. Continuous improvement based on customer feedback ensures that your offerings remain relevant and competitive.

• Product Lifecycle
  

Products go through distinct stages – introduction, growth, maturity, and decline – each requiring different strategies. Understanding where your product stands in its lifecycle helps you anticipate market dynamics and plan accordingly. It also informs decisions about product extensions, updates, or discontinuations.

• Distribution Channels
  

How you deliver your product to customers is crucial. Distribution channels can include direct sales, retail stores, e-commerce platforms, wholesalers, or a combination of these. Choosing the right channels depends on factors like target market preferences, geographic reach, and cost considerations.

Example

Let's consider the example of a smartphone. The product itself encompasses the physical device – its design, features, and specifications. However, it also includes intangible elements such as the brand reputation, user interface, and ecosystem of apps and services. Product development activities for a smartphone might involve market research to identify consumer preferences, iterative design processes to refine the user experience, and testing to ensure reliability and performance. Throughout its lifecycle, the smartphone may be distributed through various channels, including retail stores, telecom carriers, and online marketplaces. In a digital era, smartphone manufacturers also leverage software updates and app ecosystems to enhance the product's value proposition and longevity.

II. Price

Pricing entails setting a monetary value for your product or service that reflects its perceived worth to customers. It involves considering factors like production costs, competitor pricing, market demand, and customer willingness to pay. Effective pricing strategies align with your business objectives, target market, and positioning in the marketplace.

Price is crucial because it determines the value exchange between you and your customers. It's not just about putting a number on your product or service; it's about finding the sweet spot that balances what customers are willing to pay with the profitability of your business. Price directly influences consumer perceptions, purchase decisions, and your overall competitiveness in the market.

Factors that help brands make pricing decisions

• Cost-based Pricing
  

Calculating the total cost of production, distribution, and marketing, and adding a markup to ensure profitability.

• Value-based Pricing
  

Assessing the perceived value of the product or service to the customer and pricing accordingly.

• Competitive Pricing
  

Analyzing competitor pricing strategies and positioning your product accordingly in the market.

• Demand-based Pricing
  

Setting prices based on supply and demand dynamics, adjusting prices to maximize revenue during peak periods or to stimulate demand during off-peak times.

• Psychological Pricing
  

Leveraging pricing tactics such as charm pricing (ending prices in 9 or 99), prestige pricing (setting high prices to convey luxury or exclusivity), or price bundling (offering multiple products or services for a single price) to influence consumer perception and behavior.

Pricing Strategies

• Dynamic Pricing
  

This strategy involves adjusting prices in real-time based on factors like demand, seasonality, competitor pricing, and customer behavior. Airlines, hotels, and ride-sharing services often use dynamic pricing algorithms to optimize revenue.

• Pricing Tiers
  

Offering multiple price points allows you to cater to different customer segments with varying needs and budgets. For example, software companies may offer tiered pricing plans with basic, standard, and premium features to appeal to different user groups.

• Subscription-based Pricing
  

Subscriptions offer customers ongoing access to a product or service for a recurring fee. This model provides predictable revenue streams for businesses and fosters customer loyalty through continuous value delivery. Examples include streaming services like Netflix and software-as-a-service (SaaS) platforms like Adobe Creative Cloud.

• Minimum Pricing and Maximum Ceiling
  

Establishing a floor price prevents undervaluing your product or service, maintaining brand integrity and profitability. Similarly, setting a maximum ceiling ensures that prices remain competitive without alienating price-sensitive customers.

• Deferred Payments

Allowing customers to pay for products or services over time through installment plans or financing options can increase affordability and purchasing flexibility. However, it's essential to assess credit risk and ensure timely payments.

• Discounts and Coupons

Offering temporary price reductions or promotional incentives can stimulate sales, attract new customers, and reward loyalty. Whether through seasonal sales, loyalty programs, or referral discounts, discounts and coupons can create a sense of urgency and incentivize action.

Example: Coffee Shop

Let's consider the example of a coffee shop. The price of a cup of coffee may vary based on factors such as the quality of beans, location, and competition. The coffee shop may implement dynamic pricing during peak hours, increasing prices to capitalize on high demand and maintain profitability. 

Additionally, they may offer pricing tiers for different coffee sizes or specialty drinks, catering to varying customer preferences and budgets. To encourage repeat business, the coffee shop could introduce a subscription model, where customers pay a monthly fee for unlimited coffee refills or exclusive discounts. They may also participate in price comparison sites to showcase their competitive pricing and attract new customers searching for the best deals. 

Finally, the coffee shop could offer discounts or coupons during off-peak hours to drive traffic and boost sales during slower periods. Through a strategic approach to pricing, the coffee shop maximizes revenue while delivering value to customers.

Example: Netflix Subscription Tiers

Netflix's pricing strategy for its subscription-based streaming service is a prime example of catering to diverse customer needs while maximizing revenue. Netflix offers multiple subscription tiers, each tailored to different usage levels and budget preferences.

The basic tier offers access to standard-definition content on one screen at a time, making it an affordable option for individual users. In contrast, the premium tier provides access to ultra-high-definition content on up to four screens simultaneously, catering to families or users who value premium features.

Furthermore, Netflix adjusts its pricing periodically to reflect changes in content offerings, market demand, and competitive pressures. This dynamic pricing approach allows Netflix to optimize its revenue while providing value to its diverse customer base.

By offering a range of pricing options and periodically adjusting its rates, Netflix effectively balances affordability with value, ensuring a competitive edge in the crowded streaming market.

III. Promotions

Promotions encompass all activities aimed at communicating the value proposition of a product or service to the target audience. This includes advertising, public relations, sales promotions, personal selling, direct marketing, and digital marketing efforts. 

Your promotions play a crucial role in the marketing mix because they serve as the primary means of communication between businesses and consumers. While the product addresses customer needs, the price reflects the perceived value, and the place ensures accessibility, promotions amplify these elements and influence consumer perception and behavior.

The goal of promotions is to create awareness, stimulate interest, generate desire, and ultimately drive action or purchase intent among consumers. Effective promotions can differentiate a brand, build brand equity, and ultimately drive sales and revenue.

Distribution Channels for Promotions

Promotions can be distributed through various channels, both traditional and digital, depending on the target audience, budget, and marketing objectives. 

Common distribution channels for promotions include:

• Television, radio, and print advertisements
• Social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn)
• Online display ads and search engine marketing (Google Ads)
• Email marketing campaigns
• Influencer partnerships and collaborations
• Public relations activities (Press Releases, Media Events)
• Sales promotions (Discounts, Coupons, Rebates)

Factors to consider while choosing the Promotional Channel

Choosing the right promotional channels requires careful consideration of various factors, including

• Target Audience 

Understanding the demographics, psychographics, and media consumption habits of your target audience helps identify the most effective channels to reach them.

• Budget 

Assessing the available budget and cost-effectiveness of different channels helps prioritize promotional activities and allocate resources accordingly.

• Objectives 

Aligning promotional channels with specific marketing objectives – whether it's building brand awareness, driving website traffic, or increasing sales – ensures that efforts are focused and measurable.

• Reach and Frequency 

Evaluating the reach and frequency potential of each channel helps maximize exposure and engagement with the target audience.

• Competitive Landscape 

Analyzing competitors' promotional strategies and presence across different channels can inform decisions about where to allocate resources for maximum impact.

• Integration and Consistency 

Ensuring consistency and synergy across promotional channels and messaging helps reinforce brand identity and enhance the overall customer experience.

Example: Clothing Brand

Let's consider the example of a clothing brand launching a new product line targeting young adults. To promote the new collection, the brand might leverage a mix of promotional channels

• Social Media

Launching teaser posts on Instagram and Facebook to build anticipation, followed by sponsored ads showcasing the products and directing users to the brand's website.

• Influencer Marketing

Partnering with fashion influencers and bloggers to create sponsored content featuring the new collection and sharing their reviews and styling tips with their followers.

• Email Marketing

Sending out targeted email campaigns to subscribers announcing the product launch, offering exclusive discounts, and inviting them to shop the collection online. Here are Google’s latest guidelines for bulk email senders (2024).

• Pop-Up Events 

Hosting experiential pop-up events in trendy locations frequented by the target audience, where customers can preview and purchase the new collection while enjoying music, refreshments, and interactive activities.

• Public Relations 

Securing media coverage in fashion magazines, blogs, and online publications to generate buzz and raise awareness about the brand and its new collection.

Example: Nike's "Just Do It" Campaign

Nike's "Just Do It" campaign stands as a timeless example of effective promotion that transcends traditional advertising to inspire and motivate consumers. Launched in 1988, the campaign features iconic slogans and powerful imagery that resonate with athletes and non-athletes alike.

Through compelling storytelling and endorsements by prominent athletes like Michael Jordan and Serena Williams, Nike positions itself as a brand that champions determination, perseverance, and excellence. The campaign's message of empowerment transcends mere product promotion, fostering a deep emotional connection with consumers.

Moreover, Nike's strategic use of multiple promotion channels, including television commercials, print ads, social media, and sponsorships, ensures widespread visibility and engagement. By leveraging the power of storytelling and aligning its messaging with core brand values, Nike's "Just Do It" campaign continues to inspire and resonate with audiences worldwide.

IV. Place

Place, also known as distribution, encompasses the methods and channels through which products or services are made available to customers. It involves everything from the physical locations where products are sold to the logistical processes involved in getting them there. Place ensures that products are accessible and convenient for customers to purchase.

So why is ‘place’ so important?
Place is critical because even the most innovative product, compelling price, and effective promotion are futile if customers can't access or obtain the product conveniently. It ensures that the right product is available at the right time, in the right quantity, and in the right location. 

The ‘place’ is where the transaction between the business and the customer occurs, making it a pivotal part of the marketing mix.

Types of Distribution Channels

Distribution channels refer to the pathways through which products move from the manufacturer to the end consumer. Fulfillment is the process of receiving, processing, and then delivering customer orders. 

Common distribution channels and fulfillment methods include

• Direct Distribution

Involves selling products directly from the manufacturer to the end consumer without intermediaries. Examples include company-owned retail stores, e-commerce websites, and direct sales representatives.

1. Retail Stores

Brick-and-mortar stores where customers can physically browse, purchase, and take immediate possession of products. Examples include department stores, specialty shops, and supermarkets.

2. E-commerce Platforms 

Online marketplaces and websites where customers can browse, select, and purchase products remotely. E-commerce platforms offer convenience, 24/7 accessibility, and the ability to reach a global audience.

• Indirect Distribution

Involves one or more intermediaries between the manufacturer and the end consumer. Indirect distribution channels can include wholesalers, distributors, retailers, and agents.

1. Wholesale

Selling products in bulk quantities to retailers or other businesses for resale to end consumers. Wholesale distribution involves negotiating contracts, managing inventory levels, and coordinating shipments to distributors or wholesalers.

• Multichannel Distribution

Utilizes multiple distribution channels simultaneously to reach different customer segments or markets. For example, a company may sell its products through both retail stores and e-commerce platforms to cater to diverse customer preferences.

• Intensive Distribution

Aims to make products available in as many outlets as possible to maximize market coverage and accessibility. Intensive distribution is common for everyday consumer goods like beverages, snacks, and personal care products.

• Selective Distribution

Involves carefully selecting a limited number of retail outlets or distributors based on specific criteria such as geographic location, target market demographics, or brand image. Selective distribution is typical for products with higher prices or specialized features.

• Exclusive Distribution

Grants exclusive rights to a single distributor or retailer to sell a product within a particular geographic area or market segment. Exclusive distribution is often used for luxury or high-end products to maintain exclusivity and prestige.

That said, businesses must keep the logistics and supply chain management in mind while formulating their distribution strategies. Managing the flow of products from suppliers to warehouses to distribution centers to retail stores or customers' doorsteps. Effective logistics ensure timely delivery, accurate inventory management, and cost-efficient operations.

Example: Starbucks Retail Stores

Starbucks' retail stores exemplify strategic placement and meticulous attention to the customer experience. With over 30,000 stores worldwide, Starbucks has established a ubiquitous presence in high-traffic locations, including urban centers, shopping malls, and transportation hubs.

The placement of Starbucks stores is carefully curated to maximize convenience and accessibility for customers, ensuring that they can easily find and frequent their favorite coffee destination. Whether it's a bustling city street or a suburban neighborhood, Starbucks' presence is felt in diverse locations, catering to a broad demographic of coffee enthusiasts.

Moreover, Starbucks' emphasis on creating inviting and comfortable environments further enhances the appeal of its retail stores. From cosy seating areas to free Wi-Fi access, Starbucks stores offer more than just coffee – they provide a welcoming space for customers to relax, socialize, and enjoy the Starbucks experience.

V. People

People are at the heart of every marketing endeavor. It's the people who drive demand for products or services, make purchase decisions, and ultimately determine business success. 

People refer to all individuals involved in the marketing process, including customers, employees, partners, stakeholders, and influencers. It encompasses understanding their needs, preferences, motivations, and behaviors to create meaningful interactions and relationships.

Understanding and catering to the needs and preferences of people – whether they are customers, employees, or partners – is essential for creating value, fostering loyalty, and achieving sustainable growth.

Moving Beyond your Sales Team

• Sponsorships

Sponsorships involve partnering with individuals, organizations, events, or causes to promote brand awareness, enhance brand image, and reach target audiences. Sponsorship opportunities can include sports events, concerts, festivals, charity initiatives, or industry conferences. By associating with relevant sponsorships, businesses can increase visibility, credibility, and engagement with their target market.

• Cross-promotions

Cross-promotions entail collaborating with complementary businesses or brands to promote each other's products or services. This can involve joint marketing campaigns, co-branded promotions, or product bundling arrangements. Cross-promotions leverage the existing customer bases and brand equity of both parties to expand reach, drive sales, and create mutual benefits.

• Influencer marketing

Influencer marketing involves partnering with individuals or social media personalities who have a significant following and influence over their audience. Influencers can endorse products or services through sponsored content, reviews, or endorsements, leveraging their credibility and authority to sway purchase decisions. Influencer marketing can be particularly effective for reaching niche audiences, generating authentic engagement, and building brand advocacy.

Significance of having industry influencers for B2B selling

In B2B selling, industry influencers play a crucial role in driving credibility, trust, and thought leadership. B2B buyers often rely on industry experts, thought leaders, and influencers for insights, recommendations, and validation when making purchasing decisions. Partnering with industry influencers can provide access to decision-makers, enhance brand visibility, and position the business as a trusted authority in the industry.

Example: Fitness Apparel

Let's consider the example of a fitness apparel brand aiming to target health-conscious millennials. They could leverage people-focused strategies such as

• Influencer Marketing

Partnering with fitness influencers and lifestyle bloggers to showcase their products in action, share workout routines, and promote healthy living tips to their followers. By aligning with influencers who embody their brand values and resonate with their target audience, the apparel brand can increase brand awareness and drive sales.

• Cross-Promotions

Collaborating with fitness studios, gyms, or wellness brands to offer joint promotions, such as discounted gym memberships with apparel purchases or co-branded fitness events. These cross-promotions create synergy between complementary businesses and provide added value to customers.

• Sponsorships

Sponsoring local fitness events, charity runs, or wellness festivals where their target audience is likely to participate. By associating with these events, the brand can demonstrate its commitment to health and fitness, engage with the community, and build positive brand associations.

Example: Tesla's Sales and Service Representatives

Tesla's sales and service representatives exemplify the importance of knowledgeable and customer-centric personnel in driving sales and fostering brand loyalty. Unlike traditional car dealerships, Tesla's approach to sales and customer service emphasizes direct engagement with knowledgeable representatives who are passionate about electric vehicles.

Tesla's sales representatives are trained to provide personalized guidance and support to customers throughout the purchase process, from test drives to vehicle customization options. Their expertise in electric vehicle technology and commitment to customer satisfaction differentiate Tesla's sales experience from traditional automotive retail.

Furthermore, Tesla's service representatives play a crucial role in maintaining customer satisfaction and loyalty by providing prompt and efficient support for vehicle maintenance and repairs. With a focus on transparency and proactive communication, Tesla's service team ensures that customers receive the highest level of care and attention.

By investing in knowledgeable and customer-focused personnel, Tesla not only enhances the sales and service experience but also strengthens its brand reputation and fosters long-term customer relationships.

As we come to a close, it's clear that the 5 Ps of Marketing bring their own unique strengths to the table. By stitching these elements together, we create a strategy that captivates audiences, drives sales, and builds relationships that stand the test of time.

If you’re looking to read and learn more about marketing terms, read our blog on 102 Essential B2B Terms.

Imagine having access to a wealth of information about potential customers at your fingertips. That's what B2B data providers offer – a centralized database filled with valuable information about businesses and decision-makers. However, with numerous B2B data providers available, it can be challenging to choose one that best suits your needs. 

If you’re trying to find the right pick, this guide is for you. We’ll go over some of the best B2B data provider tools in the market today, what they offer, and if they’re good for you. Let’s get right into it. 

Top 12 B2B Data Providers for Businesses in 2024

We’ll explore 12 of the best B2B data providers that you can consider for your business needs in 2024. Let’s start with one of the most popular options—Zoominfo.

1. ZoomInfo

ZoomInfo is one of most established B2B data providers on this list, offering a wealth of information on companies and contacts. With its advanced search capabilities and real-time updates, ZoomInfo enables you to quickly identify and connect with their ideal prospects. 

Features:

• Extensive database of contact and company information
• Advanced search filters and segmentation options
• Real-time data updates and verification
• Buyer intent insights to identify key decision-makers
• Conversation intelligence for sales call analysis
• Integration with popular CRM and marketing automation platforms

Pricing:

ZoomInfo offers flexible pricing packages across their data-driven solutions and premium applications. 

• SalesOS helps speed up the entire sales process with accurate contact data, company insights, buying intent signals, engagement apps and integrations. 
• MarketingOS aims to achieve more ROI by providing essential contact data, advanced company insights, digital marketing solutions for advertising, website chat, and form management, along with plug-and-play and flexible integrations. 
• TalentOS helps find the best talent faster through advanced candidate search with accurate contact data, sourcing intelligence with candidate alerts and company insights, engagement apps and integrations. 

ZoomInfo also offers three support package options—the free Standard, Preferred, and the Premium white-glove service package to further enhance the features provided within the plans.

Who it's good for:

ZoomInfo caters to businesses of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises, seeking a reliable and comprehensive B2B data solution.

2. Cognism

Cognism is a powerful sales intelligence platform that combines high-quality data with advanced analytics and automation features. Cognism's intuitive interface and easy-to-use tools make it simple for you to find and engage with your target audience, while its integration with popular CRM and marketing automation platforms ensures a seamless workflow.

Features:

• Offers 47 million mobile numbers with 87% of them being verified
• Wide global coverage across EMEA, NAM, and APAC regions
• Compliance with global data protection regulations
• Intent data powered by Bombora for identifying high-priority prospects
• Seamless integration with popular CRM and sales engagement platforms
• User-friendly Chrome extension for easy data access and enrichment

Pricing:

Cognism doesn’t publicly list their plans nor any features and you can get access to the required information by booking a demo with their sales team. Learn more about Cognism pricing.

Who it's good for:

Cognism is an excellent choice for businesses that prioritize data accuracy and compliance while seeking a user-friendly platform to support their sales and marketing efforts.

3. Clearbit

Clearbit is a data enrichment and lead generation platform that helps you gain deeper insights into your target accounts and prospects. With its real-time data enrichment capabilities, Clearbit can automatically fill in missing information in your customer records, such as company size, industry, and contact details. The platform also offers a range of tools for lead generation, including a powerful API and integrations with popular marketing and sales tools. 

Features:

• Data enrichment to fill in missing information in customer records
• Lead scoring and routing for focusing on high-priority leads
• Intent-based outreach to build a pipeline from website visitors
• Advanced segmentation for intelligent go-to-market strategies
• Precise B2B targeting and data-driven prospecting
• Personalized email campaigns based on prospect data
• Extensive database with over 100 filters and nearly 400 million contacts, refreshed monthly

Pricing:

Clearbit does not provide public pricing or features available within the plans. You need to request a demo for the pricing. 

Who it's good for:

Clearbit is well-suited for businesses that want to enrich their existing data and gain deeper insights into their target accounts, as well as those looking for a reliable API solution.

4. 6sense

6sense is an account-based orchestration platform that uses machine learning to help businesses identify and engage with their most valuable prospects. The platform's predictive analytics capabilities enable you to anticipate buyer behavior and intent, allowing you to focus your efforts on the accounts most likely to convert. 

Features:

• AI-powered account identification and audience building
• Predictive analytics for optimal engagement timing
• Account intelligence for prioritization and personalization
• Prioritization dashboards for sales teams
• Revenue AI insights accessible from LinkedIn and other B2B websites

Pricing:

Again, 6sense does not publicly list its pricing. However, they have a free plan where you get 50 free credits to test out the platform before booking a demo and moving to paid tiers. 

Who it's good for:

6sense is ideal for businesses that have adopted an account-based marketing (ABM) approach and want to leverage predictive intelligence to optimize their sales and marketing efforts.

5. Factors.ai

Factors is a B2B analytics platform and data provider that helps you reveal anonymous accounts visiting your marketing channels. The platform combines data from industry leaders like Clearbit and 6sense to deliver highly accurate and comprehensive insights—revealing upto 64% of accounts. Factors enables businesses to identify and engage with their prospects, track website visitor behavior, and attribute revenue to marketing efforts.

Factors also provides engagement insights and analytics, enabling sales and marketing teams to make data-driven decisions and optimize their efforts. It seamlessly integrates with existing workflows, making it easy for businesses to benefit from accurate data without disrupting their current processes. 

Features:

• IP-matching with a database of over 4.7B IP addresses and 100 million+ companies and a match rate of up to 64%
• AI-powered account scoring and prioritization based on attributes, behavior, and engagement
• Account activation through intent data and high-intent audience targeting on LinkedIn and real-time sales alerts
• Intuitive account timelines and user journeys for visualizing buyer progression and intent
• Seamless data integration with a wide range of platforms
• Comprehensive platform for account intelligence, website visitor tracking, engagement insights, and revenue attribution

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Pricing:

Factors.ai offers four pricing plans to suit different business needs:

• Free plan at $0 per month
• Basic plan at $249 per month
• Growth plan at $799 per month
• Custom plan tailored for agencies, enterprises, and established teams looking to scale, with pricing available upon request.

Learn more about 

Who it's good for:

Factors is an excellent choice for businesses that want a comprehensive B2B data solution that combines the accuracy of Clearbit's data with the intelligence of 6sense, as well as powerful features such as LinkedIn view-through attribution, website analytics, engagement scoring, and more

6. LinkedIn Sales Navigator

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a powerful tool for B2B sales professionals looking to find and engage with potential buyers on the world's largest professional network. With its advanced search capabilities and lead recommendations, Sales Navigator makes it easy to identify and connect with decision-makers in your target accounts or companies. 

The platform's InMail messaging feature enables you to easily include LinkedIn into your existing sales workflow, while its insights and analytics help track and optimize performance.

Features:

• Pinpoint ideal B2B buyers with advanced search filters (industry, title, company changes)
• Sales Navigator shows fresh prospects based on your preferences, expanding your data reach
• Get alerts when hot leads engage with your content or hit career milestones
• Identify key decision-makers within target accounts for a complete sales picture
• Reach high-value prospects, even if unconnected, with a limited number of monthly InMails

Pricing:

LinkedIn Sales Navigator offers different pricing plans to cater to various business needs. 

• The Core plan starts at $79.99 per month 
• Advanced begins at $135 per month 

• Advanced Plus: Custom pricing that can be requested by booking a call

Who it's good for:

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is ideal for sales professionals and teams who regularly use LinkedIn for their lead generation and want to tap into the power of LinkedIn to find more 

7. Lusha

Lusha is a user-friendly B2B contact and company data platform that helps businesses find and connect with their ideal prospects. 

With its extensive database of accurate and up-to-date contact information, including email addresses and phone numbers, Lusha makes it easy for you to reach out to potential customers and partners. Lusha’s browser extension helps you access and use data directly from your existing tools and workflows.

Features:

• Intent data through a partnership with Bombora, collected from over 5,000 consenting sources
• Simple setup and short onboarding process with an intuitive dashboard
• Seamless integration with Salesforce and other third-party CRM vendors
• Popular choice for sales teams using a "warm outbound" approach

Pricing:

Lusha, a B2B sales intelligence tool, offers three pricing plans to suit different business needs and budgets. 

• Free Plan lets you find 50 emails and 5 phone numbers every month
• To upgrade to a paid plan, you need to register for a demo

Who it's good for:

Lusha is a great choice for businesses and professionals who value simplicity and ease of use, and who need quick access to accurate contact information for their outreach efforts.

8. Lead411

Lead411 is a comprehensive B2B lead generation and sales intelligence platform that offers a range of tools and features to help businesses find and engage with their ideal customers. With its extensive database of accurate and verified contact and company information, Lead411 enables users to quickly build targeted prospect lists and outreach campaigns. 

The platform's advanced search filters, data enrichment, and real-time alerts help you stay on top of key insights and opportunities, while its integration with popular CRM and marketing automation tools ensures a seamless workflow.

Features:

• Unlimited access to high-quality, verified B2B leads, emails, and direct phone numbers
• Phone-verified mobile numbers for connecting with a high percentage of your list
• Database regularly checked and cleaned against global DNC lists
• Accurate B2B intent data powered by Bombora
• Company growth intelligence, including employee growth and other triggers

Pricing:

Lead411 offers several pricing plans tailored for different team sizes.

• The Basic Plus Unlimited plan costs $899 per year per user and includes unlimited email and direct phone number views, 2400 exports per year with rollover, free CRM integration, and a Chrome extension. 
• The Pro with Bombora Intent plan is designed for growth with 10,000 exports per year with intent data, discounted rates for multiple seats, chat support, and additional export credits at $0.44 each. 
• The Unlimited plan is the most popular option with unlimited exporting, onboarding/dedicated support, optional Bombora Intent Data add-on, API access, Chrome extension, and flexible single or multi-user options. 

All plans include features like sales engagement with Reach, data append, international search, currently hiring filter, suppression lists, technology stack search, custom triggers, lead scoring, and company intelligence news.

Who it's good for:

Lead411 is ideal for businesses that are looking for a comprehensive B2B data solution with advanced search and lead generation capabilities, and who are willing to invest in a higher-priced platform.

9. UpLead

UpLead is a user-friendly B2B data platform that offers high-quality contact and company information at affordable prices. With a database of over 54 million contacts and 14 million companies, UpLead makes it easy for you to find and connect with your ideal prospects. The platform's real-time email verification, data enrichment, and list-building features also help ensure the accuracy and relevance of user data.

Features:

• A database of over 155 million B2B contacts from 200+ countries
• 95% data accuracy guarantee and real-time email verification for all available data
• Data enrichment for contacts, emails, and companies
• Seamless integration with popular CRM systems and third-party tools
• Real-time intent data for identifying high-priority prospects
• Google Chrome extension for LinkedIn and website data scraping

Pricing:

UpLead offers a variety of pricing plans to cater to different needs. The Free Trial provides a 7-day free trial with 5 credits, including verified emails, mobile phones, and a Chrome extension.

• The Essentials plan costs $99 per month and includes 170 credits, verified emails, mobile phones, CRM integration, and company news.
• The Plus plan, aimed at individuals, costs $199 per month and offers 400 credits, data enrichment, email pattern intel, technographic, advanced filters, and suppression list uploads. 
• For organizations, the Professional plan is customizable with a custom number of seats and credits and includes buyer intent data, all search filters, full API access, advanced CRM integrations, competitor intelligence, team management, a dedicated success manager, an onboarding specialist, and priority phone support.

Who it's good for:

UpLead is a great choice for businesses that value simplicity and affordability, and who need a reliable source of accurate B2B contact and company data.

10. LeadIQ

LeadIQ is a sales prospecting platform that combines powerful data insights with intuitive tools and features to help sales teams find and engage with their ideal customers. With its contact and company information, LeadIQ enables you to quickly build targeted prospect lists and outreach campaigns.

The platform's real-time data enrichment, lead capture, and CRM integration features help streamline the sales process, while its analytics and reporting capabilities provide valuable insights into team performance and areas for improvement.

Features:

• Automated lead capture for identifying and saving potential customer information
• Real-time notifications and alerts for promotions, position changes, and company updates
• Duplicate detection to maintain database integrity
• Custom field mapping for data consistency
• Comprehensive analytics dashboard for data-driven insights

Pricing:

LeadIQ offers four pricing editions, with a free trial available and a freemium plan at no additional cost. 

• The Essential edition costs $39 per user per month
• The Pro edition is priced at $79 per user per month. 
• The Core edition, designed for individual sales professionals, costs $79.99 per month billed annually. 
• The Advanced edition, tailored for small to medium-sized teams, costs $135 per month billed annually. 

Who it's good for:

LeadIQ is ideal for sales teams and professionals who want a comprehensive prospecting platform that combines accurate data with powerful tools for lead generation and outreach.

11. SalesIntel

SalesIntel is a comprehensive B2B data platform that offers high-quality contact and company information, along with a range of tools and features to help businesses find and engage with their ideal prospects. It has a smaller database of 5 million companies and 70 million contacts compared to other platforms on this list. 

Features:

• Focused account targeting using technographic and firmographic data
• Accurate contact information, including direct dials and human-verified contacts
• Regular data verification every 90 days to ensure data quality
• Seamless integration with marketing automation tools and CRM systems for identifying ideal candidates

Pricing:

SalesIntel provides three pricing plans for B2B data. 

• The Individual plan costs $69 per month and includes a 14-day trial. 
• The Teams plan is priced at $199 per month per user and also includes a 14-day trial. 
• The Unlimited Everything plan is designed for teams that don't want to worry about credits, with pricing built to suit specific needs. 

Who it's good for:

SalesIntel is a good choice for businesses that prioritize data accuracy and verification, and who need a reliable partner for their sales and marketing data needs.

12. Kaspr

Kaspr is a powerful B2B prospecting tool that combines data insights with automation features to help businesses find and engage with their ideal customers. Kaspr enables you to quickly build targeted prospect lists and outreach campaigns. 

The platform's real-time data enrichment, email verification, and CRM integration features help ensure the accuracy and relevance of user data. Kaspr's user-friendly interface and affordable pricing make it accessible to businesses of all sizes.

Features:

• Fast and easy installation for quick setup
• Instant access and collection of B2B contact data
• Automated outreach with three workflow options: LinkedIn, Enrichment, and Integrations
• Robust lead tracking and organization, consolidating contacts in one place
• Highly accurate contact information, including emails, phone numbers, and social media profiles
• Data enrichment capabilities for automated campaigns and data enhancement

Pricing:

• The free plan includes 5 phone credits, 5 direct email credits, and 10 export credits per month.
• The Starter plan costs $49 per user and includes 1,200 phone credits, 60 direct email credits, and 3,000 export credits per user. 
• The Business plan is priced at $79 per user, while the Organization plan costs $99 per user.

Users can get unlimited email addresses when they invite three colleagues to sign up. Kaspr integrates with many platforms via Zapier, including SalesForce, Hubspot, PipeDrive, Sendinblue, and Lemlist.

Who it's good for:

Kaspr is ideal for businesses that are looking for a user-friendly B2B data platform with advanced search and data enrichment features, and who want a reliable partner for their sales prospecting and outreach efforts.

How to Choose The Right Platform?

Let’s go over a quick list of things you may want to consider when picking a B2B data provider platform.

• Think about what your business needs and what you want to achieve
• Check how big and reliable the provider's database is
• Look for providers with accurate, current, and relevant data
• Make sure the provider respects data privacy and follows the rules
• See if the provider works well with the tools and software you already use
• Compare prices and pick one that fits your budget
• Read what other users have to say about their experience and success stories

If possible, find a platform that not only provides data but can integrate with your existing marketing stack and give you data about your leads, website visitors, and even those who click on your ads—clearly pushing your account-based marketing efforts further.

Wrapping Up: Finding the Best B2B Data Partner for Your Business

The right data helps you find the perfect customers, understand what they need, and reach out to them in the most effective way possible. B2B data providers give you access to this valuable information to help your business grow and succeed. 

Choosing the right platform comes down to thinking about what your business needs, looking for providers with high-quality data, and making sure they play nicely with the tools you already use. 

So, try all the platforms you can, and wherever required, get on a demo call to get a better understanding of the product. You want to first test things out as much as possible before locking yourself and your team into a new platform. 

Get started now by booking a demo with Factors—a B2B account intelligence and marketing analytics platform that pulls data from across your marketing channels, and then reveals anonymous accounts with up to 64% accuracy.

You’re browsing online trying to find a solution for that leaky faucet in your kitchen. 

As you Google “how to fix a leaky faucet” you come across a blog post from a local plumbing company. 

The post gives step-by-step instructions for diagnosing the leak and describes the parts you’ll need to pick up from the hardware store. 

“This is super helpful!” you think. You check out a few more posts on their site about common plumbing repairs.

A week later, your neighbor asks if you know a good plumber to install a new bathroom sink. The company you stumbled upon pops back in your mind. “I came across ABC Plumbing online. Their articles were really useful, so they seem trustworthy. I’ll send you their website,” you tell your neighbor.

This scenario highlights the power of inbound marketing. With valuable, relevant marketing assets tailored to what potential customers are looking for online, the plumbing company turned a random website visitor into a brand advocate. But why stop there?

Their blog posts and resources also aim to convert website visitors into leads by capturing contact info and nurturing those leads to eventually becoming paying customers.

It’s all part of a methodology called the inbound marketing funnel. Let’s dive into how it works.

What is the Inbound Marketing Funnel?

Remember those old-school sales funnels from Marketing 101? 

They depicted a linear sequence starting with many potential prospects who enter the “top of the funnel,” then get whittled down throughout the sales process until only a small portion convert to become customers at the “bottom of the funnel.”

The inbound marketing funnel is quite similar—some may split the funnel further for more clarity or control.

Rather than relying on outbound sales tactics such as cold calling, it uses digital content, ads, and even organic social media marketing to attract prospects, convert them to leads, and then guide them through a sequence aimed at turning them into customers.

This marketing funnel didn’t appear overnight. 

The inbound marketing funnel developed as buyers started relying on online research to make purchasing decisions. In fact, a recent TrustRadius showed virtually 100% of B2B buyers prefer to do their own independent research and validate vendor claims, rather than get product information directly from a salesperson.

As buyers changed their habits, marketers had to adapt. 

That’s where inbound marketing came into play—creating helpful marketing content for your blog, ads, socials, podcasts, and other channels, designed to meet searchers’ needs, gain their trust, and ultimately convert them into customers.

Let’s walk through the journey a prospect takes through the inbound funnel, and the types of marketing assets they’ll encounter along the way.

Top of the Funnel (TOFU): Attracting Website Visitors

Publishing content on the web functions similar to casting a fishing net. 

As people search for topics related to your business, your content “catches” these prospects and brings them back to your site.

Blog posts, social media content, YouTube videos, and other general query-focused content functions well for casting a wide net due to their in-depth educational nature. They attract website visitors by answering common questions and demonstrating expertise related to your products or services.

• For example, a catering company may publish recipe blogs and party food ideas.
• A preschool may create ebooks with advice on preparing a toddler for kindergarten. 
• A marketing technology software company may create educational webinars for B2B marketers

This educational content targets “problem phrases” people are likely to search for during early research stages, before they’re even considering vendors—things like “event catering tips” or “getting toddler ready for school.” 

This content increases the odds of the prospect discovering your company early on in their journey.

Moving to MOFU: From Visitors into Leads

Continuing from our fishing example: consider that you’ve pulled a net full of fish. 

The job isn’t done yet. Before cooking up any dishes, a chef first sorts through the haul–keeping the good quality fish to prepare a meal, throwing out any rotten ones.

This sorting process aims to predict which fish...err, website visitors...demonstrate buying potential versus those unlikely to convert. 

Landing pages and forms play a pivotal role here.

Once a website visitor arrives on your site to consume content, they provide behavioral signals, hinting at their readiness to buy. This could be:

• Visiting many pages. 
• Downloading a gated asset
• Visiting pricing or feature pages

These conversion points allow you to capture visitor data and score their actions to determine buying potential..

For example, after reading a blog post on toddler kindergarten prep, a parent may click to download the accompanying “Kindergarten Readiness Checklist.” To access the checklist, they fill out a form providing their name and email address.

Now they’re in your sales funnel! You have their contact information and know they’re interested in preparing their child for kindergarten based on the content they engaged with.

The company now customizes follow-up emails with related information on preparing little ones for the classroom. They know sending this relevant content increases the prospect’s likelihood of buying related services like academic evaluation testing, summer “test prep” camps or learning skill development programs. It’s all about nurturing that lead by demonstrating how you can add value.

Guiding Leads to Become Customers

You’ve likely heard the phrase “content is king.” But we mustn't forget that context is queen. Understanding who is engaging with your content allows you to adapt sales messaging to match their needs and interests.

Buyer personas help create this contextual understanding. Common persona profiles may include:

• demographic details like age, gender, profession
• firmographic details like company size, industry, location
• and psychographic details like values, priorities, pain points.

Building buyer personas for your most common customers allows you to tailor content accordingly throughout the sales funnel. 

Our preschool may develop personas for first-time parents, growing families with multiple young kids, and dual income power couples focusing heavily on early childhood development. 

Bottom of the Funnel (BOFU): Closed Deals

The inbound marketing funnel ultimately aims to guide qualified leads into becoming paying customers. But this final conversion relies on human interaction. Once a lead demonstrates solid buying potential, they get passed to sales teams for closing.

What signals readiness for sales contact?Harvesting enough information to reasonably “know” key details about that lead. 

Contact info, demographic and firmographic data, content engagement patterns, plus lead scores predicting their likelihood to buy all guide sales messaging and personalization. 

There are many lead scoring models and lead scoring platforms that you can work with to further improve the efficiency of your sales pipelines.

With this head start from marketing, sales representatives don’t waste time pitching unlikely candidates. They can prepare custom pricing packages and product bundles with the knowledge of what that specific persona wants based on their original content preferences. 

In our school prep example, leads may experience highly personalized email sequences addressing concerns for young students struggling with change and how they can create structure around new routines.

Once the email sequence is complete and your platform signals lead readiness (either because users opened majority of your emails, or they replied to emails, etc), the sales staff can use captured info and prepare individualized packages for the students. 

For instance, a package may include a summer “classroom camp” program to practice school skills targeting those parents who downloaded the Kindergarten Readiness Checklist.

See how it all tied back together?

How to Implement an Inbound Marketing Funnel

Theoretically plotting the marketing funnel is easy. But when marketing is spread across multiple channels, creating a proper funnel can become extremely difficult. 

Every platform has its own data analytics, learning curves, and challenges with adoption

For instance, Google Analytics shows website visitor data, LinkedIn analytics shows your social media and advertising data, while Google Ads shows your ad performance. 

But what if you could bring all of this together? Enter Factors.

Factors integrates with your Ads, social media platforms, CRMs, search analytics, and more giving you a unified reporting experience. 

But that’s just one small part of it.

You have full control over every aspect of the reports, pulling in data from multiple sources and showing them all on a single screen—making it easy to create marketing funnels.

Along with reporting, you can also use Factor’s account intelligence to reveal up to 64% of anonymous accounts engaging with your marketing channels. 

This gives your marketing and sales teams accurate information on who they’re targeting, what the personas are, and how they can best approach their account-based marketing strategy.

Factors helps you bring your sales and marketing teams on the same page, giving them complete access to all the required information they can best achieve their goals. 

It’s the missing piece to help you execute a cohesive inbound methodology that transforms strangers into delighted customers.

Drive Growth Through the Inbound Marketing Funnel

Now that you know how inbound marketing funnels guide strangers into becoming loyal customers, you can appreciate why this methodology revolutionized growth. So instead of interrupting strangers with annoying sales pitches, you’re delighting people by solving their problems. The inbound funnel transforms throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something sticks to methodically transforming prospects into delighted customers. 

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Factors can help you take your inbound methodology to the next level.

Integrating data from all your marketing channels into one unified platform, Factors gives you a complete 360-degree view of your prospects' journey. You can easily track engagement across touchpoints, identify behavioral signals, and uncover important details to guide your marketing and sales efforts.

Who wouldn’t want to buy from someone with such precision and care for the customer experience?

Try Factors on your marketing channels for free and experience the impact it can have on your marketing efforts, today!

‍Datorama is a marketing cloud intelligence software developed by Salesforce. Given the immense popularity of Salesforce, Datorama has parallelly gained popularity amongst the B2B marketing community. 

This blog will explore Datorama, its features, and pricing to see if it is best suited for your business.

What is Datorama?

Datorama is a marketing intelligence and analytics software that helps B2B teams integrate marketing data across different sources. 

Today, customers connect with brands through multiple channels like social media and websites, prompting a marketing paradigm shift. Tools like Datorama use advanced data integration and analytics to address this. With over 4200 users, Datorama streamlines data management and empowers stakeholders across the organization with valuable insights. 

By furnishing clear, comprehensive analytics reports, Datorama enables marketers to communicate their value proposition effectively, fostering trust and credibility with clients and partners alike. 

At its core, Datorama aims to facilitate collaborative decision-making and drive collective efforts toward optimizing marketing performance. 

Datorama Features

Here are Datorama’s salient features and offerings that make it a great marketing intelligence tool:

I. Data Capture 

Datorama boasts over 300 API connectors that seamlessly integrate diverse data types from your API native library into any preferred format. This versatile platform facilitates the ingestion of structured and unstructured data from sources like social media, email, Google Analytics, CRM data, etc. You can refine their datasets with precise filtering options, tailoring the analysis to their specific requirements.

It has two different API connectors that help achieve this goal: 

1. TotalConnect 

It augments this functionality by enabling users to supplement data obtained from API connectors with additional datasets. For instance, if there are pertinent custom data extracts from platforms like Salesforce Marketing Cloud that lack API integration, TotalConnect serves as the remedy. It facilitates the transformation and cleansing of this supplementary data, rendering it suitable for reporting and visualization purposes within the Datorama platform.

2. Liteconnect

For non-marketing data sources such as weather forecasts, geographical information, or sales data. Although these datasets may not directly align with the Datorama data model, LiteConnect allows users to incorporate essential details into their reports effortlessly. By simply dragging and dropping data files into the platform, users can instantly visualize and analyze the information, enhancing the depth and richness of their insights.

2. Data Model

Datorama streamlines the data modeling process by furnishing marketers with 19 adaptable templates tailored to various data source categories, including online advertising, eCommerce, social listening, and web analytics. Beyond the initial data importation phase, the platform empowers users to further refine their data modeling efforts. This includes the ability to reconfigure, enhance, align, and categorize data according to specific requirements, ensuring flexibility and precision throughout the modeling process.

3. Reporting

You can export data from Salesforce Datorama to various destinations with no additional charges- whether it's your database or third-party data visualization or analytics platforms.

Datorama's Query API facilitates scalable data exports in diverse formats such as .csv, .pdf, and more. This makes it easy to create reports and share your findings and progress with all internal and external stakeholders. 

4. Dashboards

Datorama's tool InstaBrand empowers users to create custom branded designs for their reports and dashboards. With its visualization section, users can generate impactful dashboards featuring graphs for various key performance indicators (KPIs) with just a single click. Alternatively, users can opt for preconfigured dashboards available in the standard version, simply specifying the campaigns and timeframes for the desired data.

The best thing about InstaBrand is the high level of personalization. Users have the flexibility to incorporate company logos, apply corporate colors, and integrate customizable widgets, tailored to their specific branding requirements.

Pivot Tables: 

Pivot tables help visualize data and enable users to analyze information from various perspectives. They facilitate the filtering, sorting, and grouping of extensive datasets based on specific metrics or dimensions, enhancing the granularity of data analysis. Furthermore, pivot tables play a crucial role in generating personalized reports that succinctly summarize data insights without necessitating complex queries.

Datorama Use Cases

Datorama helps marketing teams address the following problems in their everyday functions:

1. Unify Data

Unified data integration through Datorama eliminates the inefficiencies associated with manual data processing tasks. Marketers with marketing intelligence tools like Datorama do not need to spend valuable time and effort on redundant activities such as manually filtering or entering data from disparate sources. With Datorama's numerous APIs, you can easily integrate data from various sources, regardless of format. This allows teams to redirect their focus toward revenue-generating tasks, prioritize strategic initiatives, and aim to engage potential customers more effectively.

2. Data Insights and Visualization

Datorama's robust data insights and visualization tools provide marketers with a powerful means of communicating with key stakeholders, including C-suite executives and cross-functional teams. The platform's easy-to-understand dashboards and visualization features enable marketers to present complex data clearly and compellingly. This not only simplifies reporting processes but also enhances internal communication and accountability. By leveraging Datorama's visualization capabilities, marketers can effectively demonstrate the value of their campaigns and initiatives, fostering greater transparency and alignment across the organization.

3. Analytics/Intelligence

Datorama's analytics and intelligence capabilities empower marketers to gain deep insights into their marketing efforts without the need for extensive manual analysis. Datorama enables marketers to quickly identify trends, patterns, and opportunities for optimization. This comprehensive understanding of marketing performance allows marketers to make data-driven decisions with confidence, optimizing their strategies to maximize results. It enables agile decision-making and continuous improvement without sacrificing focus on core tasks such as customer acquisition and engagement.

Datorama Limitations

1. Steep Learning Curve

Users have reported that Datorama's extensive customizability, tailored to cater to diverse industries, results in a steep learning curve. While the platform offers an umbrella solution for various needs, this high level of customizability can be overwhelming for teams tasked with setting up their own SaaS ecosystem. Particularly for smaller organizations lacking robust tech support or with limited resources, navigating Datorama's complexities may prove challenging.

2. Expensive Tool

Online reviews suggest that Datorama's pricing is relatively high compared to other solutions in this domain. This places Datorama firmly in the realm of enterprise solutions rather than catering to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). The elevated price point of Datorama may deter SMBs from considering it as a viable option for their marketing intelligence needs.

3. Limited Number of Seats

Another limitation is Datorama's restricted number of seats, which poses challenges to fostering sales-marketing alignment and cross-functional collaboration. Marketing intelligence tools should ideally accommodate more seats to facilitate seamless collaboration between departments. However, Datorama's seat limitations hinder the ability of teams to leverage the platform for cross-functional initiatives effectively. Given that growing businesses rely heavily on cross-functional teams, Datorama might not prove to be the best choice for rapidly evolving companies. 

Datorama Pricing

Datorama offers three types of plans for users: Starter, Growth, and Plus.

• Starter plan:  $3000 per month per organization (billed annually)
• Growth plan: $10,000 per month per organization (billed annually)
• Plus plan: Available on request

To summarize, Datorama is a great tool that helps marketers with three avenues- data unification, visualization, and data analysis. It is designed to serve various industries and has numerous integrations through APIs and built-in customizations for different needs. This is a great solution for enterprises that have tech-support teams, can invest time to tackle steep learning curves and pay a significantly higher price for the freedom of choice and robust features that Datorama provides. However, for solopreneurs and growing businesses, there are alternative solutions that can get the job done for a significantly lower cost.   

B2B SaaS buying journeys are complex. Between independent research, ad campaigns, web sessions, events, sales outreach, social media, customer reviews, product demos, and more — buying journeys involve countless non-linear touchpoints across multiple channels and stakeholders.

While this may seem daunting at first, each of these touchpoints reflect unique buying intentions that may be leveraged to improve the customer experience and drive bottom of the funnel conversions. In some cases, the buying intent is obvious: if a customer submits their email ID to download an eBook, we know who they are and what they’re looking for. This challenge is further exacerbated by the fact that buyers are increasingly cautious about submitting their true email addresses. Professionals are educated to keep data safe and share contact details only if they’re absolutely sure of the need. Buying intent is generally the sum of incremental steps taken along the buying journey before reaching this inflection point. Recognizing these hidden intent signals — and the buyers behind those signals — is easier said than done…well, until now. 

This article explores interactive product demos as a high-intent touchpoint in B2B SaaS buying journeys. Specifically, we highlight how tools such as Factors.ai may be used in tandem with Demoboost to identify otherwise hidden intent from a ubiquitous element in SaaS today: the product demo.

Interactive Product Demos: Scale, Distribute & Analyze

Product demos have been at the cornerstone of SaaS buying journeys forever. They’re an effective way to showcase your software’s features, functionalities, and benefits all while addressing key use-cases and pain-points. Although live product demos continue to take place over real conversations with sales reps, businesses are increasingly adopting product demo softwares to support pre-sales efforts. This may be a result of B2C buying behaviors bleeding into B2B deals: Rather than submitting a demo form, finding a convenient time, and then speaking with sales reps, buyers today expect instant access to the info they need. Only after they educate themselves do they engage directly with sales reps. Businesses have adapted accordingly.

Product demo softwares help businesses build automated interactive product demos that are available to prospects on-demand. Interactive product demos are async product walkthroughs that users can access and navigate themselves without the involvement of sales reps or support personnel. Automated product demos are typically designed to be user-friendly, allowing potential customers to explore the product at their own pace. Among several other benefits, automated demos are scalable, easy to distribute, and provide helpful usage analytics. They may be embedded on websites, outbound emails, brand awareness campaigns, and more, so interested buyers have on-demand access.

So far so good…but you may be asking yourself: “but wait, who’s actually engaging with these demos?”

This would be a valid question. In the case of live demos, we know exactly who we’re showcasing our product to — they’re right there in front of us! But unless we gate an automated product demo (more on this later), how can we identify and analyze companies engaging with this touchpoint? In other words, what’s the full extent of intent signals from interactive product demos and how can we capture them?

Intent signals from product demos include information about who is engaging with the demos and what they're interested in. This helps marketers and salespeople know which companies are interested in their products and what parts of the demo they find most engaging.

Until recently, capturing this intent was a challenge. Intelligence and analytics tools could do their job on most web pages, but their functionality was limited within interactive product demos. 

Demoboost solves for this by uniquely supporting third-party tags (SDKs) inside its interactive demos. The following sections highlights how this ability may be leveraged by tools such as Factors.ai to:

• Identify and enrich anonymous companies engaging with interactive product demos
• Capture valuable intent signals beyond page views and clicks from demo engagement 
• Qualify, score, segment, and activate accounts based on demo engagement

But first, let’s establish why capturing intent signals from interactive product demos is so important. 

The Importance Of Intent Signals From Product Demo

There’s no doubt that the interactive product demo is a crucial touchpoint along the buying journey. Gartner’s analysis of buyer interactions finds that a supplier’s interactive tool (35%) is only behind the website (37%) and social media (36%) in terms of buyer engagement. Given that interactive product demos typically sit within the website, we can confidently claim its significance in the purchase process.

But even beyond the data, B2B marketers and sales folk would certainly be interested to capture intent signals from companies engaging with high-intent touch points such as pricing pages, paid landing pages, and in this case, interactive product demos. These intent signals help identify sales-ready accounts, determine winning touchpoints, and prove go-to-market’s wider influence and ROI. 

In a way, intent from product demos acts as a wonderful replacement for lead gen forms. Of course, marketing teams would love to place a lead gen form within the product demo as the resulting sign-ups wouldn’t need external intent data — we'd already know a lot about them via the form! However, given that buyers are increasingly growing to appreciate friction-free buying flows, capturing intent from ungated assets such as interactive product demos ensures the best of both worlds. This is where the Demoboost x Factors.ai integration comes in.

Demoboost + Factors.ai: Intent Signals From Product Demos

How it works

Factors.ai is an account intelligence and analytics software that uses industry-leading IP-lookup technology to identify, qualify, and activate anonymous companies engaging with websites and more. Tools like Factors work by placing a small piece of code (Javascript SDK) on the header of a website to de-anonymize website traffic, track account activity, and tie the dots between channels, website & CRM. Demoboost is a product demo software that offers all-in-one demo automation and demo-building functionality to reduce CAC, shorten sales cycles and increase win rates. Factors.ai now integrated with Demoboost to deliver the following use-cases:

As previously mentioned, such analytics tools have had the ability to track who clicked or landed on a product demo page. From there, however, users wouldn’t have visibility into what visitors are exactly engaging with inside the product demo. To solve for this, Demoboost’s open platform allows users to embed third-party javascripts within the product tour to capture account-level intent & engagement. This means that users can identify companies engaging with their demos as well as capture the extent of engagement — especially upon integrating Microsoft Clarity or Hotjar as well — at an account level. 

Demand capture to demand generation: The implications of this are significant. Typically, interactive demos have served the functions of evaluating product pre-sign ups and improving lead quality. Now, in addition to this, interactive demos may also be used to identify and retarget high-intent accounts based on demo engagement.

Use-cases

Integrating Factors.ai and Demoboost results in a wide range of use-cases. Here are a few of them:

1. Identify & enrich engaged accounts

A fundamental use-case of integrating Demoboost with Factors is the ability to identify and enrich otherwise anonymous companies engaging with your interactive product demos. Along with analyzing demo engagement with Demoboost, you’ll also know the accounts behind the engagement via Factors. 

2. Score & prioritize accounts

Given that several companies are likely engaging with your product demos, you may use demo usage insights from Demoboost in tandem with cross-channel engagement scoring across LinkedIn, G2, web sessions, and sales touchpoints to holistically score, qualify and prioritize high-intent accounts.

3. Relevant ABM campaigns

Once you identify and qualify high-intent accounts engaging with your product demos, you may then leverage this list of accounts for relevant account-based marketing. Rather than casting a wide net, you may initiate personalized ABM campaigns based on companies interacting with your product demos, website, LinkedIn ads, G2 review, sales touchpoints, etc to drive more conversions from existing efforts.

4. Personalized email & LinkedIn campaigns

Outreach and targeting is the next logical step after building your target accounts list. But rather than targeting every account with the same messaging — or tediously, manually orchestrating personalized campaigns, you may instead automate tailor-made campaigns based on engagement captured from Demoboost and other touchpoints. Configure your automation rules within Factors and every time an ICP company, say, completes more than half the interactive product demo, they’ll be pushed into a bottom of the funnel LinkedIn retargeting campaign or mail sequence to seal the deal. 

B2B buyer journeys involve a wide range of fragmented touchpoints across several channels. Factors.ai’s Demoboost integration empowers GTM teams to capture another source of intent data from interactive product demos to complement Factors.ai’s larger range of first-party intent signals across website, LinkedIn, G2 and more. As it stands, interactive demos are a mainstay amongst SaaS websites — and with this integration, marketers & sales folks have an opportunity to make the most of the data generated via these valuable touchpoints.   

LinkedIn, the world's leading professional networking platform, serves as a digital hub where professionals connect, engage, and share insights within their respective industries. At the heart of this ecosystem lies the concept of impressions — an essential metric that quantifies the visibility and impact of your presence on the platform.

‍💡Did you know? LinkedIn pages that are active, receive 5x the page views.

What does an impression mean on LinkedIn?

Impressions on LinkedIn refer to the number of times a post has been viewed by other users. Essentially, it quantifies the visibility of an entity’s presence on the platform. Each time someone sees your profile, encounters a post you've shared, or comes across an update you've made, it contributes to your impression count.

To put it simply, imagine you're attending a professional conference. As you mingle with other attendees, exchange business cards, and engage in conversations, you're leaving an impression on those you interact with. Similarly, on LinkedIn, each time someone encounters your content or profile, it's akin to leaving a digital footprint—a mark that signifies your presence and relevance within the professional community.

Source

The Significance of LinkedIn Impressions

Now that we understand what impressions entail, let's explore why they matter. Impressions serve as a key metric for gauging the reach and impact of your activities on LinkedIn. They offer valuable insights into how effectively your content resonates with your target audience and how visible your profile is within the platform's ecosystem.

Consider this scenario: you're a marketing professional aiming to promote your expertise in digital advertising. Through strategic content creation and engagement on LinkedIn, you share insightful posts, participate in relevant discussions, and optimize your profile for maximum visibility. As a result, your impression count steadily increases, indicating that more individuals are viewing your content and becoming aware of your expertise in the field.

Decoding LinkedIn Impressions: Types and Measurement

Impressions on LinkedIn can be categorized into three types: organic, paid and viral impressions. Organic impressions occur naturally, without any monetary investment, when your content appears in the feeds of other users based on factors such as relevance, engagement, and connections. On the other hand, paid impressions result from sponsored content campaigns where you allocate budget to promote your posts to a broader audience.

Organic Impressions

Organic impressions on LinkedIn refer to the number of times your content is displayed naturally in the feeds of other users, without any paid promotion or advertising. These impressions occur based on factors such as relevance, engagement, and connections, and they reflect genuine interest from your audience.

Benefits of Organic Impressions:

Authenticity and Trustworthiness

Organic impressions are perceived as more authentic and trustworthy by LinkedIn users. Since they occur naturally without any paid promotion, they reflect genuine interest from your audience, which can enhance your credibility and reputation on the platform.

Cost-Effectiveness

Unlike paid impressions, which require monetary investment, organic impressions are obtained without spending advertising dollars. This makes them a cost-effective way to increase visibility and engagement on LinkedIn, especially for individuals and businesses operating on limited budgets.

💡Did you know? 77% marketers agree that they achieve the best organic results from LinkedIn.

Long-Term Sustainability: 

Building organic reach through consistent content creation and engagement fosters long-term sustainability on LinkedIn. By cultivating genuine relationships with your audience and providing value through your content, you can create a loyal following that continues to engage with your posts over time.

Community Building:
Organic impressions facilitate the organic growth of your professional network and community on LinkedIn. By connecting with like-minded individuals, participating in group discussions, and sharing valuable insights, you can foster meaningful relationships and establish yourself as a thought leader within your industry.

Limitations with Organic Impressions:

Limited Reach 

One of the primary drawbacks of organic impressions is their limited reach compared to paid impressions. Since organic content relies on the platform's algorithms to determine visibility, it may not reach as wide an audience as paid content, especially if your network is relatively small or your content lacks virality.

Time-Intensive

Building organic reach on LinkedIn requires time, effort, and consistency. You need to invest significant resources into content creation, engagement, and relationship building to generate meaningful results. For individuals and businesses seeking quick visibility or immediate results, this time-intensive nature of organic growth can be a disadvantage.

Algorithm Dependency

Organic impressions are subject to the whims of LinkedIn's algorithm, which determines the visibility of your content based on various factors such as relevance, engagement, and recency. Changes to the algorithm or fluctuations in user behavior can impact the reach and effectiveness of your organic content, leading to unpredictability in your results.

Limited Targeting Options 

Unlike paid impressions, which offer sophisticated targeting options to reach specific demographics, organic impressions provide limited control over audience segmentation. While you can optimize your content for relevance and engagement, you may not always reach your desired audience segments organically.

Paid Impressions

Paid impressions on LinkedIn refer to the number of times your content is displayed as a result of paid advertising campaigns or sponsored content promotions. Unlike organic impressions, which occur naturally without monetary investment, paid impressions are achieved through allocating advertising budget to promote your posts, updates, or profile to a targeted audience.

Benefits of Paid Impressions

Expanded Reach

Paid impressions offer the advantage of reaching a broader audience beyond your organic network. By investing in sponsored content campaigns, you can target specific demographics, industries, job titles, and interests, thereby increasing the visibility and exposure of your content to potential leads and prospects.

Immediate Visibility 

Unlike organic impressions, which rely on gradual growth and algorithmic factors, paid impressions offer immediate visibility and results. By allocating a budget to promote your content, you can ensure that it appears prominently in the feeds of your target audience, generating instant visibility and engagement.

Enhanced Targeting Options 

Paid impressions provide advanced targeting options that allow you to tailor your content to specific audience segments. Whether you're targeting decision-makers in a particular industry or professionals with specific job titles, paid advertising offers precise control over who sees your content, maximizing its relevance and effectiveness.

Measurable ROI

Paid impressions provide robust analytics and tracking tools that enable you to measure the return on investment (ROI) of your advertising campaigns accurately. From click-through rates and engagement metrics to conversion tracking and lead generation, paid advertising offers transparent insights into the performance and effectiveness of your content.

Limitations of Paid Impressions:

Cost 

As you may have guessed, the primary disadvantage of paid impressions is the associated cost. Running sponsored content campaigns requires a financial investment, which may be prohibitive for individuals or businesses operating on limited budgets. Additionally, the cost of paid advertising can escalate quickly, especially for competitive industries or target demographics.

Ad Fatigue 

Paid impressions run the risk of audience fatigue and ad saturation, especially if your content appears overly promotional or lacks relevance to the target audience. To avoid ad fatigue, advertisers need to constantly refresh their creative assets, optimize targeting parameters, and monitor campaign performance to maintain audience engagement and interest.

Ad Blocking

With the rise of ad-blocking software and privacy concerns among internet users, paid impressions face the challenge of reaching audiences who actively block or ignore advertising content. Advertisers need to employ strategies such as native advertising, influencer partnerships, and engaging content formats to overcome ad blocking and capture audience attention effectively.

Competition and Saturation 

Paid impressions operate within a competitive space where advertisers vie for the attention of the same target audience. As a result, achieving standout visibility and engagement can be challenging, especially in saturated markets or highly competitive industries. Advertisers need to differentiate their content, offer compelling value propositions, and continually optimize their campaigns to remain competitive and effective.

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Viral Impressions

Viral impressions on LinkedIn refer to the number of times your content is displayed as a result of being shared by others within the platform. Essentially, when your post gains traction and is shared beyond your immediate network, it reaches a wider audience, contributing to viral impressions.

Benefits of Viral Impressions

Increased Visibility
Viral impressions amplify the reach of your content, exposing it to a larger audience than your organic network. This heightened visibility can lead to greater brand awareness and recognition among LinkedIn users.

Enhanced Engagement
When your post resonates with a broader audience, it's more likely to garner likes, comments, and shares, fostering community engagement and relationship-building. Viral content tends to spark conversations and interactions among users, leading to higher engagement rates.

Extended Reach
Viral impressions enable your content to transcend the boundaries of your immediate network, reaching users who may not have discovered your profile or posts otherwise. This expanded reach creates opportunities to connect with new leads, prospects, and industry influencers.

Limitations of Viral Impressions:

Limited Control 

While viral content can significantly boost your visibility, it also entails relinquishing control over how your content is perceived and shared. Once a post goes viral, it may attract attention from a diverse range of users, including those who may misinterpret or misrepresent your message.

Risk of Backlash 

Viral content is susceptible to scrutiny and criticism, especially when it touches upon controversial topics or sensitive issues. In some cases, a post that goes viral may attract negative feedback or backlash from certain segments of the audience, potentially damaging your reputation or brand image.

Short-Term Impact 

While viral content can generate a surge in impressions and engagement, its effects may be short-lived. Once the initial hype subsides, the visibility and momentum of the post may decline rapidly, leading to a temporary spike in metrics followed by a return to baseline levels.

Measuring Impressions on LinkedIn 

Measuring impressions on LinkedIn is relatively straightforward, thanks to the platform's built-in analytics tools. Here’s how you can do it:

LinkedIn Analytics 

LinkedIn provides built-in analytics tools that allow you to track the performance of your posts, updates, and profile views. By accessing your LinkedIn dashboard, you can view metrics such as the number of impressions each post receives, as well as the overall reach and engagement of your content.

Source

Third-Party Analytics Tools: 

In addition to LinkedIn's native analytics, you can also use third-party analytics tools (like Factors.ai) to gain deeper insights into your impression metrics. Such tools offer advanced features such as trend analysis, audience segmentation, and competitive benchmarking, allowing you to optimize your content strategy for maximum impact.

Let’s take an example:

Let's say you're a marketing professional running a LinkedIn campaign to promote your latest product launch. You create a series of sponsored posts and share them with your target audience. Using LinkedIn Analytics, you track the impressions generated by each post over a one-month period.

After analyzing the data, you discover that one particular post received significantly higher impressions compared to the others. Upon further investigation, you realize that this post included compelling visuals and targeted relevant hashtags, leading to increased visibility and engagement among your audience.

With this insight, you adjust your content strategy to prioritize visual content and optimize your use of hashtags, resulting in higher impression rates and improved campaign performance.

Strategies for Maximizing LinkedIn Impressions

Now that we've established the importance of impressions on LinkedIn, let's delve into actionable strategies for maximizing your impact on the platform:

Craft Compelling Content 

Focus on creating high-quality, relevant content that addresses the interests and needs of your target audience. Whether it's sharing industry insights, offering actionable tips, or sharing personal anecdotes, compelling content is key to capturing audience attention and driving engagement.

Post Consistently

Maintaining an active presence on the platform increases the likelihood of your posts being seen by your connections and followers. Posting regularly also signals to the LinkedIn algorithm that you are an engaged user, potentially leading to higher placement in feed rankings and increased exposure to a broader audience. By staying active and consistent with your posting schedule, you can enhance your visibility, build credibility, and attract more engagement on LinkedIn.

💡Did you know? Posting on LinkedIn on a weekly basis brings in twice the engagement. 

Optimize Visuals 

Incorporate visually appealing elements such as images, videos, and infographics into your posts to enhance their appeal and encourage interaction. Visual content tends to attract more attention and elicit higher levels of engagement from LinkedIn users.

💡 Did you know? Posts with images tend to garner twice as much engagement compared to those without visuals. Moreover, larger images boast a 38% higher click-through rate, making them more effective in capturing audience attention and driving interaction.

Engage Authentically 

Cultivate genuine interactions with your connections by liking, commenting, and sharing their content. Authentic engagement not only fosters meaningful relationships but also increases the likelihood of your content being reciprocated and shared within your network.

Utilize Hashtags

Leverage relevant hashtags to increase the discoverability of your content and expand its reach beyond your immediate network. By including industry-specific hashtags and trending topics in your posts, you can connect with a wider audience and enhance your visibility on LinkedIn.

Join Groups and Communities 

Participate in LinkedIn groups and communities relevant to your industry or interests to connect with like-minded professionals and expand your network. Engaging in group discussions, sharing valuable insights, and offering support can help increase your visibility and establish your credibility within the community.

Consider Paid Promotion

Explore LinkedIn's advertising platform to amplify your reach and target specific demographics with sponsored content campaigns. While organic reach is valuable, paid promotion can provide an additional boost to your visibility and help you reach a broader audience.

Understanding the nuances of impressions on LinkedIn is essential for maximizing your presence and impact on the platform. Whether through organic or paid impressions, the goal remains the same: to increase visibility, engagement, and ultimately achieve your professional objectives. By leveraging the strengths of each approach and adopting a strategic approach to content creation, engagement, and advertising, you can effectively enhance your reach, build meaningful relationships, and establish yourself as a credible authority within your niche. 

That said, one point to note is that success on LinkedIn is not just about the quantity of impressions, but the quality of interactions and relationships fostered along the way. 

As you continue to refine your approach and adapt to the ever-evolving social media algorithm, we hope this article helps you in your journey of growth on LinkedIn.

May the LinkedIn impressions be with you!

Related Reads:

1. https://www.factors.ai/blog/linkedin-intent-data-for-b2b-sales-strategy 
2. https://www.factors.ai/blog/linkedin-ads-for-early-stage-teams-framework-priorities 

Cognism is a popular B2B sales intelligence platform that helps users discover and engage with their ideal prospects with premium company and contact information. But with numerous alternatives available to users, how does Cognism fare in terms of its data quality, pricing, and features?

In this blog, we’ll explore Cognism, Cognism pricing, and Cognism’s alternatives in detail

What is Cognism?

Cognism is a sales intelligence platform that provides advanced data enrichment, lead generation, and prospecting features to help businesses improve GTM operations. Here’s how Cognism impacts each of these verticals: 

Cognism enables direct dialing of verified contacts, streamlines the process of prospecting for new leads, and provides access to company-specific data, enhancing lead generation and qualification efforts.

For marketing teams, leveraging the platform facilitates the targeting of new accounts with contextual data points that make it easy to build account lists. It also equips marketing teams with intent data for a more targeted approach.

Furthermore, Cognism serves as a valuable tool for GTM leaders in devising strategic initiatives to drive company growth. It aids in identifying buyer intent, matching and populating missing lead values in your database, and setting a more accurate lead scoring system. 

Here are all of Cognism’s product offerings that help achieve these results: 

Prospector: Cognism combines contextual data with intent data helping you truly understand your buyer to get your relevant message right in front of buyers.

Enhance: Cognism prevents data decay and helps append your database with updated company and contact information so you don’t lose out on revenue.

Intent Data: Cognism Intent Data helps you identify accounts actively searching for your product or service, making the sales cycle shorter and helping reduce CAC. 

Cognism’s product offerings and features serve different purposes for different operations, but what about its impact on your growth and revenue?

Why Choose Cognism?

Cognism has great benefits for businesses looking to streamline their sales prospecting and create laser-focus outreach campaigns that shorten the sales cycle and drive revenue and growth:

1. Compliance and Security

Security forms the core of Cognism's service provision. The platform maintains rigorous compliance with GDPR, SOC2, and ISO27001 standards, guaranteeing the protection and responsible handling of your business data in line with globally recognized benchmarks. Cognism's dedication to safeguarding Personally Identifiable Information (PII) underscores its commitment to ensuring robust security measures.

2. Integrations

Cognism's integration library may not be as extensive as some competitors, but it still offers a solid selection of compatible apps. This is understandable considering Cognism's smaller user base. Despite its smaller customer pool, Cognism provides integration options with popular platforms such as HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Microsoft Dynamics, Outreach, Zapier, Wufoo, Salesloft, Vidyard, G Suite, Yahoo, Office365, Gmail, Insightly, Slack, Zoho CRM, Copper, and Close.

3. Chrome Extension 

The Cognism browser extension gives you quick access to company employees and your prospects' coworkers. It not only enhances LinkedIn profiles and Sales Nav prospect lists with actionable contact data but allows you to access company website information on target firms and their employees. 

The Cognism Chrome extension integrates seamlessly with Outreach and Salesforce to enrich records within your CRM or Sales Engagement tool- making it easier for sales teams to perform tasks without switching back and forth between multiple tabs or windows.

Cognism Pricing

Although Cognism refrains from providing detailed pricing information on its website, the factors influencing pricing can aid prospective clients in understanding the associated costs. Here are the three factors that help determine the pricing for Cognism’s clientele:

1. Core Platform Fee

Central to Cognism's pricing model is a fixed platform fee, granting users access to its web application and Chrome extension. Moreover, Cognism seamlessly integrates with popular sales tools like Salesforce and HubSpot. This fee ensures users can harness the platform's robust functionalities and integrations to optimize their sales and marketing endeavors.

2. Unrestricted Data Access

Cognism's platform offers an extensive repository of data to assist businesses in identifying and engaging potential leads. Under the pricing structure, users benefit from unrestricted access to this data, including the ability to export information for utilization in other applications or tools. This access empowers users to fully leverage the platform's potent data capabilities for lead identification and targeted marketing initiatives.

3. Adaptable Workflows

One of the main reasons why Cognism's pricing structure is tailor-made is because of its custom workflows. This feature enables users to customize the platform to suit their specific requirements, crafting workflows that enhance lead qualification and streamline the sales process, and are charged accordingly.

These factors determine the final cost in their pay-as-you-go subscription model. However, the ambiguity may be a cause of concern for businesses of all sizes. Apart from this, Cognism does not provide a free trial. Uncertainty with Cognism pricing? Here are a few alternatives for your consideration:

Cognism Alternatives 

Here are some of the most popular Cognism alternatives for B2B businesses: 

1. ZoomInfo 

ZoomInfo offers a robust platform beyond traditional B2B contact directories, catering specifically to sales, marketing, and recruitment professionals. In addition to its expansive database of detailed profiles, ZoomInfo provides unique features such as intent signals, which indicate companies actively exploring specific topics. Another one of its notable features is Scoops, offering valuable insights into potential business opportunities. For those seeking to optimize their outreach strategies, ZoomInfo is a standout choice.

Why pick Zoominfo over Cognism: While Zoominfo and Cognism pricing arent transparent and can prove to be costly for smaller teams, features like Scoop and advanced analytics are bonus features that make Zoominfo a better choice for teams looking for added capabilities in their sales intelligence software. 

2. Clearbit 

Clearbit stands out by seamlessly integrating data into existing workflows rather than focusing solely on data provision. Engineered to seamlessly merge with sales and marketing tools, Clearbit delivers real-time insights about prospects.

 Notably, its Enrichment feature transforms basic email addresses or domains into comprehensive person or company profiles. Moreover, Clearbit's Reveal function assists in identifying anonymous website visitors, effectively converting them into actionable leads.

Why pick Clearbit over Cognism: Cognism has an extensive and unparalleled database for the European market, but it cannot compete with the accuracy of Clearbit’s global database. For companies that are targeting US-based clients, Clearbit is the better choice between the two.

3. Lusha

Lusha, a Sales Intelligence Software, empowers business professionals in building trustworthy connections with leads, contacts, and candidates. With streamlined tools, it facilitates the enrichment and verification of business profiles, aiding sales, recruitment, and marketing efforts. 

Lusha simplifies the process by retrieving emails and phone numbers with just one click, enhancing business profiles across social networks, Gmail, and Salesforce. Its clientele spans from small and medium businesses to industry giants like Google, Amazon, Salesforce, and Apple.

Why pick Lusha over Cognism: 

Lusha claims to update its database weekly and provides proactive job change alerts to keep the sales team well-informed. Cognism falls short in this aspect as users report receiving outdated information on the platform.

4. Factors.ai

Factors is an account intelligence tool with robust partnerships with 6sense and Clearbit. This is reflected in our database of over 50M companies & 4.7B IP addresses. Factors delivers industry-leading enrichment rates of up to 64% and helps qualify and target the right accounts based on website engagement, intent signals, and firmographic information. 

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Cognism FAQs

What is Cognism and what is it used for?

Cognism is a B2B sales intelligence software that helps sales and marketing teams to build lead lists and supercharge their outbound efforts. 

How does Cognism collect data?

Cognism has created its database for email generation apart from relying on third-party vendors for data collection.