According to a Salesloft blog post,the companies plan tocreate the first AI-Powered revenue orchestration platform that serves the entire buyer journey. Through the new combined solution, the companies intend to help sellers engage buyers earlier and more accurately throughout their buying journey with tailored messages for a personalized buying experience.

“This acquisition will fundamentally change how B2B buyers and sellers engage, but also how sales and marketing teams come together to drive pipeline efficiency and revenue outcomes,” said David Obrand, CEO of Salesloft, in a statement. “We are both focused on continued innovation, and together, our customers will experience improved consistency and repeatability throughout the entire buying journey all while allowing them to focus on what only they can do — guiding buyers, forming relationships and establishing trust.”

The post Salesloft Acquires Drift To Expand AI-Powered Revenue Orchestration Platform appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

A Resurging Marketing Channel

Direct mail, often considered a traditional marketing tactic, has experienced a resurgence in recent years. According to RR Donnelley’sDonnelley’s (RRD) Modern Marketers Report, 42% of consumers expressed an increased interest in receiving direct mail compared to the previous year. Among younger age groups, particularly those aged 18-26, there was a notable enthusiasm for direct mail, with 61% expressing agreement. This shift in perception highlights the untapped potential of direct mail for hyper-personalized marketing journeys.

One key strategy that sets the Arbor Day Foundation apart is keeping a priority on direct mail in an era dominated by digital clutter. In a landscape where email inboxes are flooded with promotional messages and social media feeds are laden with ads, direct mail stands out as a tangible, trustworthy channel for communication.

A Legitimate & Personal Channel

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of customers report feeling overwhelmed by digital brand communications, specifically via email. At the same time, nearly half (46%) are more cautious about sharing personal data online. With the overpowering nature of email communications and growing concerns with online data privacy, the opportunity for direct mail to emerge as the go-to trustworthy and personal channel is here.

It’s this perception that has helped to support the marketing needs of the Arbor Day Foundation. We’ve heard directly from the foundation’s members that they appreciate legitimate, physical pieces of information they can keep around and revisit. The Modern Marketers Report confirmed this, showing that 47% of customers also noted a preference for direct mail due to their appreciation for having a tangible copy of information for reference, in addition to finding it easier to remember than email and enjoying the excitement of opening physical mail.

By leveraging direct mail’s hyper-personalization capabilities, the Arbor Day Foundation also ensures that its message reaches donors in a way that resonates with them on a personal and local level. Direct mail recipients can see and hear what is going on in their immediate area as it relates to the foundation’s goals and activities.

Cutting Through The Noise

As RRD and the Arbor Day Foundation continue to collaborate, direct mail holds strong as a marketing channel that cuts through the noise. Recognizing its members are bombarded with messaging all day every day, the Arbor Day Foundation knows the importance of meeting them, as well as potential members, where they want to be met. The nonprofit’s success underscores the importance of this tactic in maximizing marketing program return on investment, especially in today’s unpredictable economic climate.

Digital channels often dominate the marketing conversation, but mediums like direct mail that emanate trustworthiness and personalization remain a force to be reckoned with in the marketing landscape. And for nonprofits like the Arbor Day Foundation, it’s a go-to method for reaching their mission-driven goals.

Tim Pietrini is the VP of Strategic Development at RRD, a provider of marketing, packaging, print and supply chain solutions. Prior to his current appointment, Pietrini served as the company’s Marketing Strategist.

The post Reaching Audiences Amidst The Digital Clutter: A Nonprofit’s Direct Mail Journey appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

GeneratorAI leverages Folloze Experience templates to help simplify how marketers build targeted campaign experiences with increased accuracy for buyers at any stage of their journey. It is designed to improve productivity by providing a layer of generative AI to support on-demand, rapid board building for any scenario. Within the Folloze Buyer Experience Platform, GeneratorAI uses simple prompts — based on an organization’s broader business, marketing or product messaging — to provide AI-generated content that aligns with their outcomes and goals.

“We are witnessing a transformational change powered by AI that influences every aspect of the B2B GTM process,” said David Brutman, Chief Product Officer and Co-founder at Folloze, in a statement. “After the initial excitement around generative AI, now businesses are looking to embed these capabilities in a way that drives clear business value. We are excited to add generative AI capabilities with the release of Folloze GeneratorAI to drive higher performance and quality in customer engagement. This together with our content recommendation capabilities and content classification provide marketers with powerful insights and the ability to create smart, agile and relevant experiences at scale.”

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Even so, as the seller, it’s crucial to become the driving force that unites these stakeholders, fostering alignment, agreement and action to successfully close the deal. When this is your goal, there’s one key tool you can use to achieve this: A well-crafted business case that provides a shared vision and a common goal. Here’s what you need to know to develop one that helps you gain alignment across even the most diverse buying committees.

Understand Each Stakeholder’s Perspective

Before you begin to develop your plan, take a moment to remember that the people you are ultimately selling to are exactly that: People. Even though there are many of them in each buying committee, they’re each human beings with their own wants, needs and desires within their organization.

In addition to that, it’s important to note that every role within the buying committee has a unique influence on the decision-making process. When you know what that is, you’ll be better positioned to understand what matters to them and how to communicate value to them. For example, the CEO (who might be the executive sponsor) is most likely highly invested in organizational growth and any tactics that can drive it.

One of the best ways to begin gathering what each stakeholder cares about is to identify who the champion of the committee is. They can be found at any level, but they’re often a mid-level manager, department head or practitioner. They’re your champion because there is something for them to gain by implementing your solution, whether that’s recognition, a promotion, a raise, a resume builder or something else.

Since they’re a strong advocate for your solution, they can help you navigate the ins and outs of the rest of the committee. If you know who the champion is, and more about their motivations, you can share how your solution will align with their goals and help them achieve them.

Engage The Executive Sponsor

The executive sponsor is the key decision maker of a buying group and provides the final blessing for the solution. Executive sponsorship is typically the CEO, CFO and or the board. These folks (except for the CFO) are intrigued by the art of the possible and tapping into growth levers. As with any of the members of the buying committee, you’ll have a much better chance of gaining alignment if you take the time to discover the executive’s personal and business drivers, and then tailor the business case accordingly.

If you’re not sure how to do this, start with the champion and/or other buying group members who you know. Oftentimes, they will be able to share insights about the executive team’s priorities and growth levers with you. Just remember that this is an important person to get to know. Without executive sponsorship, the decision-making process will often lack support, guidance and, ultimately, approval.

One of the keys to engaging with executive sponsors is to deploy your own executive team. It’s lonely at the top and executives seek counsel from their peers in other organizations. Identifying key executives on your prospective account’s team and aligning them with a similar exec from your company early and often will help you overcome major hurdles later in a deal. Use LinkedIn to find direct or common connections to help usher your executive into a meeting with your executive sponsor. Making this play early in a deal when you are not trying to close is critical. It’s typically too late to deploy this move at closing time because there is no trust built.

Overcoming Blockers

In every buying committee, there’s usually a blocker, too. This person tends to be a stakeholder in either procurement, legal or security, concerned with rules, regulations, budgets and details. Since their primary responsibility is to assess potential threats and safeguard the business, they often pose challenges and create barriers during the sales cycle.

While the business case you’re developing may not directly impact these stakeholders, it can still serve as a valuable tool during negotiations. A validated business case, supported by the executive sponsor, decision maker and champion, can help leverage their influence in negotiations and align their interests with the solution.

Final Thoughts

Successfully gaining alignment across a diverse buying committee is crucial for selling high-value deals. By understanding each stakeholder’s perspective, leveraging a champion, engaging the executive sponsor and addressing potential blockers, a well-crafted business case can be the driving force that unites the committee toward a common objective.

The business case should highlight how the solution meets the needs of each stakeholder and the broader business goals. As negotiations progress, the business case becomes a valuable resource for aligning with groups like procurement, legal, IT and security. By effectively gaining alignment, sellers increase the likelihood of closing deals and fostering successful partnerships.

Josh Wagner is Co-founder and Partner of In Revenue Capital, a venture capital firm.

The post How To Gain Alignment Across A Diverse Buying Committee appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Additionally, customers can now access first-party behavioral analytics through a dashboard that allows sales teams to focus their resources on the best opportunities. Specific capabilities available through the integration include:

• Embedding a direct link to Folloze content in an Outreach email;
• Personalizing Folloze boards through an automated process;
• Viewing account and contact engagement activity within Outreach; and
• Providing behavioral data through identity matching.

“Folloze and Outreach provide teams with the ability to level-up sales and marketing activities in their own respective ways,” said David Brutman, Co-founder and Chief Product Officer at Folloze, in a statement. “The integration addresses a critical gap as budgets are shrinking and organizations strive to garner better results with current or reduced investments. By bringing these dynamic platforms together, joint customers that lean on their sales channels as a critical driver of engagement and pipeline acceleration will now have a more unified experience that amplifies value and drives greater performance and personalization.”

The post Folloze Integrates With Outreach To Help Power ‘Advanced’ Orchestration appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Folloze AI builds upon the release of Folloze Buyer Experience 3.0 by adding a layer of first-party intelligence and insights to scale personalization and move opportunities through the pipeline faster. Powered by ChatGPT, Folloze AI allows for multiple modes of operation, from fully automated to a curated experience that keeps the human “in the loop.” Specifically, Folloze AI can:

• Automatically tag content;
• Recognize viewing patterns; and
• Make recommendations based on those patterns in real time.

“Since the launch of Folloze Buyer Experience 3.0 last year, we have seen its significant adoption to deliver high-value, on-brand experience across the buyer journey,” said David Brutman, Co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Folloze, in a statement. “This is no surprise since companies are looking to rationalize their stack and find a scalable way to power data driven digital buyer journeys operated by all marketers, not just a few. AI further changes the game by injecting intelligence into those digital touch points. This ensures the best content is served and first-party intent insights are surfaced to drive impact in the revenue cycle creation.”

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It was critical for the marketing team to communicate that Walker & Dunlop was still alive and well. The company had to let clients and prospects know that financing deals were still getting done and that they could count on Walker & Dunlop to be a voice of clarity and confidence in a market that was suddenly facing uncertainty.

The Challenge

Given the large sums of money changing hands, commercial real estate finance is an industry built on trusted relationships. Historically, sales teams across the industry relied on face-to-face client interaction to showcase their expertise, build trust and close deals at conferences, on golf courses, over dinners and wine and maybe even cigars. So, how could the company build virtual relationships — at scale — to instill trust and client engagement when travel and events had come to a complete halt?

Marketing identified several key goals to solve this challenge, such as:

• Continuing to display a confident brand and extending its leadership in core markets;
• Building awareness and fueling expansion for high-growth start-up divisions; and
• Providing marketing and sales support for financing and property sales teams across the country, spanning 250 brokers and bankers.

Walker & Dunlop’s CEO, Willy Walker, saw an opportunity to create a high-visibility weekly webcast that would help establish the company’s reputation as a thought leader in the commercial real estate space. To that end, he tasked the marketing team with “building our brand as big and fast as we can.”

The Solution

After recalling that Walker wanted the webcast released “next week,” Zegal turned to Folloze, a buyer experience platform, to help his team build out a series of customer-facing webcasts featuring Walker and empower Walker & Dunlop’s 200-strong sales force to turn virtual relationships into revenue-generating opportunities.

The plan was to create an integrated, multichannel program with Walker on a virtual center stage, interviewing high-profile guests such as governors, NBA stars, Harvard professors and leading economists. The goal with “Walker Webcast” was to generate buzz for the company’s role in commercial real estate financing, provide fresh perspectives, create inspiration and foster education for all types of personal topics, including how to be a better leader, live a healthier lifestyle and become a better citizen.

The webcast series was launched in less than a week, with Folloze as the content and engagement hub. Walker & Dunlop relied on Folloze Boards, which are blank digital canvases that help marketers build content-rich destinations and campaigns across the entire B2B journey. The Boards are designed to transform customer data, such as firmographic, buying stage and intent, into memorable buying experiences that guide buyers through each stage of their journey.

Zegal said the proof of how easy it is to work with Folloze Boards is that no one on the team even talks about it — “it’s seamless: You create graphics, drag and drop and it’s done.”

Walker & Dunlop also built social media outreach programs around the webcasts, created a large YouTube following and turned the webcast into a podcast.

The Results

The webcast became a weekly engagement touch point with clients, investors, recruits and employees — keeping Walker & Dunlop top of mind.

“The weekly series has become the biggest webcast in our industry, with more than five million views across all channels — and we’ve surpassed more than 100 episodes,” Zegal said. “Folloze makes it easy to manage and showcase a huge amount of content every week.”

Key results of the collaboration with Folloze, the “Walker Webcast” and adjacent materials include:

• The podcast landing in the top 3% of all business podcasts, in terms of downloads;
• 1,500 registrations the first week of “Walker Webcast”;
• More than 5 million webcast views across channels;
• “Winning multiple awards and receiving several accolades,” according to Zegal;
• More than 100 episodes published and counting; and
• 150,000 visitors to Walker & Dunlop’s Folloze Board to date.

“People come to us for our expertise with something that’s pretty complicated, so there’s an element of trust and familiarity involved,” Zegal said. “Engagement is critical with this audience. Folloze helps us project that reputation as a company that our clients want to work with.”

Thanks to data from analytics integrated into the Folloze platform via partner Demandbase, Walker & Dunlop also discovered a high correlation between engagement with existing and net-new customers with the brand program: 69% of existing active accounts and 64% of new accounts participated in the Walker Webcasts.

“Most significantly, $7.5 billion of net-new transaction volume in 2020 came from companies that attended the webcast,” Zegal said. “So, we gained share, and we became No. 1 in our market in that year — while others were struggling, we rose to the top.”

From a CRM perspective, Zegal said the webcasts have proven to be great conversation starters and a powerful re-engagement tool.

“We had one client that watched 40 webcasts,” he said. “People are engaged, and engagement turns virtual relationships into real relationships and real monetary value. It also changes the dynamic with our CEO — when he walks in a room during a sales call, his presence has a halo effect.”

Zegal said he also plans to roll out Folloze to additional account teams across the business to create destination sites with personalized content for key clients.

“One of the reasons we went with Folloze was that we knew that it worked within our ecosystem, within our tech stack,” he explained. “There is a lot of potential to expand what we’re doing with Folloze, help build better relationships and cross-sell into our key accounts.”

The post How Walker & Dunlop Launched A Webcast & Generated 1500 Registrations In 1 Week appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Back-Of-The-Box Details

Folloze’s latest version features several upgrades, including:

• A design suited to any marketer with any level of expertise;
• New branding tools to ensure all experiences meet approved corporate guidelines; and
• AI-powered personalization and recommendations to help marketers personalize and optimize based on buyer behavior.

Who It’s For

This new platform is for enterprise and upper mid-market organizations. Verticals include tech, consulting and services, telecommunications, manufacturing and logistics and financial services.

What It Solves

The Folloze Buyer Experience Platform 3.0 empowers B2B marketers with the tools to build rich digital experiences based on deep behavioral insights in a simple, no-code environment to engage buyers and deliver growth across the modern digital buyer journey.

What Makes It Special

Folloze Buyer Experience Platform 3.0 seeks to enable marketers to create digital destinations to engage and nurture buyers at all stages of the journey. It requires no code and can be integrated with existing tech stacks, aiming to make it fast and easy to create and deliver something powerful and measure it all with data and insights.

Contact

Folloze

(888) 428-6191

The post Folloze Buyer Experience 3.0 Aims To Level The Digital Playing Field appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

The new capabilities of the enhanced platform include:

• An Experience Designer tool to build digital destinations across a variety of interaction types;
• B2B experience templates and a section gallery that complement the Experience Designer and help accelerate campaign creation by leveraging best practices;
• New branding tools to design all experiences on approved corporate branding guidelines;
• A flexible content layout framework to create, optimize and present consumer-driven, content-based experiences;
• AI-powered personalization and recommendations that analyze buyer engagement to help optimize digital experiences;
• Buyer engagement and content-consumption analysis tools that analyze behavioral insights of specific buyers and buying groups; and
• Extensive framework and a software development kit to enable the creation of custom experiences.

“From the inception of the company, our mission has been to change the game in the way that B2B Buyers are empowered through their journey in a digital-first world,” said David Brutman, Chief Product Officer and Co-founder of Folloze, in a statement. “This new release is putting the power in the hands of all marketers to create engaging, buyer-centric experiences — and it’s powered by unique behavioral data insights to deliver a complete journey.”

The post Folloze Launches Next Generation Of Buyer Experience Platform appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Back-Of-The-Box Details

Birdeye Messaging is designed as a real-time engagement tool that creates seamless customer experiences via text messaging, allowing users to engage buyers from any location and in various channels without going to their inboxes. Users can manage buyer experiences and assign incoming messages internally to ensure the right people address questions or concerns in a timely manner.

Features of the platform include:

• The ability to review requests and respond in real-time with chat;
• Text message pulse surveys that engage buyers and nurture leads via referral request forms;
• Voicemail inboxes that notify teams when they missed a buyer’s calls, and allows them to follow-up via text;
• Webchat capabilities that connect leads with the proper teams (CX, sales, marketing, etc.) to build personalized conversations; and
• The ability to manage mass text campaigns with personalized messages for individual contacts.

Who It’s For

The solution is designed for marketers at multi-based businesses looking to engage multiple buyers and prospects in multiple channels simultaneously with real-time messaging.

What Makes It Special

The Birdeye platform allows users to manage their buyer conversations at all levels, managing reviews, running conversational surveys with messaging, resolving tickets, making new appointments and answering voicemails from one location.

Contact

Birdeye
1-800-561-3357

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