Deploy Winning Game Plan Data Coaches, Playbooks, Data Plays

Well, it wasn’t a high scoring game, but If you watched the Superbowl, you witnessed an amazing display of defensive talent.  Sure the players were great, but I’m talking about the coaching talent and specifically the play calling. Belichick put on another clinic showing why he’s arguably the GOAT (greatest of all time), and McVay, the brilliant up and comer, made me think of the innovative Bill Walsh of the 49ers.The play calling prowess also reminded me of some of the innovative shot callers at our clients who we have the honor of collaborating with every day.  Just like in football where winning is the end result of well-executed plays, driving demand, and closing B2B deals requires a consistent, high-quality execution of plays.

Build your playbook with high-quality coaches and data.

Our clients quarterbacking marketing and sales teams are working from playbooks just like the pros.  A lot of research, competitive intel, analytics, and data goes into those playbooks. Creating the best matchups for a key competitive advantage means acting on the most current and accurate data.  Each target account, just like an opposing player, needs to be studied. The high-quality, actionable data in these scouting reports come in many forms and from many sources. Compiling that data is time-consuming.  It needs to be scrubbed for accuracy, validated and efficiently processed into plays that succeed. NFL players rely on scouts and research teams to assemble the data they use. Likewise, savvy revenue drivers scale growth by relying on a team of researchers to compile actionable data instead of tasking their sales teams.  They are also keenly aware that acting on old, incomplete or inaccurate data leads to poor execution. In other words – game over.The game plans of innovative marketers and sales leaders aren’t pulled together with cookie cutter formulas or with generic data sources.   They collaborate with data coaches possessing deep expertise in verticals, and specific strategies – just like quarterbacks work with quarterback coaches and special team players work with special team coaches.    The data coaches share and tailor the plays they’ve seen work well and know what is needed to consistently execute them.

Design your own data plays.

In the fast-paced arena of B2B sales and marketing, designing bespoke data plays has emerged as a strategic imperative for organizations aiming to enhance their engagement strategies and maximize conversion opportunities. These data plays are essentially pre-defined actions or sequences of actions, triggered by specific signals or events, designed to provide sales and marketing teams with the most relevant and actionable data when they need it the most. By categorizing target accounts into tiers—first string, second string, and third string—companies can tailor these plays to different levels of priority and potential value, ensuring that resources are allocated efficiently and effectively.

At the heart of these data-driven strategies are actionable triggers, meticulously crafted by our clients and executed by a dedicated team of LeadGenius researchers. These triggers are designed to swiftly pivot the balance of engagement in favor of our clients, allowing them to capitalize on moments of opportunity with precision and agility. They can be set off individually as specific tasks for direct action or automated across the organization in a rules-based system, responding to various scenarios such as sales stage progression, the detection of stalled engagements, external intent signals, and a plethora of other relevant events.

Here are a few examples of the signals and events that can activate these data plays:

• Decision Maker Identification: Upon recognition that an existing contact is not the correct decision maker, this trigger activates a search for the appropriate contact within the target organization.
• New Contact Identification: This play involves identifying individuals who have departed their roles and pinpointing their replacements within the same organization, ensuring continuity in communication and relationship-building efforts.
• Cross-sell Opportunities: Targets are identified one hierarchical level up or in parallel divisions within the organization, opening doors for upsell and cross-sell initiatives by finding similar profiles that could benefit from additional offerings.
• Contacts with Intent: This trigger focuses on identifying contacts within companies that have shown a heightened interest in your services, whether through spending time on your website or exhibiting other intent signals.
• Keyword Search: Tailored searches based on specific keywords related to job functions, relevant technologies, or expertise areas, aiming to find contacts whose roles align closely with the solution being offered.
• Buying Center Coverage: Aims to comprehensively map out the decision-making unit within a target account by identifying both decision makers and key influencers, facilitating a more strategic approach to engagement.
• Data Enrichment: Addresses gaps in the existing data by updating or filling in missing information on contacts or companies, such as direct phone numbers or social media profiles, enhancing the richness and utility of the data at hand.
• Target Company Identification: Focuses on identifying potential target companies based on custom-defined attributes or their affiliations with competitors, broadening the pool of prospects.
• Look-alike Companies: Seeks out companies that share similarities with your existing customer base, leveraging known success patterns to identify new prospects.
• Actionable Signals: Triggers actions based on the detection of newsworthy updates or intent signals from companies, indicating a potential readiness or opportunity for engagement.

By integrating these customizable data plays into their operational strategies, organizations can ensure that their sales and marketing efforts are not only responsive but also proactively aligned with the dynamic landscape of B2B engagements. This approach not only streamlines the process of identifying and engaging with prospects but also significantly enhances the effectiveness of these efforts, driving better outcomes and fostering deeper, more meaningful connections with potential clients.

Keep it simple and add more plays over time.

Start by selecting simple plays that are consistently executed.  Over time you can augment with additional plays. As in football, your performance will not be judged by the size and complexity of your playbook.  Instead, it will be measured by how well you move the sale down the funnel. Good play-calling is about making observations, gathering information, assessing performance, and using all the coaching and data available to you to create a competitive advantage.Marketing and sales is a contact sport.  The contact needs to be timely, relevant, and impactful.   However that looks in your playbook, the plays only work with accurate data.  Executing a play with the wrong data can result in much more than a penalty flag and loss of yardage.  To avoid getting benched, seek out great coaching, a supporting team that huddles with you often and is committed to helping you consistently put “W”s in the win column for all your campaigns.