The Marketo Consultant: MQL Follow-Up Best Practices

When it comes to Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs), ensuring they don't slip through the cracks is paramount. The effort put into acquiring MQLs, from building databases to creating assets and automation, must be followed up effectively to maximize conversion rates. In this article, we'll delve into the best practices that can help you avoid missing out on valuable MQLs and ultimately increase your conversion rates.

MQL Prioritization and Visibility

To boost MQL conversion rates, it is crucial to equip your sales team with the right information. Leveraging the Marketo-Salesforce integration can be a game-changer in this regard. Marketo's Sales Insight (MSI) offers a comprehensive view of warm leads through its list view, known as "Best bets." This feature uses flames and stars to indicate increased lead scores resulting from crucial actions in the lead-scoring process. By creating and setting up a list view with appropriate rules to filter MQLs based on flames, your sales team can prioritize warm leads and allocate their efforts more effectively.

Marketo Email Alerts

Sending email alerts to the sales owner with crucial details about lead behaviors is another highly effective option. Consider highlighting qualified leads in the subject line, such as "Content Downloads" or "Information Seekers." These alerts act as valuable prompts for sales representatives, enabling them to quickly identify and engage with hot prospects. Personalize the email content to include key details about the lead's behavior and their interaction with your marketing materials.

Salesforce Tasks

In addition to the aforementioned tools, creating customizable Salesforce tasks can further streamline the follow-up process. By setting conditions for direct requests and content downloads/information seekers, you can ensure that sales respond accordingly. However, it's important to strike a balance and avoid overwhelming your sales team with excessive tasks and alerts. Carefully assess which tools align best with your sales strategy and customize them accordingly.

Monitoring and Reporting on MQLs

Regularly checking that the response is aligned with your SLA is an invaluable practice to ensure your follow-up efforts are yielding the desired results. Pulling some reports in Salesforce, you can track the activity of your sales team and determine if they are engaging with MQLs appropriately. This monitoring process helps you identify any gaps or areas for improvement in your follow-up process, enabling you to refine and optimize your strategies to improve conversion rates.

Effectively following up on MQLs is crucial for maximizing conversion rates and deriving value from your marketing efforts. By employing tools such as Sales Insight, Email Alerts, and Salesforce Tasks, you can streamline the follow-up process and equip your sales team with the necessary information to prioritize and engage with MQLs effectively. Remember to continually monitor and report on sales activities to identify areas for improvement and enhance your follow-up strategies. With these best practices in place, you will be well-equipped to capitalize on your MQLs and drive business success.