Case Studies

SkillSurvey & BAO Lead Qualification Case Study

SkillSurvey partnered with BAO for Lead Qualification services to prioritize leads.

Reed utilized BAO’s Lead Qualification service to get the most value from every marketing channel and maximize the productivity of her sales reps. And because she had worked with BAO in previous roles, she knew this partnership would get her results – quickly.

“Given how tight the market is from a hiring perspective and how long it would take to get things going on our own, it was a classic ‘build vs. buy.’ BAO has the resources, access and experience to take the basics and run with it.”

SkillSurvey helps customers build successful organizations one hire at a time. “Our team creates a lot of content – eBooks, white papers, etc. – and we attend a lot of events. We get a great deal of interaction, but a chunk of it is from ‘grazers,’ people who are just interested in learning about the space. We’re happy to have them consume and share content and visit us at a conference, but we don’t have time to spend cycles on them if they’re not real buyers.”

This is a common and challenging side effect of successful content marketing. Reed knew she needed a way to very quickly isolate real buyers in order to focus on the leads with immediate opportunity – and move the rest into custom nurture cycles that would guide them down the funnel.

Not all leads are created equal. We needed to quickly determine what was worth our focus and what was just noise – and then get in front of the good ones.

Reed says, “We were able to quickly connect with the immediate opportunities, but now we also understand what’s pulling in the people who have a passive interest today so we can build demand for the future. Our team has used this information to develop messaging tracks that will resonate with particular buyers based on their particular circumstances."

"As the relationship with the prospect builds, the more tailored the message is, the better. On a macro level, we’re able to spot trends and commonalities across the full pool of leads – this helps us hone messages and plan future programs and content.”

1. Delivery of Raw Leads:

SkillSurvey delivered 3,800 raw leads to BAO’s Market Research Specialists (MRSs) for qualification.

2. Live Profiling by Phone:

BAO called through the leads to speak with as many prospects as possible to gauge their value to SkillSurvey, working to identify “triggers” that could indicate opportunity.

3. These profiles revealed which organizations:

Had active initiatives, do high-volume hiring, were purchasing HR technology, had identified challenges with talent acquisition

4. Identifying MQLs:

BAO’s team profiled 1,048 of those leads, uncovering key account details and scoring each one.

5. Nurturing:

All lead insights now live in SkillSurvey’s CRM database. Based on the details revealed in the profiles, each MQL was entered into a specific digital track for ongoing nurturing that would speak to their particular challenges.

6. Classifying SQLs:

BAO determined that 74% of the MQLs met the threshold for SQLs. Removing the 26% of MQLs that didn’t meet the eligibility requirements provided an enormous efficiency gain.

7. Accessing Qualified Leads:

Once the SQLs were identified, Reed combined that insight with the power of BAO’s Appointment Setting. Using the profiles, BAO approached each prospect with messages specific to their needs.

“With BAO taking the up-front lead qualification and prospecting, I’m a lot more productive. They’re putting me in front of the decision-makers I need to connect with to get the deal. And I go in knowing the ‘what, why, when and how’ for every prospect. Basically, I get more at-bats and I’m set up to succeed. BAO has absolutely improved the way I’m able to sell and build relationships in my territory.”

“It’s working – our current digital conversion rates are improving and we expect to see steady growth there as we continue to refine and perfect our outreach.'