At Outreach, I’ve labored with many shoppers who wrestle with their prospecting technique.
New clients typically search recommendation on partaking prospects throughout a number of channels, what to say, and how typically.
Whatever the dimension of the gross sales org, the challenges stay the identical. And not using a blueprint, protecting prospects engaged and hitting quotas is almost inconceivable.
And not using a blueprint, protecting prospects engaged and hitting quotas is almost inconceivable.
Enter sequences — the inspiration of an important prospecting technique and the engine fueling your playbook.
Sequences simplify engagements with prospects and present clients, guaranteeing your most essential communications don’t fall via the cracks. Sequences are probably the most used function in Outreach, and creating one includes three phases:
Section 1 – Sequence construction
Section 2 – Sequence upkeep
Section 3 – Measuring sequence success
Let’s have a look below the hood.
Sequence construction
Scale is a phrase that’s used incessantly today.
A phrase I typically hear is “development requires scalable processes.”
Creating a correct sequence construction means that you can personalize prospect engagement at scale whereas guaranteeing reps spend time targeted on extremely valued prospects. In the event you construction your sequences appropriately from the start and attain out to the precise prospects, with the precise message, on the proper time, it turns into a breeze.
Easy methods to construct sequences in Outreach
There are 4 key steps to constructing a sequence:
- Establish and outline your personas
- Design your blueprints
- Optimize particular person sequence steps
- Implement governance
Establish and outline your personas
A persona-based sequence strategy will set the inspiration.
When prospecting and connecting with present clients, your messaging and speak observe will differ primarily based on a person’s title and division throughout the account.
For instance, you’ll strategy a VP of gross sales a lot otherwise than a gross sales supervisor, proper? It’s because every function has completely different challenges and issues to unravel. Under is an instance of which sequence strategy to leverage when coping with a particular persona.
Undecided who your purchaser personas are? A superb place to start out is with your advertising and marketing staff. Your advertising and marketing staff has already slotted these personas into cohorts to optimize advertising and marketing efforts. Don’t have a advertising and marketing staff? No worries! Get a bunch of key stakeholders collectively and determine your purchaser personas collectively.
Want extra assist? Signal-up for our Content material 2.0 College course, discover ways to Configure Personas in our assist portal, or examine How Outreach Makes use of Outreach to Promote Outreach.
Design your blueprints
One of the simplest ways to jump-start your sequence creation is to make the most of one of many Outreach blueprints. This allows you to hold your sequences easy and observe a fundamental two-tiered, high-touch/low-touch strategy to outbound prospecting. The picture beneath has some common tips to observe when utilizing these blueprints.
Wish to optimize your sequences additional? Listed below are some professional suggestions from Outreach content material creator, David Plutschak.
- Apart from follow-up and event-based sequences, each sequence needs to be a minimal of 8 touches spanning over three weeks.
- Create sufficient sequences to succeed in all goal personas for personalization at scale. This could possibly be so simple as utilizing the two-tiered strategy outlined above or including in a 3rd tier to succeed in extra personas.
- Outreach follows the 3-tiered strategy beneath:
- Tier 1: management personas – This can be a guide sequence targeted on name steps. Reserve this tier on your highest precedence prospects.
- Tier 2: mid-level personas – This can be a guide sequence with computerized reply steps and calls all through. Reserve this tier on your heavy influencers (these that may affect the choice maker).
- Tier 3: Low-Stage Personas – This can be a 100% automated sequence. Reserve this tier for while you’re asking for a referral, searching for the perfect contact, or you’ll want to achieve perception on firm particulars/challenges.
Searching for extra sequences to create? Study Outreach workflows in our eBook “It’s Not Who You Are, It’s What You Do: From Roles to Workflows,” and browse our Outreach workflows part within the assist portal.
Optimize particular person sequence steps
The following step to think about is the sorts of steps you wish to use in every tier.
Ought to step one be a name or an e-mail? How do you have to observe up? When ought to your reps use a LinkedIn interplay?
Most clients wish to know find out how to finest have interaction with prospects throughout channels. By way of intensive A/B testing, we’ve discovered the perfect strategy is:
- Begin robust with a one-two punch! First, begin your sequences with a number of duties collectively (e.g., have reps name and e-mail on day one). After, slowly taper with steps unfold out over the sequence. This technique will instill urgency in your prospects.
- Alternate your guide touchpoints. This manner, reps can full varied quantities of guide duties, lowering monotony of their day-to-day.
- Use social touchpoints resembling LinkedIn. Finishing LinkedIn view duties was so final 12 months! Moreover, should you’ve included name duties, most reps will view the prospect’s LinkedIn to prep earlier than the decision. As a substitute, have reps eat and work together with content material a prospect has shared. For instance, have them remark within the thread and observe up with a message the subsequent day.
Wish to study extra about writing emails? Join our Content material 2.0 College course.
Need assistance crafting your sequences? Try our Galaxy associate – REGIE.
Wish to incorporate extra multichannel engagement? Be taught extra about which Galaxy Integrations could make this occur.
Implement governance
You’ve outlined your purchaser personas, designed blueprints, and optimized the person steps. The final step, however maybe most important, is implementing correct governance round creating and enhancing content material.
We recommend limiting the flexibility to create and edit content material to some staff members or teams who’ve been educated and vetted. This ensures your content material is top of the range, meets your model tips, and helps your sequence technique.
Take into account: limiting content material creation to a choose group will allow you to match sequences towards each other and create significant benchmarks. This lets you use knowledge to see what’s driving outcomes and iterate primarily based on these findings.
With out controlling content material creation, this job turns into difficult. Bear in mind, it’s all the time simpler to provide permissions than take them away. Over time, you might take into account introducing content material creation to a choose group of reps (e.g., senior reps or a content material committee).
Sequence upkeep
Now that you simply’ve constructed your sequences, it’s time to take care of them.
Sequence upkeep is crucial to protecting your content material updated, related, and efficient. However, similar to common upkeep in your automotive or residence, with out some fine-tuning, you danger breaking down, shedding worth, or getting to date behind it’s onerous to maintain up.
Fortunately, sequence upkeep is straightforward, and with common check-ups, you’ll keep the integrity of your content material and keep on high of any points which will come up.
Easy methods to keep your sequences in Outreach
Your purchaser personas are outlined, blueprints are in place, sequence steps have been optimized, and governance insurance policies are set. Now your sequences are reside and within the palms of your reps — the trusted crew steering you in the direction of gross sales glory! Right here’s what to do to make sure your technique stays efficient over time.
Evaluation all sequences on a proper cadence
Evaluation sequence efficiency throughout their first month. As soon as everyone seems to be educated on the platform and utilizing sequences frequently, you possibly can enhance the time between opinions. A great rule of thumb is to assessment efficiency no less than each six months however not more than each quarter.
In the event you’ve allowed reps to create content material, assessment the way it’s performing and if it’s being utilized earlier than locking it in bulk.
Monitor adoption
Take this time to see in case your sequence technique is being adopted throughout all groups. You are able to do this by protecting tabs on the quantity of prospects being sequenced frequently.
Leverage the ability of A/B testing
If one sequence outperforms others, use that as a baseline to tweak your different sequences. Likewise, if one sequence outperforms others, use that as a baseline to tweak your different sequences.
Observe: Make one change at a time. In the event you make too many modifications directly, you gained’t have the ability to inform what change was liable for what.
When you’re prepared, it’s time for the ultimate part of your sequence build-out, measuring success!
Measuring sequence success
In my skilled opinion, that is the perfect half. It’s time to measure the success of all of your onerous work! In doing so, you’re not solely seeing the fruits of your labor — you’re additionally getting an opportunity to refine your work utilizing knowledge to succeed in extra clients, e-book extra calls, and develop what you are promoting.
Easy methods to measure sequence success in Outreach
Any nice steady enchancment cycle features a measurement part. Constructing killer sequences that enhance conversion charges isn’t any completely different.
You’ve strategized, carried out, and executed. How will you now iterate on what you’ve completed to make your gross sales pipeline much more profitable? What measurements do you have to take note of? Under are the suggestions I inform all my clients to look out for:
Regulate your efficiency knowledge
Throughout the platform, you’ll discover a wide range of methods you possibly can achieve perception into your sequence efficiency. Open and reply charges may be discovered at each the sequence and particular person step ranges, and also you’ll have clear visibility into which sequences and steps outperform others.
Interpret and iterate primarily based on A/B check outcomes
Reap the benefits of Outreach’s built-in A/B testing. Simplicity is vital, so restrict the check to 2 messaging methods however not more than three. This may hold your A/B check manageable and let you collect correct outcomes.
Establish how a lot is an excessive amount of
You all the time need prospects flowing out and in of sequence. Nonetheless, there may be such a factor as including too many prospects into sequence directly.
In the event you begin seeing the variety of overdue duties rising, take into account lowering the variety of prospects sequenced. However, if the variety of remaining duties per day is all the time zero, take into account sequencing a better variety of prospects.
Steadiness is essential. Over time, you’ll discover the quantity that works on your staff. We advocate including 10 to twenty prospects each day, as it can most certainly compound from there. Inside a month, you must have the ability to decide your ‘actual’ quantity.
You now have the instruments to create the engine that may gas your playbook— sequences. Now, it’s time to construct, keep, and measure your sequences. The world is your oyster!
This text was initially written by Katie Douglas.Katie is a former buyer success supervisor who joined Outreach in 2017 and departed in 2021. Whereas at Outreach, she gained the distinguished buyer success supervisor of the 12 months award for her section. Katie’s obsession with serving to company clients succeed was rooted in her deal with implementing and driving gross sales engagement methods.
