C A T E G O R Y : M A R K E T I N G S T R A T E G Y, F I E L D M A R K E T I N G
Field Marketing 2.0: The Heart of Growing Conversion Rates
Organizations tracking and
reviewing their demand
creation activities should
always be trying to improve
Introduced in 2007, the
concept of Field Marketing 2.0
is a framework for this
improvement
Best practice organizations
implementing Field Marketing
2.0 are already benefitting
from dramatically improved
demand conversion rates
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We often endeavor to write compelling copy • Inquiries to marketing qualified leads. An
about the reasons for aligning sales and market- average b-to-b organization experiences a
ing, implementing better processes, and select- 3.9 percent conversion rate between
ing the right technologies as a solid foundation. inquiries and marketing qualified leads
A humorous anecdote here, a quotation there, (MQL). Organizations that have instituted
all designed to get you to pause during your strong processes were found to have a 5.8
busy day and take note. Today, we’re going to percent conversion, while best practice
let the numbers tell the story. organizations saw their number jump to
In the Core Strategy Report titled “Field nearly 10 percent. Key differences in 2.0
Marketing 2.0: The Next Generation of Demand organizations include much tighter target
Creation,” we introduced a future state of marketing, well-developed lead scoring
demand creation built on a previously set 1.0 models enabled by a marketing automation
foundation of process, service-level agreements, platform (MAP) and multi-touch demand
metrics and a partner/vendor network. In this creation programs (also known as portfolio
brief, we examine new data that starkly displays marketing).
the quantifiable rewards that leading-edge
organizations are experiencing as they embrace • Marketing qualified leads to sales accept-
Field Marketing 2.0 principles and practices. ed leads. While an average b-to-b organiza-
tion reports a 58 percent conversion rate
REAPING THE REWARDS between MQLs and sales accepted lead
At the SiriusDecisions Summit 2008: Growth (SAL), the number jumps to 66 percent for
through Integration, we asked more than 300 organizations with strong processes and
sales and marketing executives how far their nearly 75 percent for those that are best in
organizations had progressed in the implemen- class. When marketing and sales work col-
tation of Field Marketing 2.0. Only 6 percent laboratively to set proper expectations for
indicated they completed the journey; another what an MQL can/should be, and create
54 percent indicated they were in development, basic service-level agreements and handoff
21 percent in evaluation mode and 19 percent processes, conversion rates at this stage will
hadn’t yet started. What awaits the 94 percent improve dramatically. Building efficient lead
who have yet to fully implement a 2.0 model? A
Waterfall Conversion Rates
bounty of riches. Strong Best-in-
Average
Process Class
In the brief “Demand Creation: Perfor-
mance Anxiety,” we first reviewed conversion Inquiries
rate findings from a survey conducted around 3.9% 5.8% 9.7%
Marketing
our five-stage demand waterfall. Since that Qualified Leads
(MQLs)
time, we have isolated organizations that we 58.3% 65.6% 74.5%
Sales Accepted
consider to have instituted a series of strong 2.0 Leads
49.1% 56.4% 60.5%
processes (good progression toward the ideal),
Sales Qualified
as well as organizations that we consider to truly Leads (SQLs)
23.1% 26.9% 30.7%
be the closest to a 2.0 scenario. We have now
Closed/Won
collected their conversion rates and compared Business
them to averages (right); the results include:
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 C A T E G O R Y : M A R K E T I N G S T R A T E G Y, F I E L D M A R K E T I N G

routing and distribution practices drive these rates to even greater
heights.
• Sales accepted leads to sales qualified leads. The average b-to-b
organization sees roughly 49 percent of its SALs become sales qual-
ified leads (SQLs), while those with strong processes or are best-in-
class report 56 percent and nearly 61 percent, respectively.
Organizations that do a poor job of identifying and flagging the
reasons for rejected leads – and do not recycle them either into
teleprospecting or field marketing for additional nurturing – not
THE FIELD MARKETING 2.0 WORLD
In the Core Strategy Report, “Field Marketing 2.0: The Next
Generation of Demand Creation,” we introduced the five core pil -
lars of advanced demand creation, including:
• Ownership. Distinct, go-to places within sales and marketing for
collaboration, planning, process building and feedback around
advanced demand creation concepts. In a 1.0 world, distinct sales
ownership is typically lacking, forcing marketing to largely go it
alone, or try to ally with individual sales audiences.
only leave money on the table, they build a wider gulf between
marketing and sales as a result of wasted time, effort and money
on both sides. Field Marketing 2.0 principles including self-qualifi-
cation and comprehensive, holistic lead nurturing programs
improve the qualification of sales leads through better matching of
the needs of prospects with specific marketing and sales collateral
and knowledge.
• Sales qualified leads to closed business. Finally, the average organ-
ization sees roughly 23 percent of its sales qualified leads become
closed business, a number that rises to nearly 27 percent for strong-
process organizations and 31 percent for those that are best-in-
class. Only when the numbers in the middle of the sales and mar-
keting waterfall improve – indicating an increase in the quantity of
quality leads entering those stages – will an organization begin to
see a lift in close rates (linear system analysis reveals that improving
one step in the process only moves the source of system inefficien-
cies to another step in the process; improved system efficiency
requires a complete systems analysis of all steps in the process). In
the absence of a steady stream of well-qualified leads, sales reps
will work lower-quality leads longer than they should, decreasing
productivity and limiting their ability to close regardless of skill level.

• Process. Comprised of three sub-processes, including target, cam-

LIKE MONEY IN THE BANK
paign and qualify. In a 2.0 world, 1.0 processes are used in an
While examining individual stages is certainly interesting, the real impact
adaptable fashion (by scenario, geography and/or business unit).
of Field Marketing 2.0 can only be seen when we begin to roll the stages
up and look at the waterfall holistically. Intra-stage, a 2.0 organization
• Technology. The “backbone” on which systematic, predictable,
will create more than twice the number of MQLs as an average organi-
repeatable field marketing capabilities are based. 2.0 companies
zation; more than 29 percent more SALs; more than 24 percent SQLs
use a marketing automation platform (MAP) as the center of their
and nearly a 35 percent increase in closed deals.
demand universe, with best-in-class tools bolted onto it as required.
Now, let’s work the numbers from top to bottom for each of our
categories, using the conversion rates at each stage of the waterfall,
• Services. The outside partners – primarily in the areas of telemar -
starting with 1,000 inquiries in each case. An average organization will
keting and teleprospecting – that help to augment an organiza -
close roughly 2.5 deals per 1,000 inquiries; those in the strong process
tion’s internal field marketing/demand creation activities. 2.0
category will close nearly 5.8 deals, and best-in-class organizations will
organizations tightly integrate the activities undertaken by these
close 13.5. Attribute an average sales price (ASP) of $50,000, and strong
partners into their MAP, rather than keeping them isolated.
process organizations will realize $165,000 more in revenue per 1,000
inquiries than an average organization; use an ASP of $150,000, and the
• Metrics. The means by which the field marketing organization
number jumps to $595,000. And those that are best-in-class, you ask?
judges its performance, justifies its spending and proves its impact
Using an ASP of $50,000, they realize $550,000 more per 1,000
to sales, executive management and the board of directors. 2.0
inquiries than average organizations, and $1.65 million using an ASP of
companies use a shared waterfall (as described within this piece),
$150,000.
focusing on improvements at the SQL level rather than simply the
top of the waterfall when performance wanes.
THE SIRIUS DECISION
Organizations living in a Field Marketing 1.0 world need to understand

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 C A T E G O R Y : M A R K E T I N G S T R A T E G Y, F I E L D M A R K E T I N G

that they’ve only taken the first step of a long and evolving journey. The creation waterfall conversion rates. Whether it is advanced lead scoring,
good news is that each step along the way promises improved efficien- routing/distribution, self-qualification, nurturing and predictive market-
cies and quantifiable results. Meanwhile, 2.0 organizations are taking ing; all are giving 2.0 organizations a clear competitive advantage.
the next step and reaping the rewards of noticeably improved demand Bottom line: You can watch the progress, or be part of it. It’s your call.

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