Lead Generation - Case Study heyData

Table of Contents

The strategy, implementation, and the pros and cons of lead generation through LinkedIn forms – illustrated with a case study from internetwarrior's client heyData.

Introduction to heyData (and our assignment)

The company heyData

heyData offers data protection as Software-as-a-Service and advises companies as a certified data protection officer on all matters of data protection and security. heyData targets B2B companies on their way to becoming a one-stop-shop. The legal-tech company serves hundreds of customers in the DACH market. Especially due to the corona pandemic, heyData experienced rapid growth in both revenue and the number of employees.

The assignment for internetwarriors

• heyData's target audience and thus also for internetwarriors are SMEs, start-ups, tax advisors, etc.

• Goals: Relevant contact requests, leads

• KPIs: Cost per (qualified) lead (with correspondingly low wastage)

Case Study: Lead Gen Challenge

The goal of the "Lead Gen Challenge" for heyData is lead generation with a high conversion rate. To achieve this, the optimal channel is defined first, which is: via LinkedIn Ads reaching the desired target audience, and the possibility of detailed targeting for paid ads minimizes wastage.

The actual implementation is done through appropriate content: offers for whitepapers and webinars from heyData. The mechanism behind it is ensured by LinkedIn Lead Gen forms.

Success Factor: Campaigns for the Customer Journey

The campaigns for heyData were developed along the customer journey, following the sequence of "Awareness", "Interest", and "Consideration".

To illustrate these three phases, let's imagine the potential customer is initially introduced to heyData's offerings at specific touchpoints early in their "virtual journey" and learns about them (information phase). In the second phase, they engage more deeply with the offer and are led to its benefits through trust-building measures (explanation phase) before contemplating in the third phase what advantages and solutions the offer provides for them and their business (conviction phase).

A campaign is successful only when it leads to a conversion, such as the subscription to a data protection service from heyData.

Top Funnel Campaigns: Added Value

Initially, the campaign for heyData focused on the top funnel, addressing the information phase. The main goal was to make first contact with the target audience. For example, the target audience was "start-ups", specifically the employees of start-ups, and especially the decision-makers or those dealing with data protection in the company. A "digital-savvy" target audience was defined accordingly. The target audience alignment options on LinkedIn allowed for resulting, effective combinations like "Knowledge: Start-ups" plus "Career level: Executive" to reach this audience.

Individual ads were developed for the different target groups, addressing topics and challenges from "the world of start-ups," to continue with the start-up target group. Specifically, an ad posed the question "Is your start-up GDPR compliant?" and offered a whitepaper with solutions and tips. Text, image, and of course, the whitepaper were developed and designed according to the target audience to directly engage them.

The promise of a top funnel campaign that provides added value was fulfilled through the "request a free whitepaper" button. The whitepaper is primarily intended to inform, allowing heyData to prove themselves as experts, convince potential clients, and build trust. Promotion of heyData's services should only follow in the second instance and towards the end of the whitepaper.

Low Funnel Campaigns: Transaction

In contrast to a top funnel campaign initiating first contact, a low funnel campaign targets potential customers who are much closer to a deal in terms of their information level. They already know what heyData is and what the company can offer in terms of data protection and are in the conviction phase.

The "target audience remarketing" refers to users that the tracking has already noted as having had contact with heyData. The tracking registers via an integrated LinkedIn pixel that the user has already been on heyData's website, the Lead Gen form has been opened, or as a third option, the user has been on heyData's LinkedIn page.

Different ads are displayed to the "remarketing audience" compared to the "first contact audience". The banners lead not to a whitepaper but directly to heyData's website, encouraging them to get in touch and, for example, offering a consultation.

Success Factor: Lead Funnel

a) Website Funnel

How are leads collected, and how is the lead funnel structured? On the one hand, the classic solution of a conversion-optimized landing page on heyData's website offers the opportunity to pick up linked users via a contact form. This allows for the landing page to be equipped with diverse content like images, videos, etc. In this way, users immediately receive the key details about the offer or product.

The lead funnel can also be individually designed. This allows testing where users might get stuck in the lead funnel process towards becoming relevant leads. Lastly, a double opt-in procedure is possible here, for instance, by confirming an order twice through clicking on the website and verifying via email. This, for example, can directly place the user on the company's newsletter distribution list and foster lead nurturing.

b) LinkedIn Lead Forms

LinkedIn Lead Forms appear right after the user clicks on the LinkedIn Ads. The user remains on LinkedIn and is not redirected to the company's website. When setting up the lead forms, it can be defined which lead details like name, first name, email address or phone number need to be provided to receive the added value like a whitepaper. Here, up to twelve pieces of information can be requested, although attention must be paid to the drop-out rate.

The lead gen forms can be designed with the company's logo and header to partially reflect the corporate design. The forms can also optionally include information on the company's data protection policy. After successfully completing the lead form, the user is directed to the URL with the whitepaper download.

In LinkedIn's campaign manager, all leads are displayed with information on when and through which campaign the lead occurred, as well as, of course, the associated lead data. Important: These data should be regularly retrieved and processed as soon as possible.

Summary, the advantages of LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms:

• The company's website does not need to be used

• No need for a conversion-optimized landing page, which may still need to be built

• Users can enter their data directly without first navigating to the website

• Higher conversion rate

• Cheaper cost per lead

• Lead data is often pre-populated with LinkedIn profile information

Best Practices

What has been tested and optimized within this campaign setup? On the one hand, various designs of LinkedIn Ads and the Lead Gen Forms were tested and optimized, as well as different target groups and their associated parameters. To optimize the actual strategy, a comparison was made: reaching users directly with heyData's offer through "Low Funnel only" – or using a strategy with Top and Low Funnel plus the "detour" through an added value/whitepaper to first demonstrate heyData's expertise. The latter ultimately performed better.

Conclusion & Results

• The LinkedIn Lead Forms generated a significantly higher number of leads and were cheaper than acquiring leads through the website. The quality of the leads was also assessed. In general, it is important to continually check the effectiveness of the measures through a close integration of marketing and sales and an open exchange of information, and adjust the strategy if necessary.

• Lead forms without a telephone number result in a cheaper cost per lead because the user has to provide less information. But: Leads with a phone number have a significantly higher conversion rate, leading to more successful deals.

• The added value strategy works well and is an essential intermediate step for building trust and presenting oneself as an expert.

Would you like to learn more? Want to test a Lead Gen campaign for your company? Contact us.

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