Launching a new product? What about leads? How to be successful with a limited budget in a competitive market where businesses struggle for customers’ attention? This is what we’ve asked Elena Pundzheva – Marketing Director at OfficeRnD. Eli has learned the answers the hard way – from her own experience.
Read the article to find out more about the importance of marketing strategy and lead generation approach.
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Launching a product in a competitive market.
Can you introduce yourself and share a bit about your background and expertise in demand generation and content marketing?
I began my marketing career at Telerik, about 2-3 years before it was acquired by Progress. During this period, both the company and I experienced significant growth. I advanced from Brand Manager to Product Marketing, and eventually to Demand Generation and Funnel Management. These roles provided me with a wealth of knowledge and experience. After seven years at Telerik, I sought a new challenge and joined OfficeRnD at the beginning of 2020. There, I was once again part of tremendous growth. The company expanded from 40 to 130 employees, the marketing team grew from 3 to 12 members, we secured multiple rounds of funding, launched a new product, and greatly expanded the scope of our marketing efforts.
Can you explain the importance of creating a successful demand generation strategy and what it entails?
For many businesses, inbound marketing forms the backbone of their strategy. A successful demand generation strategy ensures that your product or service is visible and appealing when a potential custimer needs it the most. It involves being present with the right message, at the right time, on the right channels.
From your experience what are some common mistakes businesses can make when setting up their demand generation strategies?
One common mistake is related to expectations. Either having no expectations or setting very unrealistic ones. It's crucial to clearly understand what success looks like, the expected ROI, and the specific targets. For instance, merely aiming for 100 leads is insufficient; you need to know the acceptable cost per lead and which other KPIs matter in your business context.
Tell us more about mistakes you made and what you’ve learned on the way?
There are so many to choose from, I could talk for hours! 🙂 The costliest ones are typically strategic, such as not allocating enough time to consider the purpose (why we are doing this) or the potential impact of certain initiatives before jumping into execution. As marketing professionals, we often rush to make things happen, but without a solid understanding of our goals and reasons, we risk wasting time. It's tempting to think that immediate action will yield faster results, but taking time to address the bigger picture can lead to significantly better outcomes, often more efficiently in the long run.
Should we focus on paid or organic channels when launching a product? How to set targets having no historical data?
It always depends on the context. For us, focusing on both paid and organic channels was logical as it addressed both our short-term and long-term goals. We couldn't gain sufficient visibility through organic channels quickly enough, but we also wanted to start building our organic presence early because it takes time to gain traction. Paid channels were essential for generating leads quickly and competing for highly competitive keywords.
The targets question is tricky. It requires extensive research, using industry benchmarks, and often guesstimation. The key is to remain flexible and adjust as data comes in.
Can we increase 10 times the number of new website visitors in one year? Which are the 3 most important things to be considered during this process?
Yes, you can! Obviously, it will very much depend on where you are starting from. If you have 10 website visitors, going to a 100 will be easy. If you are starting from a bigger number, it will be more challenging. I would say the 3 top things you need are: a good SEO expertise (for the research, analysis and optimization), well-written, unique and interesting content that stands out, and some testing (plus a little bit of luck) to see what “sticks” with the audience.
For more tips and tricks on how to be successful in building a working demand generation strategy,
enroll in Telerik Academy Sprint.
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