Telemarketing engagement provides successful proof of concept and potential pipeline in excess of £10 million for Bobst  

Bobst is one of the world’s leading suppliers of equipment and services to packaging and label manufacturers in the folding carton, corrugated board and flexible materials industries. Founded in 1890 by Joseph Bobst in Lausanne, Switzerland, BOBST has a presence in more than 50 countries, runs 14 production facilities in 8 countries and employs close to 5400 people around the world.

Business Unit Web-Fed is particularly focused on the labels and flexible packaging sectors of the packaging industry. Its core business includes equipment and services for; Inline & CI Flexo, Gravure, Laminating, Coating including Extrusion Coating and Vacuum Metallisation.

Project background

Web-Fed had grown through the acquisition of several leading technology companies in the sector; Schiavi Spa, Rotomec, Fischer & Krechke GmbH (F& K) and Nuova Gidue Srl. The acquisition process had created a CRM of varying quality, which provided a poor foundation for the pro-active sales and marketing effort needed to expand sales. Data was incomplete, with duplication at individual, organisation and site level making it impossible to get a clear view of Web-Fed’s market position.

A lack of awareness of the full product portfolio put the business at a disadvantage versus competitors and a lack of brand recognition in sectors addressed through acquisitions meant Bobst might not always be front of mind at the start of the procurement process.

Given the amalgamation of a number of different businesses, each with its own area of expertise, it was important to increase awareness of the full capabilities and leading-edge technologies now available under the Bobst Web-Fed brand.

Poor data quality made it very difficult for the in-house team to work with the CRM so a decision was taken to undertake a pilot telemarketing campaign. The aim was to address the need for increased brand awareness whilst creating a refreshed, profiled database to support Web-Fed’s sales and marketing activity in the UK and Ireland. The goal was also to generate potential leads - phone or face-to-face appointments for the Web-Fed team - for new equipment sales for the next 3 – 6 months.

Project execution

 
The Zone Business Director for Web-Fed in the UK and Ireland approached a number of different agencies before appointing The Telemarketing Company to carry out the work. A thorough briefing was necessary, given the technical nature of the product range and the multiple propositions and market segments to be addressed. The business was already running campaigns across other channels including social media, PR, and events and it was important that all telemarketing activity worked in conjunction with those efforts. By nature of their roles - Production or Operations Directors – target decision makers would be particularly hard to reach, so it was essential that callers had the skills to manage calls and build pipeline efficiently, as well as the ability to position product benefits.

Callers were briefed extensively on the benefits of the extended product range so that they could position the Bobst brand and core values in the context of the full portfolio, relative both to the prospect’s interests, and their competitor offerings.  It was particularly important to raise awareness and educate the audience within particular segments, such as Labelling, Flexo Printing, Coating/Laminating and Vacuum Metallising, where the acquired businesses still had a presence.
 
Profiling questions were incorporated into every call to capture valuable insight, populate individual and client profiles and map organisational data. During each call, agents gathered information such as current equipment supplier, last purchase, future requirements, and the sector or industry in which the business was currently operating.

Results

As a pilot engagement, early stage and ongoing reviews were critical. These were supported by shared call recordings, live listening, online reporting and a particularly high level of detailed input and feedback from the client. This level of commitment from both parties ensured every opportunity to improve performance was exploited to the full.
As a result, the pilot has been very successful and the client is happy with results at all levels, from the quality and quantity of opportunities generated, the output of a cleansed profiled set of data and insight to feed the CRM and future strategy, as well as the increased exposure for the Web-Fed brand and the insights from the conversations with decision makers.
 
Five weeks of calling has generated 33 qualified results (Appointments, Sales Calls & Future Opportunities) with target decision makers, and a potential pipeline in excess of £10 million. Where there was no immediate interest, callers captured the exact reasons, to feed future strategy and build medium and long-term pipeline.
 
Over 1850 calls were made and 140 conversations, almost one per hour, took place during which Web-Fed products were carefully positioned with key decision-makers in the industry.
 
In terms of data, a final output of 855 up-to-date, cleansed and profiled records, including 106 new contacts, means the client has a much clearer view of their target audience and market. 97 invalid contacts were also removed, ensuring future marketing effort and investment does not go to waste.

The CRM now holds valuable insight into prospect and customer interests to support a more proactive and targeted approach in future. A successful proof of concept has created a solid foundation for Web-Fed activity and discussions are underway as to how telemarketing can support other parts of the business.
 
“I was very impressed with the whole campaign, planning through to execution. From my first meeting to discuss our requirements and aims for the campaign through to the final debrief and summary report of the actions conducted, targets met and possible future support.

It was a pleasure being involved in this campaign as the team were eager to know about BOBST and open to feedback and constructive criticism as the telemarketing activity developed. They were not afraid to ask questions if they thought it might help generate additional leads or contacts.

As a result of this campaign I am hopeful this approach will be utilised in other sides of the business and would happily recommend The Telemarketing Company to other sales driven companies.”

Zone Business Director - Web-Fed, UK and Ireland