TTMC achieves 131% of target and delivers cleansed data, market insights and high-quality leads and appointments for SMMT.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) is one of the largest and most influential trade associations in the UK. Its resources, reputation, and unrivalled automotive data place it at the heart of the UK automotive industry.

SMMT represents more than eight hundred automotive companies in the UK, providing them with a forum to voice their views on issues affecting the sector, helping to guide strategies and build positive relationships with government and regulatory authorities. The organisation supports a range of businesses including OEMs, Tier 1-down supply chain, aftermarket businesses, logistics, and supporting services.

Campaign objective and project background

SMMT offers membership benefits such as enhanced visibility within the automotive sector, business growth support, government representation, access to industry events, marketing opportunities, and technical support. The services are designed to help members navigate industry challenges, connect with other businesses, and stay informed about regulatory changes.

SMMT had a database of past enquiries and wanted to run a campaign to nurture untapped potential within this non-member data. They appointed The Telemarketing Company (TTMC) who they felt were a good fit based on their previous experience in the automotive sector. The primary objective was to call through the database targeting those who had engaged previously to scope out opportunities for membership or event attendance. This involved three key activities - data cleansing, lead qualification, and appointment setting – with the goal of producing a clean, up-to-date database and a feed of qualified leads and appointments with potential members.

Project execution

SMMT provided approximately nine hundred records covering a broad spectrum of businesses, from vehicle manufacturers, suppliers, and logistics companies to different types of service provider. Decision-makers spanned multiple functions, including marketing, HR, logistics, sustainability, sales, and engineering. The client was provided with logins to TTMC Connect, the agency’s real-time reporting platform, giving them access to campaign data, performance analytics and the ability to download call recordings. Regular communication and weekly reviews were scheduled to ensure a solid feedback loop to support campaign improvement.

A briefing took place to break down pain points and benefits for the different customer persona to enable TTMC to apply a solution selling approach, tailoring each conversation to individual needs and objectives. As the cost of membership ranges from £2100 - £3700 it was vital to bring value to the fore so the team focused on highlighting how membership would help each prospect to meet their individual challenges and opportunities. The task was to identify and understand prospect challenges and then pinpoint the relevant benefits within the comprehensive offering. These included the opportunity for businesses to raise their profile, connect with peers, find new business opportunities, and gain competitive insights, as well as access technical support, industry events, market data, and representation on key issues affecting the automotive industry. Some contacts would have membership of other professional bodies, so TTMC needed a good understanding of both membership benefits and the competitive landscape so they could clearly differentiate SMMT’s offer.

Whilst the client had access to the reporting portal, TTMC also proactively shared call recordings and sought feedback to maximise campaign performance, particularly in the early stages of calling. Listening to call recordings, the client was able to identify ways to refine and improve the approach and TTMC was quick to adapt and implement any recommendations as the campaign progressed. As a result, TTMC became increasing fluid in presenting the proposition and confident in handling typical objections, such as concerns about subscription fees, time commitments, and existing memberships.

A steady flow of leads and appointments was established, with every result quality-assessed prior to release to ensure it was fully compliant with strict criteria. During each conversation, TTMC validated and refreshed existing data, updating fields including job titles, direct dials, and email addresses. Where decision-maker responsibility had shifted, the team also appended new contact information, continuously updating and enriching the quality of the database. Building strong rapport on each call, valuable customer and market intelligence was gathered to enhance SMMT’s understanding and help shape future direction. In addition, specific insights into each prospect’s needs and challenges were captured and shared with each lead to facilitate sales’ follow up and improve conversion.

Results

The client is thrilled with the results of the campaign which has delivered a cleansed, profiled database, a strong pipeline of high-quality leads, and secured appointments with key decision-makers from the target list. In addition, hundreds of calls with qualified prospects have helped reinforce SMMT’s position as the leading trade association for the UK automotive industry and delivered detailed feedback on the perceived value of membership to inform future strategy.

TTMC has exceeded client expectations, achieving 131% of the target set. The quality of results has been extremely high, with most call outcomes in the form of appointments for a consultation with one of SMMT’s specialists. Twenty-six results were generated from 182 decision-maker calls, representing a conversion rate of approximately 14%. 1039 database changes have been made to the original dataset of nine hundred records so that SMMT now has a cleansed, profiled foundation to support future marketing initiatives. The client has already started to see a return on investment and is working to nurture and convert the pipeline that TTMC has generated. The campaign has been paused over the summer, a less active period for the automotive sector, with a view to re-starting in September.