FreeAgent CRM Generates a Consistent Pipeline With Leads From Gartner Digital Markets

FreeAgent CRM claimed its product profile on Gartner Digital Markets to reach its target audience and ensure visibility in relevant keyword searches. By setting up a profile on Gartner Digital Markets, a platform with over 100 million annual software prospects, the company knew it would be able to get its brand in front of software decision-makers who matched its specific ICPs.

FreeAgent CRM launched a Pay-Per-Lead (PPL) campaign on the Gartner Digital Markets platform. Its target audience included B2B companies in the U.S. and Canada operating in different industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, media, and customer service. Its primary buyer personas were business leaders, such as directors, vice presidents, or heads, in sales, business development, and operations.

The company set its targeting criteria based on the industry and buyer persona it wanted to reach — i.e., business leaders in healthcare, manufacturing, media, and customer service — as well as product requirements. Luis Lizola, senior digital marketing manager at FreeAgent CRM, said, “It’s important for us to target companies that are looking for a high number of seats, which does lead to a longer cycle time, but it also results in a higher ARR potential.” Accordingly, Gartner Digital Markets software advisors matched FreeAgent CRM with buyers seeking recommendations in relevant CRM software categories. 

Being able to adapt and change its targeting criteria was also a huge benefit for FreeAgent CRM’s campaign strategy, especially when the company launched a new vertical for its customer service software product. 

“We really appreciate Gartner Digital Markets’ ability to focus and narrow down on roles, industries, company size, and revenue. We optimize and change our ICPs as we receive feedback from sales, but it’s been great to apply those changes quickly and to always receive new leads that are really close to exactly what we’re targeting,” Lizola explained. 

Since launching PPL campaigns on the Gartner Digital Markets platform, FreeAgent CRM has connected with more high-quality leads who are ready to buy. The company utilizes the detailed lead notes shared by software advisors at Gartner Digital Markets to support its sales team outreach and save time. 

“It’s important that our sales team logs all of the lead qualification notes since they help personalize communication and discuss the solution we offer based on the lead’s needs. This also saves time in the qualification process for our sales team and helps book meetings faster,” notes Madison Smith, director of operations at FreeAgent CRM. “Being able to see the time frame, understand who the decision maker is, and any additional information about the buyer helps the sales team prepare for those calls, outside of just knowing the prospect’s company information.”

In addition to logging qualification notes, FreeAgent CRM has set up a robust follow-up process to optimize conversions further. Lizola mentions, “We understand that we are competing with others receiving and paying for leads like us, so we’ve implemented strategies within our sales team to ensure quick, personalized follow-ups to increase our chance of conversions.”

The high-quality leads have also positively impacted conversion rates. “We’ve quickly realized that leads from Gartner Digital Markets have a higher conversion rate. This is specifically looking at the rate at which we’re able to set meetings from the leads shared as well as how often those meetings result in a closed deal,” Smith adds.

PPL campaigns have been instrumental in assisting FreeAgent CRM to generate a healthy and consistent sales pipeline. Lizola notes, “With Gartner Digital Markets, we get a steady volume of leads every week, and we know that those leads translate into deals for 20 users and up, so it helps with our forecasting.”

After six years, FreeAgent CRM has continued to invest in PPL campaigns. Lizola states, “We’ve found that Gartner Digital Markets’ leads represent 60% to 70% of the monthly sales-qualified leads (SQLs) we hand over to sales. Around 20% to 30% of the SQLs that we receive from this program convert into meetings, and from those numbers, around 10% convert into the pipeline, which includes deals that have been closed or are still in the sales funnel.”