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#ARM’s Journey to Becoming a Silver-Tier Partner
Like every success story that you might have heard, this one also started with a man and an idea about something new that he wanted to explore. Ritesh Singh, the Managing Director and co-founder of #ARM Worldwide, a digital marketing enthusiast, and a keen reader, had been reading a lot…
Like every success story that you might have heard, this one also started with a man and an idea about something new that he wanted to explore. Ritesh Singh, the Managing Director and co-founder of #ARM Worldwide, a digital marketing enthusiast, and a keen reader, had been reading a lot about HubSpot and inbound marketing during those days. It so happened in one of those discussions that took place regularly with his business coach that he decided to partner with HubSpot and start inbound marketing.
With all the plans in mind, he started to set up his inbound team and hired the necessary resources needed for the smooth on-boarding of the HubSpot marketing software. However, as they say, good things take time. It took around two months to build a team that was ready to use HubSpot and implement inbound marketing. In no time, the entire team was ARMed with HubSpot certification and Inbound certification because they also say that great things happen in the blink of an eye. #ARM was now a team of 50+ HubSpot certified professionals.
This journey of #ARM from a HubSpot user to becoming a Silver-tier partner has not been easy. It has been full of hurdles and obstacles. However, with the combined efforts of the team and Ritesh as the guiding force behind bringing all efforts to life, #ARM has become the first agency in India to become a HubSpot Silver-tier partner in a short span of nine months.
Let us take you through this beautiful and fruitful journey!
It all started nine months back, in May 2017, with an all-new team ready to explore the world of inbound marketing and use HubSpot to automate its marketing efforts and reach its target audience most efficiently and cost-effectively.
The first step was to give the website a complete overhaul. It was done using the HubSpot Growth-Driven Design methodology, which follows a strategic approach towards redesigning a website by launching the highest value web pages first and gradually building the site later so that it is minimal or no loss of valuable customers.
After that, #ARM worked on creating a new content strategy for its website and social media platforms that included a content makeover for:
- Website pages
- Blogs
- Social media platforms
It was done:
- By creating persuasive Calls-To-Action (CTAs)
- By creating compelling landing pages
- Be generating efficient lead flows, commonly called as pop-ups
- By using HubSpot to amplify lead conversion
Achievements:
There was an enormous increase in the website traffic, which when quantified, showed a growth rate of 400%. The leads captured from these inbound efforts increased by 15 times.Conclusion:
The result of these efforts taken by #ARM Worldwide could now be seen in the entire team that was well-versed with the HubSpot software and had learned the inbound methodology. They had worked together to create a website that was ready to reach out to its target audience with relevant and informative content to spread awareness about inbound marketing and HubSpot – the marketing tool and in turn, generate leads.August – October 2017
Now, the firm foundation of a HubSpot certified inbound marketing team had been laid successfully, and the next target was to generate leads, achieve growth and capture the domestic, as well as the global market. One of the significant events that took place in this phase was ‘Inbound’17’, which is an annual event hosted by HubSpot in the US. Ritesh sought this as an opportunity to learn more about inbound and HubSpot software and how they can be integrated to drive growth. This also gave him an opportunity to strengthen his network by connecting with inbound marketers and HubSpot users from all around the world. It was a fantastic experience for him, and he came back with a bag full of new insights, new strategies and increased knowledge of HubSpot and the inbound methodology to drive growth and revenue and consequently, increase ROI. During this period, the results of the previous period were analysed using the HubSpot Comprehensive Analytics tool, basis which the strategies were redesigned with a revised approach to generate more leads, increase website traffic and convert both these to drive higher sales. Another major observation during this period was that our activities were targeting a mass audience. Therefore, we strengthened our inbound marketing strategy and diverted our activities towards targeting individual buyer personas and providing value to their individual needs by solving their pain points and helping them achieve personal goals. Accordingly, our blog activities and social media strategies were modified, and more targeted content offers like ebooks, blogs, whitepapers, etc., were created to nurture the leads generated. Also, our existing and new customers were nurtured by providing them with content offers customised to meet their interests and preferences and assist them in their buying journey. Personalised content offers were sent to them in the form of emails, newsletters, etc., to enlighten them and strengthen relationships, and in turn, drive them down the sales funnel. This was efficiently done using the HubSpot Workflow tool that helped in creating automated email drips and campaigns. Further, the efforts of the sales and marketing teams were integrated through the HubSpot tool, and these functions were aligned closely. The entire sales funnel, and the deals were set up using the HubSpot Sales tool and were monitored on a regular basis to measure results and improvements.Achievements:
Effective lead nurturing led to customer acquisition and noticeable results were seen. During this period, #ARM also saw an increase in the sales and several customers were closed. To put it in numbers, the rise in website traffic was around 67 percent and leads generated mounted by about 35 times.November 2017 – January 2018
Time had passed, and #ARM had now been efficiently using the combined power of HubSpot and Inbound marketing to generate leads and increase website traffic. While the website was already generating sufficient traffic, the focus of #ARM was moving towards improving the percentage of visitors to lead conversion. Moreover, the primary focus was to generate qualified leads and thus, increase overall ROI. This was done by analysing the activities of the previous period and the overall results generated. The results were mapped using the HubSpot data, and customised reports were made using the HubSpot Reporting tool by business metrics. During this period, #ARM decided to change the approach of targeting its audience using industry-wise data segmentation. The different target industries were identified, and content was created accordingly. The quantity of the content being produced and its frequency was reduced while focusing on creating content that was industry specific and catered to the needs and preferences of the target audience. For this, the Account-Based Marketing strategy was initiated, and content was created considering the different buyer persona, their interests, demographics and other factors. #ARM also leveraged the social media profiles of the top leaders by using their profiles to reach out to the target audience and harness the power of thought leadership to build relationships and in turn, communities with people sharing similar interests. Social selling, which includes salespersons using social media to directly interact with the prospective customers by providing valuable and informative content to solve consumer queries until they are ready to buy. #ARM started social selling using the HubSpot Social Publishing tool for targeting both the domestic and the international market. Additionally, the HubSpot Social Monitoring tool was used efficiently to create personalised and one-to-one engagement with the target audience. These social media marketing efforts taken by #ARM delivered tremendous results and aided in lead generation and sales growth. Moreover, the principal industries were identified that included the finance, education, Information Technology, healthcare and SaaS industries.Achievements:
Noticeable results were seen from the international market as well, and the overall website traffic and leads from the same were generated leading to sales. To quantify, the website traffic increased by 26 percent and the leads generated were 80 times. As we can see, the percentage increase in the website traffic reduced but, the quality of leads had improved leading to a higher lead conversion rate. This can be said to be the result of an active inbound marketing strategy implementation.Conclusion:
The most prominent achievement came in the form of #ARM Worldwide being awarded the title of HubSpot Silver-Tier Partner and in a time span of just nine months, which is the shortest time taken by any HubSpot partner firm. Additionally, #ARM Worldwide has now established an overseas presence by instituting a branch in Singapore to cater to its Singapore clients and drive sales. Domestically, #ARM is now present in 4 cities across India, with its headquarters in the National Capital Region. Moreover, #ARM is now a team of more than 90 HubSpot certified professionals. Their traffic is now growing more than ever, they are generating higher quality leads, and their marketing and sales functions are aligned. All these combined are driving efficiency, getting more customers and sales resulting in an overall increase in ROI. Adopting a marketing automation tool like HubSpot helped #ARM save time, efforts and resources to align and drive sales and marketing efforts efficiently. Also, the inbound marketing strategy was used efficiently to reach the target audience and produce valuable content to solve consumer problems and provide solutions through their services. #ARM Worldwide is growing, will grow and has set its target to become a HubSpot certified Gold Partner.
