Requirement: The requirement is to define and track the sources through which new leads come to the company. The system should allow for capturing lead sources in various scenarios, including marketing automation, online lead capture forms, lead imports, and manual tracking for different campaign channels.
Summary: The company needs a robust lead source management system in its CRM to effectively capture and track the sources of new leads. This information is crucial for evaluating the success of marketing campaigns, understanding lead generation channels, and making informed decisions regarding marketing strategies. Lead sources are associated with lead, prospect, customer, and contact records to provide comprehensive visibility.
Solution:
- Marketing Automation Integration:
- If the company utilizes Marketing Automation, the CRM system should sync with it to match the list of possible lead sources with the titles of marketing campaigns. This ensures that leads are automatically attributed to their respective lead sources based on campaign interactions.
- Manual Creation of Lead Sources:
- In case Marketing Automation is not employed, the CRM system should provide the ability to create new lead sources manually. This can be done at Setup > Sales > Setup Tasks > CRM Lists > New. Here, administrators can define and manage custom lead sources specific to the company’s requirements.
- Lead Source Field:
- The CRM system should include a designated “Lead Source” field on lead, prospect, customer, and contact records. This field allows users to select and associate the appropriate lead source with each record, indicating how the lead came to the company.
- Online Lead Capture Forms:
- If a campaign email message includes a link to an online lead capture form, the CRM system should support passing the lead source as a parameter in the URL. This mechanism ensures that when a lead submits the form, the lead source is accurately captured and attributed to the corresponding campaign.
- Lead Import:
- If the company imports a list of leads using smbXML or CSV import functionality, the CRM system should allow for including the lead source information in the imported file. This enables tracking and identification of the original lead source for each imported lead.
- Manual Tracking for Campaign Channels:
- For campaign channels that don’t fall under the automated processes mentioned above, such as letter campaigns, the CRM system should provide a manual tracking mechanism. Users should be able to manually select and assign the lead source on the customer record to attribute their acquisition to a specific campaign.
By implementing these solutions, the company can effectively manage lead sources, capture accurate data on how new leads enter the organization, and gain insights into the success and effectiveness of marketing campaigns across various channels.