Quantive is a business consulting company that provides independent valuation services to a national client base. With a solid brand, a multi-channel marketing strategy that includes online advertising, and an active blog, they had an impressive marketing program in place. However, a closer look at their goals and target audience segments revealed a key area of opportunity: reaching referral sources.
While online advertising was effectively driving leads from one key segment, business owners, it wasn’t an effective strategy for reaching attorneys, bankers, financial advisors and accountants – the Centers of Influence (COIs) that drive recurring leads for valuation services. While Quantive had already established a local referral network, they lacked the bandwidth to fully nurture those relationships and needed help growing the network, while they continued developing the network via face-to-face meetings. They asked Fluent IMC to develop a plan for enhancing their credibility in front of these important COIs.
The nature of Quantive’s work is complex and analytical. With a brand voice that’s conversational, yet authoritative, and a robust inventory of blog content that ranged from thought leadership to how-to pieces, the client had a sound online strategy in place. Keeping in mind our goal of increasing awareness amongst B2B referral sources who respond favorably to credible third party influencers, Fluent brought the power of traditional public relations into the mix. We knew they had the expertise necessary to resonate with business and trade media, and the writing chops to produce quality content. We started by revamping their blog content into larger story ideas, customized it by audience and industry and queried the client for their insights on current trends. Matching that knowledge with a prioritized list of geographic markets and industry trades, we set forth building new editorial relationships.
When we launched our PR effort, Quantive had no editorial relationships. In the first phase of our engagement, we successfully pitched feature articles in several national trade magazines, numerous authored pieces in leading statewide business publications in the client’s core markets (like this, and this) and a feature interview with the founder in a leading online news publication. Not only are we gaining exposure across all of those third party influencers’ social channels, we’re fully integrating the PR wins with Quantive’s already active blog. Along with gaining traction online, the client is also receiving direct contact from business owners and COIs, proving that the exposure is expanding their name recognition. Finally, in addition to these earned impressions, we’ve developed new relationships with journalists and are setting the stage for even more activity as the PR program continues to grow.