The Challenge
As a multi-play telco provider, Vodafone offers mobile, fixed-line, IoT and hosting services in 26 countries – and roughly half of its £40 billion annual revenue comes from B2B sales.
Vodafone recognised that, among business customers, the perception of telecommunications has shifted from it being a straightforward ‘utility’ to now being a strategic business consideration. Consequently, these customers want a supplier that understands their business environment and strategy.
Our approach
We partnered with Vodafone to assist in developing a research-led thought leadership programme which would help to meet three campaign objectives:
- Raise brand visibility and engagement
- Position Vodafone as a thought leader
- Create opportunities for targeted, one-on-one sales discussions.
We audited all competing content and interviewed Vodafone’s target audiences and internal stakeholders to hone in on ownable topics for Vodafone to cover, as well as identifying common pitfalls.
We created the Perspective series – several ‘hero’ reports for Vodafone, which were used by Geometry (Vodafone’s marketing partner), to create ‘bitesize’ promotional assets including how-to videos, infographics and a short guide to customer service delivery optimisation.
To raise visibility and spark debate, a campaign of externally-facing events and activities were rolled out, whilst internally, sales teams were shown through online webinars and face-to-face sessions.
The outcome
Ultimately, Vodafone’s goals for this campaign were all met:
Raising brand visibility
The Perspective series has demonstrably raised Vodafone’s visibility, generating 5k+ report downloads, high social engagement that includes 4k+ shares of the latest infographic, and 70 pieces of high-quality PR in publications including the Sunday Times and CIO Magazine.
Positioned Vodafone as a B2B thought leader & creating sales opportunities
Vodafone has also distinguished itself as a thought leader, with brand tracking research showing that associations between Vodafone and ‘thought leadership’ have risen significantly since the campaign began.
Account Managers trained in using the content have generated several million pounds of incremental revenue. Overall, hard data shows that Perspective has delivered an ROI for Vodafone in excess of 8,000%.
There is direct evidence that the campaign created several million pounds in incremental revenue – and internally the feedback from our Senior Leadership Team and sales organisation has been overwhelmingly positive.
Brand Marketing Lead, Vodafone