Why Medical Technology Marketing Agencies Fail at Lead Generation

Choosing a medical technology marketing agency or finding the right internal staff to handle your marketing is important. Far too often, businesses align themselves with an agency or an internal marketing team that doesn’t have the skill set to succeed. 

While it’s not economically possible for every company, outsourcing your marketing to an agency is almost always more effective. 

The agency or internal staff you choose will not only affect your reputation, but also your bottom line -- so choose well.

6 Medical Technology Marketing Agency Fails

Here are some of the most common ways that marketing teams and agencies fail at lead generation: 

1. Failed to understand your buyers
2. Sold instead of helped
3. Lacked a focused audience target
4. Used data incorrectly, or not at all
5. Didn’t provide content consistently
6. Didn’t play the long game

1. Failed to Understand Your Buyers

Your prospects have problems like any other person. Consider what they’re feeling as they search for solutions so that the marketing strategy can be tailored to pinpoint exactly who you want.

To gain leads, a lead generation agency must understand the mindset of your buyers. 

Buyer personas are one way that an agency can target leads. This semi-fictional profile sums up the demographics, behavior, and pain points of your ideal customer.

Information is gathered by conducting interviews or questionnaires of current customers. Speaking to your own sales team and executives might also help in the development of personas.

The final buyer persona should give insight into your next lead generation strategy. Essentially, current buyers can influence how new buyers are attracted. 

2. Sold Instead of Helped 

If all an agency does is produce sales pitches and intrusive tactics, then there’s something wrong. 

Likewise, your marketing agency should help your leads instead of selling to them. Why? Well, prospects don’t like to be bombarded with pushy sales tactics. This is especially true today, as many buyers are researching their needs online and avoiding a salesperson until they’re ready to buy.

Instead, leads should be organically nurtured in a way that draws them through the buyer’s journey and toward your service or product. That way the buyer feels like they have a more trustworthy relationship with your company. 

Good marketing teams should help, not sell. 

3. Lacked a Focus Audience Target 

To find quality leads, you need to target specific audiences. Not every visitor will be an ideal customer for you. It’s pointless to waste time marketing to people who simply don’t care about your product or service.

Outbound lead generation services for B2B SaaS companies tend to throw every marketing tactic at everyone’s walls to see what sticks. Traditional tactics such as television, radio, and print mediums are commonly used in outbound marketing to reach a vast audience. 

Although these methods can be effective in their own right, they don’t fit with today’s B2B and SaaS marketing needs. You need to meet prospects where they spend the most time. That might be:

• Google 
• Educational blogs
• Social media platforms

Inbound marketing reverses the outbound concept by letting customers come to you through websites, social media, and other digital platforms. Digital mediums also make lead segmentation easier and more cost-effective. 

One size does not fit all when it comes to marketing within the medical technology industry. Your buyers are unique -- treat them this way.

4. Used Data Incorrectly or Not at All 

Far too often, marketing teams misinterpret data. In some cases, they guess or skew information. It’s important that your team knows how to interpret analytics. Bounce-rates click-through rates, and organic traffic matter. 

The worst-case scenario is that they didn’t collect or even fudged the data. This is unacceptable. 

Make sure that the data your market marketing agency provides you is honest, interpreted correctly, and focuses on the metrics that matter most to your company.

5. Didn’t Create Content Consistently

Consistent publishing content helps you steadily grow toward your goal, whether it be website traffic, engagement, or leads. 

If your agency’s performance drastically bounces back and forth between full-steam-ahead and disappearing for 3 weeks, then it’s time you consider a different marketing firm. Inconsistent work often indicates a weak or nonexistent plan. 

Communication with you should always be consistent and courteous around your time constraints.

Consistent production and communication are essential when implementing effective inbound marketing. 

6. Don’t Play The Long Game 

Although money isn’t everything, your inbound marketing ROI should matter. ROI not only makes you accountable for how you spend your marketing dollars, but it also makes your marketing agency accountable. 

The team you choose should care about your ROI as much as you do rather than making empty promises.

If you’re not seeing any ROI increase consider switching to another marketing firm ... but remember inbound marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. It will take 12+ months to see your return on investment, no matter the quality of your marketing team.

Warning Signs

If you care enough to invest in your marketing strategy, then you should care enough to be extremely thorough while researching lead generation professionals. 

Avoid marketing teams that:

1. Fail to understand your buyers 
2. Sell instead of help
3. Don’t target specific audiences 
4. Use data incorrectly 
5. Are inconsistent 
6. Don’t have long-term goals in mind

Remember: A marketing agency should make your job easier, not more complicated.