Creating Free Tools for Lead Acquisition
Creating Free Tools for Lead Acquisition
Creating Free Tools for Lead Acquisition
Creating Free Tools for Lead Acquisition
Creating Free Tools for Lead Acquisition
Creating Free Tools for Lead Acquisition
As Sprout Social is a public company I can't share many specific details
As Sprout Social is a public company I can't share many specific details
As Sprout Social is a public company I can't share many specific details
As Sprout Social is a public company I can't share many specific details
As Sprout Social is a public company I can't share many specific details
As Sprout Social is a public company I can't share many specific details
March 2022 - present
Timeline
Sr. Manager of Website Strategy
Sprout Social
March 2022 - present
Timeline
Sr. Manager of Website Strategy
Sprout Social
Opportunity
Opportunity
Several years ago, the most trafficked blog post on the Sprout website was a guide to the ideal image sizes for each social network. I believed that we could create an even better experience for visitors by creating a free tool that automatically resized images to fit every social network.
I proposed the idea during a Sprout Social Hackweek and it was chosen as an idea to move forward with and I lead the team to create what has become known as Landscape.
Landscape proved incredibly successful, driving millions of site visitors, generating new revenue for the business, and establishing its own branded search volume.
Based on that success, I proposed that we continue to create new free tools for user acquisition. This was a time before generative AI, so it was a bit more work, but I worked with external and internal stakeholders to build two new tools before a business decision forced us to pivot towards more enterprise marketing efforts.
Several years ago, the most trafficked blog post on the Sprout website was a guide to the ideal image sizes for each social network. I believed that we could create an even better experience for visitors by creating a free tool that automatically resized images to fit every social network.
I proposed the idea during a Sprout Social Hackweek and it was chosen as an idea to move forward with and I lead the team to create what has become known as Landscape.
Landscape proved incredibly successful, driving millions of site visitors, generating new revenue for the business, and establishing its own branded search volume.
Based on that success, I proposed that we continue to create new free tools for user acquisition. This was a time before generative AI, so it was a bit more work, but I worked with external and internal stakeholders to build two new tools before a business decision forced us to pivot towards more enterprise marketing efforts.
Goals
Goals
1
Identify a set of free tools valuable for Sprout's users
Organize Sprout's over 1,400 blog posts into a structure based on topic rather than keyword to create a better user experience for users and search engines alike.
1
Identify a set of free tools valuable for Sprout's users
Organize Sprout's over 1,400 blog posts into a structure based on topic rather than keyword to create a better user experience for users and search engines alike.
1
Identify a set of free tools valuable for Sprout's users
Organize Sprout's over 1,400 blog posts into a structure based on topic rather than keyword to create a better user experience for users and search engines alike.
2
Build an entirely new motion for free tool creation
Revisit every internal link in those 1,400 blog posts to create a website hierarchy conducive to crawlers. Update those links in a scalable way.
2
Build an entirely new motion for free tool creation
Revisit every internal link in those 1,400 blog posts to create a website hierarchy conducive to crawlers. Update those links in a scalable way.
2
Build an entirely new motion for free tool creation
Revisit every internal link in those 1,400 blog posts to create a website hierarchy conducive to crawlers. Update those links in a scalable way.
3
Source RFPs and find the best partner agency
The project created an opportunity to add structured data to each page, allowing for topic and page based revenue-reporting.
3
Source RFPs and find the best partner agency
The project created an opportunity to add structured data to each page, allowing for topic and page based revenue-reporting.
3
Source RFPs and find the best partner agency
The project created an opportunity to add structured data to each page, allowing for topic and page based revenue-reporting.
4
Create new free tools and deploy them on the site
To ensure each hub included content for visitors at every stage of the buyer's journey, it was critical to facilitate content from all content-creating teams, including Customer and Product.
4
Create new free tools and deploy them on the site
To ensure each hub included content for visitors at every stage of the buyer's journey, it was critical to facilitate content from all content-creating teams, including Customer and Product.
4
Create new free tools and deploy them on the site
To ensure each hub included content for visitors at every stage of the buyer's journey, it was critical to facilitate content from all content-creating teams, including Customer and Product.
5
Increase traffic and website conversions from the new tools
As there are several marketing teams with a vested interest in the success of the blog it was critical to build this new process in a way that empowered every team member to collaborate on content hubs or to build their own.
5
Increase traffic and website conversions from the new tools
As there are several marketing teams with a vested interest in the success of the blog it was critical to build this new process in a way that empowered every team member to collaborate on content hubs or to build their own.
5
Increase traffic and website conversions from the new tools
As there are several marketing teams with a vested interest in the success of the blog it was critical to build this new process in a way that empowered every team member to collaborate on content hubs or to build their own.
6
Generate revenue to offset the cost of tool creation and then some
Based on internal data we estimated this shift could increase traffic to the impacted pages by as much as 30%.
6
Generate revenue to offset the cost of tool creation and then some
Based on internal data we estimated this shift could increase traffic to the impacted pages by as much as 30%.
6
Generate revenue to offset the cost of tool creation and then some
Based on internal data we estimated this shift could increase traffic to the impacted pages by as much as 30%.
Free Tools Project Results
Free Tools Project Results
Free Tools Project Results
Free Tools Project Results
Free Tools Project Results
Free Tools Project Results
There was a significant search opportunity to create free social media images that individuals or brands could download and post alongside their social content. The significant opportunities were two-fold: social media templates by individual network and social media templates by industry.
There was a significant search opportunity to create free social media images that individuals or brands could download and post alongside their social content. The significant opportunities were two-fold: social media templates by individual network and social media templates by industry.
There was a significant search opportunity to create free social media images that individuals or brands could download and post alongside their social content. The significant opportunities were two-fold: social media templates by individual network and social media templates by industry.
There was a significant search opportunity to create free social media images that individuals or brands could download and post alongside their social content. The significant opportunities were two-fold: social media templates by individual network and social media templates by industry.
Similar to the strategy with Landscape, I identified a high traffic blog post that could be converted into a free tool as well. The tool makes it easier to find the best times to post on social media based on your network of choice and industry.
There was a significant search opportunity to create free social media images that individuals or brands could download and post alongside their social content. The significant opportunities were two-fold: social media templates by individual network and social media templates by industry.
There was a significant search opportunity to create free social media images that individuals or brands could download and post alongside their social content. The significant opportunities were two-fold: social media templates by individual network and social media templates by industry.
Similar to the strategy with Landscape, I identified a high traffic blog post that could be converted into a free tool as well. The tool makes it easier to find the best times to post on social media based on your network of choice and industry.
Similar to the strategy with Landscape, I identified a high traffic blog post that could be converted into a free tool as well. The tool makes it easier to find the best times to post on social media based on your network of choice and industry.
Similar to the strategy with Landscape, I identified a high traffic blog post that could be converted into a free tool as well. The tool makes it easier to find the best times to post on social media based on your network of choice and industry.
Similar to the strategy with Landscape, I identified a high traffic blog post that could be converted into a free tool as well. The tool makes it easier to find the best times to post on social media based on your network of choice and industry.
Outcome of the Project
While the project was cut short due to a shift in overall business strategy, the free tools that were created drove a substantial amount of traffic and leads. Moreover, there's now a system in place to scale the creation of free tools should Sprout identify tools to reach their new target audience.
1
137% increase in traffic, 11x our original goal
1
137% increase in traffic, 11x our original goal
1
137% increase in traffic, 11x our original goal
2
92% more trials from the updated blogs posts.
2
92% more trials from the updated blogs posts.
2
92% more trials from the updated blogs posts.
3
26% increase in visitor engagement rate
3
26% increase in visitor engagement rate
3
26% increase in visitor engagement rate
3
35% increase in leads generated
3
35% increase in leads generated
3
35% increase in leads generated
3
75% increase in demo requests
3
75% increase in demo requests
3
75% increase in demo requests
3
Surpassed original traffic goal by 11x
3
Surpassed original traffic goal by 11x
3
Surpassed original traffic goal by 11x
