You Can Build Successful Lead Partnerships! Here Are 5 Questions To Get You Started by Nick Aragon, Vice President of Business Development, Consumer Pathways at Digital Media Solutions, March 21, 2023 For advertisers, scaling their business often means finding the right lead providers. A robust flow of opted-in prospects can make the difference between a good year and a stellar year. In order to find reliable leads that convert, advertisers and publishers need to forge productive partnerships that work for both parties, which begins with asking the right questions. As we head into the busy spring and summer seasons, the following five questions can help you start the important conversations that facilitate effective and fruitful lead partnerships. Campaign Expectations & Transparency From The Jump Offer The Best Chance At Success Question 1: Have you successfully run the type of campaign I want for my vertical and business? Initially, conversations between advertisers and lead providers should be about establishing compatibility. It’s a good idea, before kicking off those conversations, for advertisers to ask themselves what they plan to do with any leads and data they get – email deliverability, limiting spoilage, volume, etc. By having a strong understanding of their goals, an advertiser is more likely to find a good lead partner. Next, an advertiser should ask potential lead partners what kind of campaigns they run, and potential lead partners should ask advertisers what kind of campaigns they are hoping to launch. These early conversations should be transparent and include: Campaign expectations Goals and KPIs Follow-up capabilities Pricing/Lead type Expectation management If a lead provider or advertiser is unwilling to share details that will help benefit the partnership, someone may not be operating in good faith. An Effective Lead Provider Must Offer Reassurance About Their Operationalized Compliance Question 2: What is your compliance strategy? Compliance is non-negotiable. You can’t enter into a true partnership without understanding how seriously potential lead partners take their compliance. An advertiser should be asking lead providers about their overall compliance strategies, but also how they prove compliance and the validation technologies they use. This information should be given with full disclosure. As more and more states pass stricter TCPA-like restrictions and privacy regulations, compliance will only continue to be an important issue for everyone in performance advertising. At DMS, our operationalized compliance, supported by in-house legal and compliance teams, delivers peace of mind, alleviating concerns about complex regulations across verticals. Contact DMS for more information on how our digital performance advertising solutions are supported by industry-leading compliance processes. A Robust Media Mix Can Drive Quality Leads From Multiple Sources Question 3: Is your media mix diverse, compliant, and high quality? Before partnering with anyone, you want to know how their leads are generated and where they are originating, including whether the origin of the leads is compliant and if it positions the brand well. Brand safety is important when sourcing leads and should be a part of the conversation when looking for lead partnerships. Additionally, an advertiser should know if potential lead providers have adequate internal supply, in addition to third-party volume if there is a need to supplement. “It’s important to make sure the media mix and partners of a lead provider you work with are all on a level playing field and adhering to the same standards. Otherwise, you could end up with an unbalanced mix of leads,” explained Nick Iwicki, Director Of Inside Sales at DMS. Vertical Expertise From A Lead Provider Is Important To Reaching The Right Audience Question 4: How familiar are you with the vertical I work in? Vertical expertise from lead providers offers everything from the benefits of prior experience to small details like understanding the jargon and hurdles of specific industries. It’s important for advertisers to ask potential lead providers who they work with and, even better – get specific. For example, a certain lead provider may work with health insurance companies, but if they are familiar with Medicare regulations, they bring another set of skills, and knowledge to the table, which is important if you plan to run Medicare-related campaigns. Additionally, prior experience in a vertical brings a better understanding of the target audience and how to reach strong, opted-in prospects. A Lead Partner’s Targeting Capabilities Can Help Advertisers Reach Their Audience Question 5: What assurances can you offer that you’ll find the audience I’m looking for? There are various approaches to lead campaigns, one is a volume play, which may work for some advertisers, but ultimately, if the leads aren’t meeting targeting goals, they won’t convert or meet KPIs. Good lead partnerships mean a lead provider’s filters, drill-down capabilities, and audience sourcing match the targeting needs of the advertisers. A “crawl, walk, run” approach with a careful ramp-up during a well-executed testing period makes sure everyone is getting what they’re asking for, allowing lead partnerships to grow and continue. Are You An Advertiser Looking For A Lead Partnership That Scales Your Sales? DMS is a technology-enabled, data-driven performance advertising solutions provider connecting consumers and advertisers. Contact DMS today to learn how our first-party data asset, proprietary technology, and expansive digital media reach can help you scale your customer acquisition results. Contact DMS to learn more. Leverage DMS To Launch Your Publisher Campaigns Acting as a point of connection between leading advertisers and successful, high-quality publishers, DMS Performance Ad Market helps grow businesses by sourcing new, quality customers through more channels than advertisers can reach on their own. Our seasoned experts and proprietary ad distribution platform make it safe and easy to achieve your desired campaign results. Contact DMS today! Become a preferred publisher today to support the customer acquisition and growth efforts of leading U.S. brands. Click here. Filed under: Article, Blue Book, Data, Featured, Revenue, Strategy, Strategy 2.0 Tagged under: DMS About the Author Nick Aragon, Vice President of Business Development, Consumer Pathways at Digital Media Solutions With nearly 20 years of career experience in leads, data and sales path development, Nick Aragon, VP, Business Development — Consumer Pathways at Digital Media Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: DMS), has a well-established history of working with best-in-class industry leaders and scaling revenue. Nick comes to DMS after more than five years as President at CreekView Digital, with prior executive-level roles at Covalent, Aramis and Trancos. At DMS, Nick is taking the lead on expanding and nurturing the Consumer Pathways client base. His unique understanding of how to develop revenue streams in path-based user flows is helping to build a critical competitive advantage for DMS throughout the consumer journey. DMS Consumer Pathways connects our advertiser clients with high-intent consumers interested in their products and services. We provide consumers with easier access to options, promotions and savings, helping advertisers maximize digital advertising results.