How do interactive tools compare to other content formats for SMB lead generation and conversion? Where in the sales cycle are they most effective? Do SMBs see their use of interactive tools increasing or decreasing? What kinds of interactive tools – for example calculators, pricing tools, self-assessments, quizzes or benchmarking tools – do SMBs like best? From which vendor categories do SMBs want interactive tools, and on what topics? How much contact information will they provide? To answer these questions – and more – we recently surveyed 500 U.S. SMB principals. There are some great learnings on how to engage SMBs via interactive tools, and as a result to boost awareness, lead generation and purchase.

1. September 27, 2018
Using Interactive Tools for SMB Lead Gen

2. 2
ORIGINAL RESEARCH  CUSTOM CONTENT
INCREASING SALES TO SMBS

3. ORIGINAL RESEARCH  CUSTOM CONTENT
INCREASING SALES TO SMBS
3
Qualitative
• Live / online focus groups
• Workshops
• In-depth interviews
Quantitative
• Custom phone / online
• SMB Pulse omnibus
• SMB Finance, HR, IT and
Marketing Pulses
Methods
• Message / positioning testing
• Attitudes and usage
• Brand awareness / perception
• Buyer identification
• Competitive perceptions
• Customer satisfaction / loyalty
• Market segmentation
• Media behaviors / preferences
• New product testing
• Persona / buyer journey
• Purchase intent, behaviors,
channels and preferences
Topics OutputsOutputs
Internal:
Deep insight for CE / product /
marketing strategy
External:
High-value data for
PR / content / social / collateral

4. 4
ORIGINAL RESEARCH  CUSTOM CONTENT
INCREASING SALES TO SMBS
Video
Email
Newsletters
Checklists /
Worksheets
Case StudiesArticles Blog Posts
White Papers
Podcasts
eBooks
PR Surveys
Social Media
Handbooks /
Guides
Webcasts
Slideshows
Infographics
Interactive
Tools
• Survey data
• Creative brief
• Editorial calendar
• Content development
• Content audit
• Analytics
• New SMB Content
Marketing Roundtable
Contribution
• Expert
• Actionable
• Relevant
• Easy to understand
• Professional
• Brand-building
• Custom
Principles
Direct Mail
Event
Collateral
Brochures /
Sell Sheets
Custom Pubs
New SMB Content
Marketing Roundtable

5. 5
WHAT WE’LL COVER
Interactive tool usage preferences
Format usage: current and outlook
What interactivity is – and isn’t
Benefits of interactive tools

6. 6
METHODOLOGY
1
2
HOW
WHO
Online survey via the Bredin.com/SMBPulse
500 principals of U.S. companies with ≤500 employees (4% +/- CI)
250 VSB
<20 employees
(97.7% weighting)
150 SB
20-99 employees
(2.0% weighting)
100 MB
100-500 employees
(0.3% weighting)
3 WHEN June 18-27, 2018
Charts present weighted data unless noted

7. 48%
52%
Female
Male
Professional Services 27%
Computer Software/Internet 6%
Financial Services/Accounting/Bookkeeping 5%
Advertising/Consulting/Design/Marketing Services 3%
Computer Services/Consulting 3%
Medical 3%
Architect/Engineering 2%
Banking/Insurance/Mortgage 2%
Legal 2%
Retail/Wholesale 29%
Retail 15%
Wholesale 6%
Real Estate 4%
Food/Beverage/Restaurants 3%
Entertainment/Recreation 1%
Travel/Hotel/Hospitality 1%
Manufacturing 28%
Construction/Mining/Contracting/Electrical/Landscape/Plumbing/etc. 14%
Manufacturing/Transportation & Warehousing 5%
Computer Hardware/Electronic Equipment 3%
Automotive 2%
Telecommunications 2%
Pharmaceutical/Medical Devices/Biotechnology 1%
Energy/Utilities 1%
Other 15%
Personal Services 12%
Education/Training 4%
Title
45%
29%
26%
50+
35-49
18-34
Age
Gender
RESPONDENT CHARACTERISTICS
7 n=500
100%
Principal (e.g.,
owner, founder,
partner, CEO,
president, etc.)
Industry
44%
15%
23%
17%
Less than $500k
$500k to $999k
$1M to $4.9M
$5M+
2017 Revenue
Millennial
Gen X
Boomer

8. 14%
29%
27%
30%
Less than 4 years
4 to 9 years
10 to 19 years
20 or more years 2%
4%
23%
25%
36%
9%
Down more than 10%
Down by less than 10%
Same as 2017
Up by less than 10%
Up 10% to 100%
Up by more than 100%
Years in Business
Geography
2018 Revenue Outlook
Northeast
20%
South
37%
West
23%
Midwest
21%
RESPONDENT CHARACTERISTICS
8
17%
43%
40%
Population Density
n=500
50%
30%
20%
1 to 19
Employees
20 to 99
Employees
100 to 500
Employees
Headcount

9. DETAILED FINDINGS

10. Interactivity is what happens when users control some element of content display
10
DEFINING INTERACTIVITY
Presenting business management advice… …complex data…
…product payback / ROI…

11. Interactivity is what happens when users control some element of content display
11
DEFINING INTERACTIVITY
…product options… …or pricing.
Interactivity is NOT:
Navigation
Static content
A lead capture form

12. 3%
3%
3%
4%
4%
4%
4%
6%
6%
6%
6%
7%
7%
10%
27%
Infographic
Webinar / webcast
Interactive tool
Video
Podcast
Peer forum or discussion board
Case study
Analyst report
Research report
Online eBook / guide / handbook
Blog post
Checklist / worksheet
White paper
Article
Email newsletter
Interactive tools aren’t currently the most popular format…
12
N=417
In each column, please select the one format you are most likely to use - whether to first learn about products and services for your business, to research them, or to make a final
purchase decision.
CONTENT FORMAT PREFERENCES IN THE SALES CYCLE
2%
4%
4%
5%
4%
7%
5%
5%
16%
8%
3%
6%
9%
8%
14%
2%
6%
4%
3%
2%
7%
9%
9%
7%
5%
3%
15%
8%
5%
15%
Awareness Research Purchase

13. …but usage intent is growing strongly
13
n=500
Thinking about the business management advice you might get from your vendors like banks or credit card companies, how do you expect your use of each of these content
formats will change over the next 12 months?
CONTENT FORMAT USAGE OUTLOOK
-2%
-6%
-4%
-6%
-5%
-5%
-8%
-6%
-4%
-4%
-5%
-3%
-4%
-4%
-2%
-3%
-3%
-1%
-2%
-2%
-2%
-2%
-4%
-3%
0%
-1%
-2%
-4%
-1%
-1%
10%
11%
12%
13%
15%
14%
14%
14%
14%
15%
15%
17%
18%
20%
24%
4%
5%
4%
6%
4%
5%
6%
6%
7%
6%
7%
6%
5%
6%
5%
Analyst report
Peer forum or discussion board
Article
Blog post
Online eBook / guide / handbook
Infographic
White paper
Podcast
Webinar / webcast
Case study
Research report
Checklist / worksheet
Video
Interactive tool
Email newsletter
45% of young SMBs (<4
years old) plan to increase
use of interactive tools vs.
22% 10-19 year old SMBs
and 14% of 20+ year old
SMBs

14. 12%
12%
13%
14%
15%
15%
15%
16%
17%
17%
17%
17%
19%
19%
22%
Podcast
Blog post
White paper
Infographic
Peer forum or discussion board
Webinar / webcast
Video
Online eBook / guide / handbook
Interactive tool
Checklist / worksheet
Case study
Analyst report
Article
Email newsletter
Research report
SMBs are most likely to share research reports, followed by email newsletters and articles
14
n=500
% rated very likely
On a scale of 1 (not at all likely) to 3 (very likely), how likely are you to forward or share each of these content formats, either within your company or to people outside of it?
CONTENT SHARING BY FORMAT
Millennials are more than twice (46%) as likely
to share research reports compared to
respondents ages 35-49 (18%) and 50+ (18%).
SMBs with revenue $5M+ are the most likely to
share a research report at 51%
Respondents at SMBs in the professional
services (28%) industry were more likely to
share articles than their peers in the retail /
wholesale (15%) space
Despite being the format least likely to be
shared by SMBs, 35% of Millennials say
they’re very likely to share a podcast compared
to only 6% of Boomers

15. 64%
0%
6%
7%
8%
14%
20%
21%
N/A - I've haven't used any
Other
Configurator
Benchmarking tool
Quiz
Self-assessment
Pricing tool
Calculator
Larger SMBs (20+ employees) are much more likely to have used an interactive tool
15
n=500
Thinking specifically of the kinds of vendors you might use for products and services for your business – such as banks, office supply stores, insurance companies, telecoms /
Internet companies, tech / software companies, etc. – what kinds of interactive tools have you used on the websites of your current, or potential, vendors? (Select all that apply.)
POPULARITY OF INTERACTIVE TOOLS
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
21% 42% 48%
20% 41% 45%
14% 27% 40%
8% 19% 22%
6% 26% 29%
6% 25% 39%
0% 1% 0%
64% 28% 12%
Women are more than twice as likely than
their male peers to have used a self-
assessment tool (19% vs. 8%)
Pricing tools are most popular in Retail /
Wholesale (28%) and Professional services
(22%), ranking first for both segments.
Only 29% of Millennial SBOs have never used an interactive
tool before, compared to 59% of 35-49 and 71% of 50+
78% of no-growth SMBs have never used a tool, compared
to 44% of fast growth and 31% of Hypergrowth

16. MBs most prefer tools during the product discovery process
16
n=285
What do you find interactive tools most useful for?
PREFERRED USES
14%
31%
39%
16%
Making a final purchase
decision on products and
services for your business
Conducting research on
products or services for
your business
First learning about
specific products or
services for your business
Becoming aware of
companies I hadn't heard
of before
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
16% 29% 44%
39% 28% 25%
31% 25% 15%
13% 19% 16%

17. 12%
14%
16%
18%
40%
Comparing your business to other
businesses
Testing your skills / business
knowledge
Providing customized advice or
instructions to help me solve business
challenges
Understanding product costs and
(where appropriate) delivery timing
Better understanding the potential
benefits of a product or service (e.g.
productivity gains, cost savings)
SMBs prefer to use tools to understand product benefits
17
n=500
Of the options below, which would you say interactive tools are best at?
INTERACTIVE TOOLS ARE BEST AT…
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
40% 27% 35%
18% 16% 15%
16% 19% 19%
14% 17% 19%
12% 21% 12%
Millennial SBOs are more interested in seeing
how they compare to other businesses (24%)
than Gen X (11%) and Boomers (10%)

18. 11%
13%
13%
15%
15%
16%
18%
18%
19%
21%
21%
24%
27%
30%
Blog post
Press release
Forum / discussion board
My employees
Vendor sales rep.
Social media
Business news sites
Event / tradeshow
My external team
Online review
Vendor website
Email newsletter
Search
Peers / colleagues
SMBs are most likely to learn about interactive tools from peers
18
n=500 % rated very likely
On a scale of 1 (not at all likely) to 3 (very likely), please rate how likely you are to first become aware of an interactive tool via each of these options.
INTERACTIVE TOOL DISCOVERY
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
29% 45% 52%
26% 45% 57%
24% 39% 44%
21% 41% 49%
20% 43% 53%
18% 43% 45%
17% 44% 43%
17% 37% 42%
16% 34% 46%
15% 41% 52%
15% 39% 60%
13% 37% 47%
13% 33% 45%
10% 30% 47%
Millennials (54%) and
Boomers (26%) are most
likely to find an interactive
tool from their peers /
colleagues
Gen Xers are most likely to
find an interactive tool from
an online review (36%)
Millennials (40%) are 8x more likely to find an
interactive tool on a blog than Boomers (5%)

19. 19
n=500
Of the options below, what do you find interactive tools most useful for?
HOW THEY’RE USED
13%
24%
63%
I mostly forward them to my team
I both use them myself and share
them with my team
I mostly use them myself
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
64% 47% 62%
23% 43% 31%
13% 11% 7%
The majority of SMBs use interactive tools themselves
Gen Xers (44%) are the most likely
to share interactive tools with their
team, versus Millennials (30%) and
Boomers (16%)

20. 12%
12%
13%
14%
14%
15%
16%
16%
16%
17%
17%
18%
18%
18%
18%
18%
18%
18%
19%
19%
19%
19%
20%
20%
20%
21%
22%
Social media companies
Local business directories
Payroll service providers
Employee recruiting services / temp agencies
Alternative / online lenders
Local / long distance (i.e. landline) phone company/ies
Hotels
Energy (e.g. gas, electricity) companies
Airlines
Cellphone / smartphone handset manufacturers
Local technology solution providers
Rental car companies
Software companies
Mutual fund companies
Cellphone (wireless) service providers
Overnight package delivery companies
National / regional banks
Retirement plan providers
Marketing services
Credit unions
Internet access providers / website hosts
Insurance companies
Your CPA
Credit card companies
Technology hardware manufacturers
Local / community banks
Office supply stores / print centers
SMBs most want interactive tools from office supply stores / print centers
20
n=500 % rated want very much
On a scale of 1 (do not want at all) to 3 (want very much), please rate how much you want interactive tools from each of these kinds of vendors.
INTERACTIVE TOOL DEMAND BY INDUSTRY
Demand for content from all
industries is higher from
Millennials than their older peers
MBs have higher demand from all of
the industries compared to VSBs
and higher demand from 25 out of
the 27 industries compared to SBs

21. 7%
11%
20%
22%
25%
25%
26%
31%
33%
Import / export
Human resources
Leadership and management
Operations
Law and taxes
Industry news and trends
Technology
Business development / sales and marketing
Financial planning / money management
VSBs prefer financial management; SBs, BD and tech; MBs, tech tools
21
n=500 % ranked 1st or 2nd
Please rank-order these topics on which you would like interactive tools, from most useful / desirable (top) to least useful / desirable (bottom)
PREFERRED TOPICS
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
33% 29% 24%
31% 30% 26%
26% 30% 33%
26% 18% 25%
25% 16% 13%
22% 19% 26%
20% 21% 18%
11% 25% 17%
7% 12% 18%

22. 71%
3%
4%
13%
9%
No - we do not offer interactive tools
Yes, but they're very ineffective
Yes, but they're somewhat ineffective
Yes, and they're somewhat effective
Yes, and they're very effective
Interactive tool use increases sharply with company size
22
n=500
Does your own company provide interactive tools on your website and if so, how effective are they?
VSB (<20) SB (20-99) MB (100-500)
9% 32% 54%
13% 19% 15%
4% 4% 7%
2% 10% 11%
72% 35% 13%
Of the SMBs using interactive
tools, 33% describe them as very
effective and only 9% describe
them as very ineffective
SMB’S OWN USE OF INTERACTIVE TOOLS

23. IMPACT OF INTERACTIVE

24. Interactive tools can help with brand perception, as well as customer acquisition and retention
24
THE IMPACT OF INTERACTIVE TOOLS
47%
Of SMBs say they
are more likely to
become a
customer
56%
Of SMBs are more
likely to remain a
customer
57%
SMBs think more
favorably of the
sponsoring
company
Favorability Acquisition Retention
n=500
The younger the business / respondent the
more likely they are to think more favorably of
a company that sponsors Interactive tools.
77% of MBs and 72% of SBs say a
company having interactive tools make
them more likely to become a customer
compared to 47% of VSBs
Interactive tools are especially effective
at retaining growing companies with
69% of fast growth and 61% of slow
growth more likely to remain a
customer of the sponsoring company
VSB (<20 employees) SB (20-99 employees) MB (100-500 employees)

25. Despite the increasing prevalence of tools only 16% of SMBs have made a purchase as a result
25
n=500
Would you say that you have made a product or service purchase because of an interactive tool?
MAKING A PURCHASE AS A RESULT OF A TOOL
16% of SMBs
have made a
purchase because
of an interactive
tool
45% of Millennials say they’ve made a
purchase as a result of an interactive tool
compared to 22% of 35-49 years olds and
8% of 50+.
35% of hypergrowth SMBs and 25% of fast
growth have made a purchase as result of
an interactive tool compared to 16% of slow
growth and 9% of no growth.
VSB (<20 employees)
SB (20-99 employees)
MB (100-500 employees)

26. 25%
9%
7%
7%
17%
24%
11%
11%
27%
34%
53%
53%
16%
17%
13%
13%
15%
15%
16%
16%
MBs (100-500)
SBs (20-99)
VSBs (<20)
Total
MBs prefer an interactive tool over from a sales rep.
26
n=500
Would you rather use an interactive tool to get customized business management advice / product information, or would you rather get that information by talking to a vendor
sales representative?
INTERACTIVE TOOLS VS. SALES REP.
Significantly prefer an
interactive tool
Neutral / no preference Significantly prefer a
sales rep.
31%42%

27. Almost a quarter of SMBs have provided at least their email as a result of an interactive tool
27
PROVIDING CONTACT INFORMATION
23% of SMBs
have provided their
email address to
get information
from an interactive
tool
n=500
Email
47%
16%
16%
17%
37%
I wouldn't provide my email address under any
circumstances
For additional, high-value content like
benchmarking data or custom recommendations
To get a PDF version of the tool results (such as
a project checklist, or my scores)
To be entered into a contest or sweepstakes
For a free product trial or some kind of discount
28%
29%
29%
31%
35%
41%
43%
54%
Revenue
Number of employees
Industry
Fax number
Title/position
Business phone
Cell number
Mailing address
Under what circumstances would you be willing to provide your email address to get
information from an interactive tool?
If so, what information did you provide?
n=73
n=384
63% of SMBs
have provided more
than just an email
address
n=116

28. SMBs are fairly willing to provide additional contact information
28
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PROVIDED
Total
n=214
(of those who have provided their email address) Have you provided more information than just your email address for an interactive tool?
28%
29%
29%
31%
35%
41%
43%
54%
Revenue
Number of employees
Industry
Fax number
Title/position
Business phone
Cell number
Mailing address
25%
28%
41%
21%
46%
56%
36%
51%
29%
29%
29%
31%
34%
40%
43%
54%
25%
42%
27%
28%
35%
43%
50%
50%
VSBs SBs MBs

29. 29
HOW BREDIN CAN HELP
Stu Richards, CEO
stu@bredin.com
• Content strategy
• Creative brief / ed cal
Strategy
• Original content development
• Exclusive SMB focus
Content
• Product / go-to-market strategy
• Persona / buyer journey
• Original data for standout content and PR
Research
Work with the experts in SMB insight and engagement

30. THANK YOU
Want to watch the original
Fastcast? Watch it here.
Want the full deck as a PDF?
Email us at:
info@bredin.com