Case Study: Kiva Systems Harnesses Video for Lead Qualification

By being able to track which parts of a video a prospect watches repeatedly, the sales person can better understand what that prospect's concerns might be and then address them with follow-up communication. Also, it offers insight into what Kiva Systems' advantages are compared to its competition, selling points the representative might want to emphasize during future contact.

From an internal management aspect, the video-sharing technology gives Kiva Systems control over what video gets distributed in the sales process. Since some of its videos display its automation system in place at customers' warehouses, the firm needs to ensure certain videos are not shared with these customers' competitors while still leveraging the footage as widely as possible. Such a strategy could not be implemented on a Web site, so the ability to e-mail specific videos was critical.

The majority of Kiva Systems' marketing videos are delivered via e-mail from the sales team, Rosenberg says, but the company does offer a couple basic, informational videos as well as nearly a dozen more technical, nonclient ones on its site. The latter are used for lead generation and require visitors to share some contact information before they can view any of the videos. These videos also leverage Wistia technology to help Kiva Systems track prospect engagement.

"It's a strategy to not put much video up on the site, because it forces prospects to interact with Kiva's sales team," explains Rosenberg.

While Rosenberg hasn't pinned down any quantitative measures of improvement to sales by implementing Wistia's video-sharing and tracking solution, he's certain it has saved his company money. By not burning and mailing DVDs, he estimates an ROI of well more than a factor of 10 or even 100. And the cost savings, he emphasizes, are the least valuable benefit.

The qualitative rewards include added productivity for the sales team and a more educated prospect base, two aspects that Kiva Systems can see and believe in without mathematical proof.

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