Sales and marketing are two hands that work in concert and - in the best of circumstances - march to the same beat.

But while their overall goals are similar, the methods of achieving those goals may vary. Marketing focuses on communications and lead generation; sales focuses on lead processing and selling. But one distinct tool they both increasingly are finding invaluable for refining and improving their methods is web conferencing.

Businesses are only beginning to measure the impact of their use of web conferencing for sales and marketing. Yet while relatively new to the scene, a few things are clear: web conferencing is beginning to help thousands of organizations with their efforts to reach customers - and to do so in a variety of ways. Are the methods and benefits - for each functional area the same or different?

To identify how businesses are using web conferencing to sell and market more effectively and scale their efforts, and to assess the current "state of the art" in using web conferencing in the sales process, Wainhouse Research and Citrix surveyed over 1,000 knowledge workers and business owners during July-September 2007 regarding their attitudes towards and use cases for web conferencing to support formal and informal sales and marketing efforts, with both internal and external audiences. Respondents include workers in sales (25%), marketing/PR (12%), management (11%), IT (10%), administration (7%), professional services (6%), consulting (4%), and engineering (3%). Smaller numbers comprise professionals in support, training, finance, manufacturing, and HR. All respondents were able to contribute to the impact of web conferencing on their sales and marketing efforts.

Two out of three say web conferencing for sales & marketing reduces unnecessary travel, while two out of five say that it enhances productivity and improves demonstration capabilities.

HOW IS WEB CONFERENCING AFFECTING THE SALES & MARKETING OPERATIONS CYCLE?

Training and outbound communications are both important to sales and marketing, as the data shows that two of the top four applications for web conferencing are in sales and customer training; the other two in communications.

* TWO OUT OF FIVE (41%) ORGANIZATIONS CONDUCT SALES TRAINING.

* ALMOST THAT MANY (37%) DELIVER WEBINARS.

* ONE IN THREE (34%) USE WEB CONFERENCING TO DELIVER SCHEDULED DEMONSTRATIONS OR CUSTOMER TRAINING.

* ONE IN FOUR (27%) USE IT TO PROVIDE AD HOC DEMONSTRATIONS.

* ALSO, ONE IN FOUR (23%) USE IT TO ACTUALLY CLOSE BUSINESS - A SIGN THAT WEB CONFERENCING CAN BE USEFUL IN EVERY STAGE OF THE SALES AND MARKETING CYCLE.

HOW DOES WEB CONFERENCING AFFECT SALES?

* WEB CONFERENCING'S SINGLE GREATEST IMPACT IS TO REDUCE UNNECESSARY TRAVEL (60%) WITHOUT DIMINISHING CUSTOMER CONTACT.

* TWO OUT OF FIVE (41%) CITE ENHANCED PRODUCTIVITY AND ALMOST THE SAME NUMBER (39%) CITE IMPROVED DEMONSTRATION CAPACITY.

* IMPROVED INTERNAL SALES TRAINING AND EXTERNAL TRAINING EFFORTS ARE SEEN BY ALMOST ONE THIRD.

* INCREASED PROSPECT CONTACT IS ALSO COMMON.

* INCREASED REVENUE GROWTH AND OTHER BENEFITS MAY TAKE LONGER TO REACH CRITICAL MASS.

HOW DOES WEB CONFERENCING AFFECT MARKETING RESULTS?

* ALMOST HALF (49%) HAVE FOUND AN IMPACT ON THEIR MARKETING RESULTS IN A REDUCED NEED FOR IN-PERSON EVENTS. THIS NUMBER MIRRORS THE REDUCTION IN SALES TRAVEL.

* ABOUT ONE THIRD (34%) FIND WEB CONFERENCING OFFERS NEW METHODS OF MARKETING.

* ABOUT ONE IN FOUR (26%) FIND THAT IT ADDS "HIGH TOUCH" TO THEIR MARKETING, AND 24% SIMILARLY SEE IT HELPING THEM REACH NEW CHANNELS.

* WEB CONFERENCING HAS AN IMPACT ON DOLLARS AND CENTS IN ABOUT ONE IN FOUR ORGANIZATIONS AS WELL: 23% SAY IT REDUCED THE COST PER LEAD AND THAT IT HAS HELPED REDUCE THEIR OVERALL MARKETING BUDGETS.

* WEB CONFERENCING ALSO HELPS OPEN UP NEW MARKETS, GIVES A COMPETITIVE EDGE, AND IMPROVES BRAND REPUTATION.

INFLUENCE OVER PROSPECTS

Web conferencing appears to be a tool that enables speed-to-market and delivery of complex communications to prospects.

* 41% STATE THAT IT HELPS THEIR PROSPECTS GET WHAT THEY NEED SOONER AND MORE EFFICIENTLY, AND 41% STATE THAT IT HELPS PROSPECTS UNDERSTAND COMPLEX TOPICS MORE EASILY.

* ANOTHER 38% STATE THAT WEB CONFERENCING MAKES THEIR ORGANIZATIONS APPEAR TO BE MORE CUTTING EDGE.

* ABOUT ONE THIRD (33%) SAY THAT IT MAKES THEIR PROSPECTS MORE OPEN TO NEW IDEAS OR HELPS THEM BECOME MORE SATISFIED CUSTOMERS. PARSING COMPLEX TOPICS FOR PROSPECTS IS A KEY BENEFIT OF WEB CONFERENCING.

LEAD GENERATION

Other than closed business, the sales and marketing process can most closely be monitored through tracking the increases or decreases in numbers of leads (qualified and unqualified) and cost per lead. Those involved in sales and marketing see clear improvement in all areas of lead generation.

* ABOUT ONE HALF (46%) SEE SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN UNQUALIFIED LEADS FROM WEB CONFERENCING (GREATER THAN 26%).

* SLIGHTLY MORE THAN ONE HALF (53%) SEE SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN QUALIFIED LEADS FROM WEB CONFERENCING (AGAIN, GREATER THAN 26% IMPROVEMENT).

* ABOUT HALF (51%) ALSO SEE IMPROVEMENT IN COST PER LEAD (GREATER THAN 26% IMPROVEMENT).

SATISFACTION AND PROVIDERS

We asked the survey group how their organizations would rate their experience with web conferencing providers. A total of 97% are very satisfied, satisfied, or somewhat satisfied. Only 3% are not satisfied.

* WE EXAMINED SATISFACTION RATES BY VENDOR ON A 1-4 SCALE (WITH 4 = VERY SATISFIED AND 1 = NOT SATISFIED). CLTRIX, THE SPONSOR OF THIS RESEARCH, IS THE TOPRATED VENDOR, WITH A COMPOSITE SCORE OF 3.3. THIS CLEARLY SHOWS POSITIVE ATTITUDES REGARDING ITS USER SATISFACTION FOR SALES AND MARKETING APPLICATIONS.

* OTHER WELL-RATED PROVIDERS RECEIVED COMPOSITE SCORES RANGING FROM 2.4 TO 2.9 - RESPECTABLE NUMBERS THAT ARE AT THE HIGH END OF THE SATISFACTION RANGE. BUT AMONG THOSE SURVEYED FORTHIS PROJECT, CITRIX IS LEADING THE WAY IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION.

REASONS FOR DISSATISFACTION

A sales and marketing event must be bulletproof Whether the audience is internal or external, customer or partner, your attendees' time is invaluable and false starts lead to later no-shows. Thus it is not surprising that poor performance (24%) is the single biggest issue for the 3% of total users who are not satisfied with their web conferencing providers.

The issues that Wainhouse Research consistently hears about are:

* POOR PERFORMANCE OR POOR SERVICE/SUPPORT

* THE FEELING THAT THE TECHNOLOGY CAN SOMETIMES BE TOO COMPLICATED (TO DEPLOY OR TO ACTIVELY USE)

* LACK OF SUFFICIENT FEATURES

* TOO EXPENSIVE OR TOO DIFFICULT TO PREDICT THOSE COSTS

* LACK OF SECURITY

Fortunately, those issues affect a tiny fraction of the overall web conferencing user community.

WHAT IT TAKES TO MAKE WEB CONFERENCING EFFECTIVE FOR SALES & MARKETING

We also hear over and over that effective use of web conferencing combines solid content, quality presenters, and technology that delivers rock-solid performance. Users tell us repeatedly that they seek easy-to-use technology that enables interactivity instead of "taking over" interactions. Many of the most memorable sales presentations, demonstrations, and webinars combine those three elements effectively, resulting in a powerful tool for many organizations as they take their products and services to market.

About Wainhouse Research

Wainhouse Research, www.wainhouse.com, is an independent market research firm that focuses on critical issues in rich media communications, videoconferencing, teleconferencing, and streaming media. The company conducts multi-client and custom research studies, consults with end users on key implementation issues, publishes white papers and market statistics, and delivers public and private seminars as well as speaker presentations at industry group meetings. Wainhouse Research publishes a variety of reports that cover all the aspects of rich media conferencing, and the free newsletter, The Wainhouse Research Bulletin. This application brief copyright © 2007 Wainhouse Research, LLC.

About Citrix Online

Citrix Online, a division of Citrix Systems, Inc., is a leading provider of easy-to-use, ondemand applications for Web conferencing and collaboration. Its award-winning services include GoToMeeting Corporate, a complete collaboration solution that satisfies all Web conferencing needs ranging from large Webinars to small online meetings. With GoToMeeting Corporate, organizations of any size can use GoToWebinar for do-ityourself Web events and GoToMeeting for smaller, more interactive online meetings. GoToMeeting Corporate allows users to easily present, demonstrate and provide training online to anyone, anywhere in the world. GoToMeeting Corporate can make businesses of any size more productive by reducing travel time and costs and enhancing communication, ultimately leading to faster decision making and more efficient workers. For a free evaluation of GoToMeeting Corporate, please visit www.gotomeeting.com/s/WReval.