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What is Outcome-Based Marketing (OBM)?
Outcome-based marketing (OBM) is a pay-for-results advertising strategy that gives brands the ability to only pay once they’ve acquired a qualified customer, sale, install, call, any desired outcome – you name it. By tailoring campaigns around a definite outcome, marketers will only spend advertising dollars for real, qualified customers – not for metrics such as clicks or impressions.
How Does Outcome-Based Marketing (OBM) Work?
Outcome-based marketing (OBM) is simple – it’s an umbrella term that encompasses an array of traditional tactics:
With outcome-based marketing, it’s the affiliates, publishers, bloggers, influencers, paid media specialists, and other partnerships who take responsibility for driving customers and sales for your business.
The financial risk is entirely alleviated for marketers – if these partners don’t deliver results, they don’t earn anything – providing an incentive for action and a shield against budget losses.
Is Outcome-Based Marketing (OBM) Right for Your Industry?
As marketing dollars shift away from traditional media efforts, companies must prioritize clear customer acquisition strategies and measurable return on ad spend to remain relevant – no matter your vertical or preferred campaign type.
Finance
The finance industry continues to experience major consumer shifts:
- Growing demand for new online banking tools
- Faster payment methods
- Smarter investing apps
Marketers don’t have to feel hesitant about testing across new digital channels, as OBM is a proven risk-free model. However, finance marketers must be on top of their game when it comes to maintaining marketing compliance and providing customers with a transparent buying experience. If your brand is within the financial services market and you prioritize campaign competitiveness and strategic payouts, an OBM strategy will provide access to a wide array of media opportunities and scalability.
Mobile App
Mobile app marketers who have their sights set on measurable, performance-based growth are a perfect candidate for OBM. The most common pricing model includes cost-per-install (CPI), meaning that marketers will only pay once a qualified user installs and opens the app. There are an array of campaign types that iOS and Android app marketers can test with OBM, including display, social, in-app ads, ASO, search, push, retargeting, and more. It’s important to note that if not already, mobile marketers will need to be working with an Mobile Measurement Partner (MMP) in order to track and measure campaign performance.
Pay per call
For marketers who already receive a high influx of calls from prospective customers, it would be wise to invest in pay per call with an outcome-based strategy. Those who work with an OBM partner such as Perform[cb] will reap major benefits, including:
- Increasing reach and call volume
- Driving more conversions while simultaneously
eliminating risk of fraud - Gaining access to a wide range of well-vetted partners and call sources
- Expanding distribution to drive inbound and
outbound calls across multiple channels
In order to get started utilizing OBM for pay per call campaigns and enable source level performance-based tracking and pricing, marketers must first secure a call-side tracking platform and provide multiple DID (unique phone numbers). Pay per call is competitive, so those marketers who are able to provide competitive call rates will see high-converting call durations as a result.
E-Commerce
When it comes to customer acquisition, e-commerce is one of the most prominent, fastest-growing verticals. To capitalize on this, OBM should make up at least 15% of brand’s online sales with the potential to scale to a much larger percentage. This is because OBM has the power to scale conversions and strengthen brand loyalty, thus driving ROAS and ROI on a cost per sale (CPS) model.
A full-funnel approach is the way to go, meaning testing across various top-funnel partners such as content sites, middle-funnel publishers such as product reviews, and bottom-funnel affiliates such as deal and loyalty sites.
Affiliate Program Management
If you’re a B2C marketer with a product or service sold online, OBM should be a no-brainer. Many marketers across the B2C industry implement an affiliate program, which allows publishers to promote and sell products or services in exchange for a commission on each sale – aka, pay-for-performance.
When running an affiliate program, it’s recommended to partner with an affiliate management agency to collaborate on campaign promotions and publisher performance in an effort to exceed KPIs and ROAS goals.
Client Success Stories
Combining Omnichannel and Outcome-Based Marketing (OBM)
Omnichannel marketing sets the foundation for delivering a consistent customer experience, while OBM focuses on defining and measuring specific outcomes to assess the success of marketing initiatives. Consumers interact with businesses through multiple channels and devices throughout their customer journey – all the more reason to implement an omnichannel strategy, as this can increase your chances of achieving your desired outcome.
Did you know there are at least 24 diverse channels that marketers can test with outcome-based marketing? Here’s a sneak peek…
- SMS
- Cart Abandonment
- Retargeting
- Card Linking
- Review sites
- Coupon & Deal
- Influencers (YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, etc)
- Contextual
- Display
- Content Sites
- Mobile
An outcome-based model is ideal for brands looking to create more of an omnichannel approach without the risk of wasting ad spend.
Key Components of a Successful Outcome-Based Marketing (OBM) Strategy
If your brand has traditionally been laser focused on competing for CPM inventory or keyword bids, shifting to an outcome-based marketing (OBM) strategy will unlock the full scale and profitability you’ve been missing.
Perform[cb] has identified five key components of OBM that separate successful brands from their competitors:
- Create a Frictionless Customer Journey
- Real-Time Tipping Points (RTTP)
- Experiment with Multiple Conversion Points
- Data-Driven Partnerships
- Granular Optimization Loops
This is just the tip of the iceberg… Download your copy of The C-Suite’s Guide to Outcome-Based Marketing (OBM) to unlock exclusive insight into how these pillars of success can revolutionize your brand’s customer acquisition.
How to Choose an Outcome-Based Marketing Partner
When evaluating an outcome-based marketing partner, it’s important to consider a range of factors. Ask your marketing team the following questions:
- Does this partner have a proven track record of delivering massive scale?
- Can they integrate with my preferred tracking and reporting platform?
- Are they utilizing AI across their team’s workflows and reporting capabilities?
- How do they proactively manage potential ad fraud and brand safety?
- What internal resources do they have that the competitors may not?
With our dedicated team, not only do marketers only pay when they get a customer, we also optimize to brands secondary KPI goals – for example, memberships, funded accounts, locked policies, customer lifetime value (CLV), and more.
If you’re ready to take the next step in your brand’s marketing journey, Perform ’s tenured experts are here. Let’s discuss your current marketing initiatives, frustrations, and questions, and explain how we can help you exceed these goals with outcome-based marketing.