Corporate Overview
www.investorrelations.com
Sharon Merrill Associates is one of America’s preeminent investor relations and corporate communications firms. SMA serves private and public companies in a broad range of industries, including technology, biotechnology, medical devices, financial services, manufacturing, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and consumer products.
Their mission for these clients is to enhance their access to capital on favorable terms, capture the attention of the investment community, and generate positive attention in the business media. Founded in 1985, SMA has been executing award-winning programs and staying in daily contact with Wall Street and the media for nearly 20 years. Their principals have earned wide recognition for innovative approaches to investor targeting, as pioneers in Web-based IR, and for leadership in IR best practices as officers and board members of Financial Executives International, the National Investor Relations Institute and the National Association of Corporate Directors.
Needs Assessment
The Sharon Merrill Associates objective was to develop a structured direct sales & marketing campaign designed to draw attention to their investor relations services. In particular, SMA wanted to market their investor perception audit survey called StreetScope as a means to engaging new clients.
Not having a direct sales organization of their own, SMA sought the services of Dealbuilders to make telephone calls and schedule in-person meetings and conference calls with the chief financial officers of publicly traded companies for purposes of discussing the SMA StreetScope offering.
DealBuilders Role
During the preliminary phase of the client engagement, Dealbuilders consulted with SMA for purposes of defining the objectives, developing the strategy, and planning the execution required to fill the SMA pipeline with qualified prospects. Over the course of a two-week period Dealbuilders and SMA assembled a target list of chief financial officers. Calls were then made to the individuals on the SMA ‘Master Prospect List’.
Once contact was made with the target prospect, and a meeting was scheduled for SMA, Dealbuilders handled the responsibility for setting the SMA meeting calendar and confirmed the scheduled meetings with prospects.
Dealbuilders also participated in each of the conference calls scheduled with the SMA prospects to ensure that each call had a structured agenda, and that the SMA management was properly introduced into each conference call.
For in-person meetings scheduled on behalf of SMA, Dealbuilders would obtain directions to the meeting, and would prearrange all security clearance requirements prior to the arrival of SMA management for the meeting.
Dealbuilders and SMA held weekly calls to review the progress made each week. Dealbuilders also forwarded a weekly prospect activity report to SMA management at the close of business each Friday.
Results
Over the course of the six-month client engagement, Dealbuilders successfully scheduled over 75 conference calls and in-person meetings with companies such as Raytheon, Boston Beer, Exide Technologies, LIN TV Corp., and Allmerica Financial. As a result of the Dealbuilders scheduled meetings, SMA successfully added new clients, and achieved its objective to heighten awareness for its services within the pharmaceutical and health sciences marketplace in the New England region.
At the conclusion of their engagement with Dealbuilders, SMA also acquired a more thorough understanding of their competitors throughout the Northeast. This knowledge continues to help Sharon Merrill Associates to position their services accurately to their target market audience throughout New England.