Interstate Brick added multiple new lead generation channels to their high-touch sales process. Now, they reach architects and builders while they’re actively researching masonry products.
In 6 weeks, Interstate Brick saw results like:
- 116k+ product impressions from UpCodes Promoted Products
- 177 AI Product Assistant conversations, with 10% converted to qualified leads (5x the B2B industry average)
- 24% increase in total website-generated leads
“UpCodes promoted products are low-hanging fruit that can turn into qualified leads down the line. It’s a natural way to get our products in front of the right people.” - Don Strange, National Distribution Manager at Interstate Brick
The challenge: Digital leads for a people-first sales team
Interstate Brick’s sales strategy is built on high-touch, in-person education. The team runs trainings, provides ongoing support, and earns trust through long-term relationships with distributors and architects.
Interstate Brick wanted to elevate this process by generating more leads digitally. Then, reps could take over and nurture them into relationships.
Before UpCodes, Interstate Brick was collecting some leads through their website, and following up via phone. This process was slow, manual, and depended on sales teams’ available time.
- Limited lead capture: Through Interstate Brick’s website, leads could only get in touch via a simple inquiry or sample request form. There was no way to capture users who were browsing quietly, early in their research process.
- Slow responses: When questions did come in, routing them to the right person took time. Basic queries piled up, and project-specific questions could stall while teams tracked down answers.
Interstate Brick wanted to address both limitations with a solution to capture leads early in the research process and provide fast, automated answers. That way, sales reps could focus on personalized support and relationship-building with those already in the funnel.
“People are accustomed to buying things online and getting answers quickly. It’s not as fast to deliver brick as an Amazon package, but UpCodes helps us provide that convenience.” - Shannon Perry, Midwest Territory Manager at Interstate Brick
The solution: Pre-qualifying leads and starting conversations, during the product research process
With UpCodes, Interstate Brick meets prospects where they are during the research process. “At seminars, I always ask distributors and architects if they’re on UpCodes,” says Shannon Perry, Midwest Territory Manager. “Every time, they’re using it to some extent.”
Not only has Interstate Brick elevated their website lead capture, they’ve added multiple new lead generation channels with UpCodes.
- Promoted Products: Captures leads and builds brand awareness, by displaying Interstate Brick products to AEC professionals as they research code in UpCodes’ platform
- AI Product Assistant: Captures leads from Interstate Brick’s website with a purpose-built, embedded AI solution, answering visitor questions and automating navigation workflows
Both solutions provide a convenient, e-commerce-like experience to users. They’re a natural fit into the independent, online research process more and more architects are adopting.
- With Promoted Products, Interstate Brick products are promoted to code-qualified researchers — when they’re choosing a material standard or brand. “If they're reading these code sections, chances are they're interested in masonry,” says Shannon.
- With AI Product Assistant, the sales team never misses an inquiry. The assistant offers immediate answers, 24 hours a day, by referencing Interstate Brick’s website pages, robust library of documentation, and institutional knowledge. It also automatically handles operational workflows like routing requests to a sales rep or locating regional distributors.
From setup onwards, UpCodes has been a proactive partner in helping Interstate Brick launch fast and get value. They’re constantly fine-tuning the AI Product Assistant’s responses and how Interstate Brick shows up in Promoted Products. “Their support has been really good,” says Shannon. “Anytime we need something, they’re all over it instantly.”
“UpCodes helps people do independent research on their own time. If they want answers tailored to their unique project, we’ll dig into that with them later.” - Shannon Perry, Midwest Territory Manager at Interstate Brick
The result: 24% more leads, with 5x the average conversion rate
UpCodes has become an important part of Interstate Brick’s sales process.
Every week, the sales team now follows up with UpCodes-generated leads. These leads are all enriched with context from chat or platform activity, helping the team prioritize the highest-value accounts.
UpCodes sets the stage for the in-depth, personalized education Interstate Brick excels at.
Prospects get acquainted in an effortless, familiar way – through UpCodes’ platform, or easy browsing on Interstate Brick’s site. Then the team takes over, for nuanced conversations only human experts can have.
“UpCodes is growing and becoming a lot more than just code research. It's becoming a catchall for architects to find important information, and we're happy to be a part of that.” - Shannon Perry, Midwest Territory Manager at Interstate Brick
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