Eight master's students from the Industrial Engineering program at OTH Amberg-Weiden, in collaboration with VALEO IT Services International GmbH, have developed a digital model for lead generation. This project serves as an important foundation for the revision and further development of our marketing process.

Systematically connect marketing and sales
The goal of the joint practical project was to systematically further develop our existing marketing process. The central focus was the question of how digital reach can be specifically converted into qualified business contacts and then meaningfully handed over to sales.
To this end, the master's students first developed a common understanding of the lead and sales funnel. The focus was particularly on the early stages of the customer journey: generating attention, identifying the relevant challenges of potential customers, and developing suitable content and concrete contact offers from this.

From analysis to practical solution
The project spanned from April to July 2026 and comprised several sequential phases.
After the kick-off, the project team first analyzed the market environment. The students examined which channels comparable IT service providers use to reach their target groups and which formats they employ for lead generation.
Subsequently, white papers, landing pages, and other lead magnets were examined in detail. The insights gained led to concrete guidelines and recommendations for VALEO IT's future marketing measures.

Concrete building blocks for the new marketing process
Recommendations for campaigns on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Google
These building blocks will help us to capture marketing contacts more uniformly in the future, qualify them better, and hand them over to sales in a structured manner. At the same time, they form an important basis for the further revision of our entire marketing process.

A special focus was placed on the direct applicability of the results. Among other things, the following were developed:

• a white paper with a suitable landing page
• A structured trade fair questionnaire
• An IT quick check with scoring and recommendations for action
• A newsletter concept for long-term relationship management
• A uniform lead sheet for capture and qualification
• a target group-specific topic pool

Clear roadmap for further implementation
To conclude the project, the eight master's students presented their results at VALEO IT in Luhe-Wildenau. In addition to the developed content, the team handed over a roadmap for further implementation, testing, and optimization.
The results will help us align marketing and sales even more closely. Relevant content will be used more strategically in the future to build new contacts, systematically develop prospects, and cultivate long-term customer relationships.

Valuable Knowledge Transfer Between Universities and Companies
The collaboration demonstrates how academic knowledge and entrepreneurial practice can be successfully combined. The students were able to apply their knowledge to a concrete task. At the same time, VALEO IT benefited from new perspectives, sound analyses, and practical solution proposals.
We thank all involved Master's students as well as OTH Amberg-Weiden for their committed, professional, and collaborative partnership.
Together, we will create the foundation for a modern, structured, and customer-oriented marketing process.