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According to a survey by IDG, 61 percent of companies have problems generating leads. That’s a big number and suggests that they’ve got their approach to lead generation wrong.

But what exactly are they getting wrong?

It turns out that there are a number of ways that companies make mistakes when it comes to lead generation. Mainly it comes down to failing to identify different kinds of leads and put technology into action.

The following are some tips to help you get your company out of the doldrums and start generating high-quality, healthy leads once more.

 

Use Lead Nurturing

What is lead nurturing? Put simply, it’s buttering up a client before the sale. According to research from professional services groups, like Forrester, companies who nurture leads are able to make 50 percent more sales than those who don’t. What’s more, they spend around a third less on every lead than other companies in their sector.

 

Using lead nurturing is simple:

  1. The first thing to do is to get your target’s permission to build a relationship with them. This can be anything, from keeping in regular contact through email marketing to going and meeting them in person at a restaurant, if it’s a high-value client.
  1. The next stage is to educate your target. Make sure that they know about the value that your company offers. Get exciting about your product and talk about how it’s helped your customers improve their lives or their business. Don’t sell directly, but keep the conversation focused on the value that your business generates.
  1. Finally, keep on top of signs that you’re progressing through the selling cycle. Things like increased click-through rates and engagement could indicate that your prospects are ready to buy.

After you’ve been through all these stages, get your prospects in touch with a sales rep. Only then are representatives likely to be effective. The job of a representative shouldn’t be to sell a product from cold but to keep firing the flames of interest in customers once they start interacting with you directly.

 

Supercharge Your PPC

Falcon Digital Marketing PPC agency recently said that pay-per-click advertising is the gateway to lead generation online. But the question is, why?

It turns out that PPC is beneficial for all sorts of reasons. It turns out that it’s an excellent way to begin the sales process, getting people in front of the content that matters. Unlike e-commerce copy, the aim isn’t always to get customers to buy immediately. Instead, it’s to encourage them to begin the buying process and become a valued, long-term customer. Lead generation calls to action, therefore, need to offer value up front but leave the changing hands of money until a later date. Things like “get more info” or “attend our free webinar” can work wonders for introducing clients to your company and building long-term relationships.

 

Distinguish Between Your Marketing And Sales Leads

Sophisticated companies understand that not all of their customers are at the same stage of the buying cycle. Some are quite a long way along the process towards parting with their money while others are still deliberating and working out whether your company can offer them genuine value.

Differentiating between these two types of customers: those who are ready to buy and those who need more time is important. Those who are willing to buy are usually labeled, “sales leads” while those still figuring things out are commonly referred to as “marketing leads.” Your approach to marketing leads needs to be different to your approach to sales leads. Marketing leads should be educated – perhaps through email marketing or social media. Sales leads are people who want the product but aren’t sure exactly which option would best suit their needs. These are the people you want your sales reps to target directly.

 

Score Your Leads

Practically everything in business today is quantified, whether it’s individual employees or the business performance as a whole. But one thing entrepreneurs often forget to quantify is the quality of their leads. When you think about it, this doesn’t really make a lot of sense: high-quality leads should attract a lot more attention than low-quality leads. But for one reason or another, businesses don’t do much to directly determine whether somebody is willing to buy from them or not.

What constitutes a good lead? It all comes down to whether the person you’re dealing with is able to make the decision to buy from you and is engaged with your product. In the consumer setting, anybody can buy, so long as they have the money. But in the B2B, you need to make sure you’re focusing on people at the top. Look for things like website visit frequency to determine their level of interest in your product.

 

 

Chiino
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