What is lead generation?
Lead generation describes the process of capturing interest in a product with the purpose of converting visitors to leads.
We live in a digital world, one where information can be accessed with a simple click of a button. Today’s consumers have more power than ever. They do their own research online and find information through search engines, social media and other online channels. This means they get all the relevant information they need to make the purchasing decision, long before the sales team even get the chance to affect them directly.
According to a Forrester Research finding 57% of the purchase decision is complete before a customer even calls a supplier.
This means that the sales team does not have the opportunity to influence customers' purchase decisions directly. That is why it is important to communicate with potential customers across multiple online channels through the entire customer journey leading into the purchase cycle.
A lead is an individual who has shown interest in your product by providing their contact information, and in doing so indicates a potential sales opportunity.
How to start with lead generation?
For any business it is the most valuable strategic asset to get a visitor’s email address, but visitors are not always willing to hand over this kind of personal information. You can offer something of value (a free product) in exchange for an email address, for example an e-book, a voucher or an exclusive offer.
Lead generation has three central techniques we use to attract leads: Call to action, landing pages, and lead magnets.
Call to action (CTA)
A call to action is an image, button or message that encourage website visitors to take some sort of action. Usually phrases like "Sign me up", "Download free E-book", "Learn more" are used. When the visitors have clicked the CTA they will be sent to a landing page.
Landing page The landing page is essential for efficient lead generation. Landing pages has one concrete and primary goal which is to convert visitors to leads. This is done by encouraging, nudge or motivate visitors to take a certain action. This can be to give their email address in exchange for a free e-book.
Lead magnet
Lead magnets are tools that provide value for your visitors in exchange for their contact information. A lead magnet is a free of charge educational tool where the goal is to receive permission from visitors to follow up. Some examples of lead magnets include free e-books, webinars, a free trial, whitepapers, video series. The lead magnet must have high enough value to a visitor to provide your sales team access to their personal information that will propel you directly into the next phase, lead nurturing.
What is lead nurturing and why is it important?
79% of leads will never convert to customers. Therefor it is important that the sales team prioritize the ‘warmest’ leads that are ready to buy instead of wasting time on cold leads (people who are most unlikely to purchase). By prioritizing warm leads that are nurtured and ready to buy, the sales team can work more efficient and achieve better results.
Warm leads have been identified by showing interest in your product by for example opening your email, reading your email and clicking on the links in your email. Sending relevant and customized information will increase the chance of the lead warming up and purchasing. This is what we call lead nurturing.
Businesses who uses lead generation unlock on average 50% more sales-ready leads according to Marketo Research. Studies has also shown that leads that have been nurtured through these type of online campaigns purchases up to 47% more than other customers. Businesses that use lead generation can see a significantly higher increase in revenue compared to businesses that do not use this marketing strategy.
Lead scoring
To achieve a higher conversion rate, it is important to qualify leads. Not everyone who has shown interest for your product will be a worthwhile ‘follow up’.
Lead scoring is a system that defines whether a lead is sales ready. By scoring potential customers based on defined values that you decide, the business can choose to focus on those who have shown greater interest or reflects a higher activity on your product/offer. In that way you avoid spending time on those who are not ready to buy yet.
Example: Together the sales and marketing team develop a strategy for lead scoring. Here they look at which customer they want to reach, what describes or defines these customers and what actions they take. Based on this feedback you give the different attributes points from 1-100.
Opened 1 email =1 point
Clicked on link in email = 2 point
Downloaded an ebook=5 points
Leads that has more than a certain score will be sent over to the sales team who will contact them by phone or email.
Efficient lead nurturing with automation
Lead nurturing can be a tedious and time-consuming process if you are doing this manually. With marketing automation, you can save time and resources. With an automation system you put the lead into a campaign that automatically sends out personalized and relevant information based on where the lead is in the buying process. This way you can easily open up a tailor-made and personal communication channel as well as helping the lead reach the next step on their buyer´s journey to your product.
Pine3 Marketing is a full-service Scandinavian digital marketing agency based in beautiful Cape Town, South Africa. Our great team of dynamic thinkers and digital marketing specialists are passionate about helping other businesses succeed, through efficient lead generation, marketing automation and measurable marketing. Please contact us for a free chat and/or quote.
Sources:
https://go.forrester.com/blogs/15-05-25-myth_busting_101_insights_intothe_b2b_buyer_journey/
https://blog.marketo.com/2014/01/the-definitive-guide-to-lead-generation.html
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/beginner-inbound-lead-generation-guide-ht