Imagine this scenario: Let’s say you have a fantastic product or service to offer – the kind that every household or company needs. Your website is a story of its own. You have invested so many hours that you’ve lost count and managed to turn it into a piece of art. You have worked on SEO, and the results are showing – there is an increase in traffic. Everything looks perfect so far, but there is one thing that’s puzzling you – NOT ENOUGH PEOPLE ARE BUYING.
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The first paragraph could sum up the fate of many businesses today. Despite their best efforts, and though it often seems like everything is in place, many business owners are yet to see their hard work bring a return on investment. Why, you wonder? The answer is simple – In order to cash in on your efforts, you need a sound lead generation strategy. This is where this guide comes in. Through these lines, we will share our experience and arm you with numerous tips and ideas on how to get more sales leads.
As a successful digital marketing agency, we generate our leads through a mixture of inbound and outbound marketing channels. For you to get a better understanding of the various strategies, let’s dig deeper into each of these two channels.
Inbound Lead Generation Channels
When talking about how to get more sales leads through inbound lead generation, we are referring to content creation and campaigns that generate visitors and convert them into quality leads. Here are some of the most fruitful inbound lead generation techniques and channels.
Lead providers
To put it as simply as possible, lead providers are platforms that offer leads. However, choosing the right lead provider is not that simple. There are a variety of sources that provide information of different quality. These sources often help you fuel growth by offering B2B contact data for you to identify and connect with your future customers. Buying leads is tricky, and we advise caution since you can end up with leads that are difficult to nurture and convert into customers.
Search engine optimization
Many businesses find search engine optimization the most important part of lead generation. A sound SEO strategy focuses on creating great content and achieving prime optimization so a steady stream of leads can be generated.
Quality leads can not be attracted overnight. SEO is a process that demands a good understanding of the fundamentals. However, if executed properly, many leads will end up on your websites and landing pages through organic search. This makes these leads valuable as they have shown genuine interest in your service or product.
Content marketing
Content marketing is the foundation of many lead generation campaigns. This type of marketing is a great way to engage your potential leads as they move through your sales funnel.
By creating useful content like whitepapers, ebooks, or blog posts, you can educate leads and inspire them to act on your call to action to close deals. Throughout this process, you gather a ton of valuable information that helps you nurture your contacts or even engage them anew if necessary:
- Email – This is the minimum to ask your future customers for. Email is a great way to contact your lead in a personalized message and engage them in an email marketing campaign.
- Name – When addressing your lead, “Dear John” sounds much better than a generic “Dear valued customer.”
- Company name – This can be a very valuable piece of information for any future engagement with the customer in question. By collecting their company name, you can perform background research on your lead’s industry to determine whether or not they can benefit from your offer. Also, it is a great way to determine the best marketing approach.
You can ask your potential customers for anything you feel may help you communicate with them and personalize your message to ensure maximum relevance. Still, keep in mind that the less info you ask for, the more likely people are to provide it. Always make sure to ask only for the information you actually need.
Content marketing is where you can let your imagination run wild. You can always try and find new and exciting forms of relevant content as well as ways to drive quality leads to that content.
Social media
Social media is a huge part of many people’s everyday lives. You, of course, want to be where your potential customers are. Popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter can provide a constant stream of leads when appropriately used. They are also an extremely cost-effective tool that brings high ROI.
Forums
Although not quite as flashy of a channel as social media, forums are places where you can find the most engaged people. Many businesses find forums an invaluable lead-generating tool to acquire organic leads.
Platforms like Reddit or Quora have very high traffic numbers. Keep in mind that it is essential to find a way to communicate authentically and organically if you aim to attract new customers through these platforms.
PR
Public relations is not a new-age product. It has always existed in one form or another. Many businesses benefit from public coverage and become even more adept at taking a role in shaping the opinions of future customers. Just like with forums, if you communicate in an authentic and organic way when announcing important news, the subject of conversation is bound to generate intrigue and bring leads. So, whenever something important and newsworthy happens in your company, let the world know, and you will experience a burst of activity.
Search engine marketing
Search engine marketing is essential for boosting the profile and prominence of your website. With over 3.8 million searches that occur on Google every single minute, it is no wonder that every modern business engages with platforms like Google Ads on some level. Having a perfect PPC strategy in place is critical for getting your business and brand name recognized far and wide while at the same time collecting leads and watching that ROI skyrocket.
Social and display ads
Despite all the ad blockers and banner blindness, the effectiveness of social and display ads at lead generation is still intact. This is why this type of digital advertising is undoubtedly a strategy to consider when figuring out how to get more sales leads.
Truth be told, it takes a lot of knowledge and experience to set up campaigns that make for a positive return on investment. If this kind of marketing represents uncharted territory for you, make sure to have an expert that is able to optimize your ad spend and make the most of your budget to drive sales and generate qualified leads.
Offline advertising
Throughout this guide, we have been solely focused on marketing in the digital world. This is where we shift our focus for a moment since the physical world also offers amazing opportunities for lead generation.
Though some would consider it a lost art, a simple ad in newspapers or on a radio station is still a very powerful weapon at targeting local audiences. Being familiar with your local community’s needs and wants and using that knowledge to target your customers exactly where they are is the path most successful companies still walk along. Although marketing is shifting towards digital, you really can’t beat offline advertising.
Community building
Community building is a fun and rewarding way to interact with your audience while generating and nurturing genuine leads. We have developed as a species through social interactions – forging bonds over millennia.
Putting the power of social networks in use, you can create strong and vibrant communities that will further legitimize and highlight your brand. This gives you the ability to forge wholehearted connections with your leads and drive real value to them.
For example, creating a Facebook group for your leads to connect and chat with each other as well as get relevant questions in your field of expertise answered is sure to generate a lot of satisfied and returning customers.
Live events
Today, event marketing is bigger than ever. As the world turns digital, the appetite for an authentic experience and connections amongst people only grows. While you dwell on how to get more sales leads, we have another great idea for you.
How about hosting a range of events to attract and engage people? Different seminars on a particular topic or informal events for a good cause can give you an opportunity to create in-person contacts and connections that go beyond company/customer relationships. Nothing is more valuable than the human touch and outreach. These connections are likely to last more than any other you make.
Speaking gigs
Instead of hosting your own event, why not take part and share your knowledge at different speaking gigs? Many businesses partake in these kinds of events in order to target a huge range of customers and demonstrate their commitment to their industry.
If you feel like you can drive value through your unique experiences and abilities, then why not share your knowledge? If your future customers see you as an authority in your field of expertise, you are sure to make strong and authentic connections.
Affiliate programs
Affiliate marketing is a strategy that revolves around paying commissions to affiliate websites that, in return, provide you with traffic. Safety is the name of the game here. Since these programs are commission-based, you only pay for the leads you get. At the same time, your partners are incentivized to do their best and provide quality leads for your business.
Although some companies feel that they are putting their reputation at risk by placing their brand name into someone else’s hands, if you choose your partners carefully, this could turn out to be a win-win deal for both of you.
Outbound Lead Generation Channels
Outbound lead generation is a strategy that involves reaching out to your potential customers directly in an effort to capture their attention. While this can be an extremely powerful tool for getting more sales leads, we advise you to err on the side of caution here since many people may find your direct approach to be disruptive.
Email marketing
Sounds a bit retro, right? Actually, 59% of B2B advertisers find it to be the most effective channel when it comes to ROI. With this in mind, it is no wonder that companies dedicate a vast portion of time and resources to cultivating accurate mailing lists. This tactic is perfect for sharing important news and always keeping your clients up to date on what’s cooking in your labs.
Cold calling
At one time or another, we have all been on the receiving end of these calls or part of cold email marketing campaign. Many people find this type of advertising to be the most intrusive of all. If it makes you feel better, you should know that the salesperson on the other side of the line is hardly enjoying themselves either.
There are, however, still some confident and talented salespeople out there that are hardened against rejection and strongly believe in the quality of the product they are selling. Those people are masters of their craft and collect leads for their company on a daily basis.
Final thoughts
We have written nearly 2000 words in this guide with one goal in mind – to give you the best idea on how to get more sales leads. Here is one more piece of advice to go – always try to make the lead generation process a positive experience for both you and your potential customers.
Try different approaches. Play with different techniques until you find those that are the best fit for your business. Don’t be afraid to make a mistake every once in a while. You grow and learn as you go. And never forget to bring in a touch of soul.
