“Having calls to action that go beyond ‘contact us’ help to make a site successful”
– Wayne Davis
Lead generation is crucial in increasing brand awareness and interest in your products or services, nurturing prospects through marketing and into the sales pipeline. Lead generation strategies create a strong relationship with qualified customers who provide long term business.
So how to increase lead generation?
1. Know your audience:
“Lead generation is practical, measurable and not about the feelings of advertisers or marketers. It’s about meeting the needs of people looking to accomplish specific things.”
– Mike King, iPullRank
If you know the pain areas of your target audience and pitch the right product which addresses their specific business issues, your campaign’s success ratio will be high. The first step is knowing your audience and targeting the right industry with compatible products.
You can use CRM analytical tools to segregate data based on age, purchasing habits, geographical locations, industry type, etc.
The conversion rate will suffer if the target audience’s buying requirements and your selling product’s profile does not match.
2. Content writing & newsletter:
This is an effective strategy to attract high-quality leads that are interested in topics related to your brand /product. The audience must fill the form to access the material of their interest as the content is “locked”. Gated /Interactive Content writing may include:
• White papers
• E-books
• Guides
• Reports
• Courses
• Worksheets
• Online tools
Another way to use the content as a lead magnet is by creating a newsletter. Create a weekly or monthly newsletter to encourage prospects to stay in touch with your brand. This allows you to ping your customers and also be an effective source of word of mouth for your products and services. Content for your newsletter might include:
• New blog posts
• Updates about your products or services
• Special offers
• Upcoming events
• Recommended reading from other thought leaders
3. Reach out with various methods & 24×7 Availability with live chats:
There are a lot of people out there who are in search of services/ finding solutions that you have to offer, but your call is ignored in the midst of many promotive calls they receive in a day. To contact such an audience other
modes are also to be adapted like emails, PPC search ads, Facebook & Instagram live, ABM on LinkedIn, eye-catchy images on Pinterest.
Live chat is one of the easiest and instant approaches to effective communication and also the source of the client’s information. While the visitor is browsing various websites to explore services, if his queries are answered on time, the deal will be closed instantly. Providing 24×7 availability of agents on live chat will ensure no leads are missed out. Before visitors connect to an agent, get them to fill the form, this will provide contact details and email id for further follow-up.
4. Use of CRM Software:
CRM Software helps you to organize your prospects through the entire sales cycle in an effective way.
– One of the most effective methods to connect with your customers is through social networks. You can publish several surveys on social media platforms and store the data in your CRM software.
– Integrate CRM with live chat software that will talk stories and conversations in your CRM tool. With the pertinent data, you can serve your clients considerably more adequately.
-Nurture your leads with email marketing on your CRM’s data, which will help to contact your prospects at the right time.
5. Fast follow-up:
Once you do have a qualified lead, you need to take it to closure as soon as possible. Delay or failure to follow up makes a warm lead grow cold and finally leads to loss of the deal. The ideal time for the next follow up is not longer than 2 days, the exception here is when you set up a scheduled follow up or appointment as per the last conversation.
6. Retarget people who have engaged with your brand:
If prospects do not develop during your first interaction, use reorientation. Reconnect with audiences that have been involved with your brand but did not take the next step. Reorientation allows you to show ads to people who interact with your brand’s website or social pages. Because customers may need to see your brand a few times before they convert, retargeting is an apt way to continue leading customers down the purchase line.
7. Offer free trials, discounts & coupons:
This is an effective way of converting visitors to your website into paid customers. Many audiences do not want to spend cash on unfamiliar brands or products, allure them with freebies. Provide discounts and coupons on your products and services to convert prospects into a lead. Free trials are for the audience who are not ready to buy. Sign up will, in turn, route them to paid features and upgraded accounts.
8. Referral reward system:
Create a referral system where your customers bring a lead for you in exchange for a discount or coupons. Customers value and trust recommendations from their friends, so encouraging existing customers to spread the word about your brand can be a powerful way of lead generation.