If you’re a B2B marketer, you may have noticed that it’s not as easy to generate quality leads as it is to generate a high quantity of leads. In fact, 61% of B2B marketers think that generating high-quality leads is one of the biggest challenges they face in the realm of B2B marketing.
1. Conduct a lead generation audit
If you’re not reaching your lead generation goals, it’s time to take a step back and evaluate your current strategy. A lead generation audit can help you identify what’s working and what’s not.
To conduct a lead generation audit, start by taking a look at your current data. How many leads are you generating? How many of those leads are converting into customers? What’s your close rate?
Next, evaluate your current lead generation tactics. What are you doing to attract new leads? Are you using a variety of tactics, or are you relying on just one or two?
Finally, take a look at your content. Is your website optimized for lead generation? Are you offering valuable content that will attract new leads?
Once you’ve completed your audit, you can use your findings to identify areas for improvement and create a plan for moving forward.
2. Create buyer personas
If you don’t already have buyer personas, creating them can be a great way to generate more leads.
Buyer personas are fictional, generalized representations of your ideal customers. They help you understand your customers (and prospective customers) better, and make it easier to tailor content for complex B2B products, including Self-Hosted eCommerce solutions, to the specific needs, behaviors, and concerns of different groups.
The strongest buyer personas are based on market research as well as on insights you gather from your actual customer base (through surveys, interviews,pulse survey toolsor interactive lead generation assessments such as those created with Pointerpro). Depending on your business, you could have as few as one or two personas, or as many as 10 or 20.
3. Develop a lead scoring system
Not all leads are created equal. Some are hot and ready to buy, while others might just be starting their research.
Developing a lead scoring system is a great way to help your sales team prioritize leads and focus their efforts on the ones that are most likely to convert.
A lead scoring system assigns points to leads based on their behavior and engagement with your brand. For example, a lead who has visited your website multiple times, downloaded a white paper, and subscribed to your email list might be considered a hot lead and assigned a high lead score.
On the other hand, a lead who has only visited your website once and not taken any other action might be considered a cold lead and assigned a low lead score.
By using a lead scoring system, you can ensure that your sales team is focusing their efforts on the leads that are most likely to convert, and not wasting time on leads that are unlikely to buy.
4. Nurture leads with content
It’s unlikely that someone will be ready to make a purchase the first time they interact with your business. That’s why it’s so important to have a lead nurturing strategy in place.
One of the best ways to nurture leads is with content. Create a variety of content pieces that you can use to follow up with leads and keep your brand top of mind. This might include blog posts, videos, infographics, and more.
You can also use content to create lead magnets that you can offer in exchange for a prospect’s contact information. This is a great way to attract high-quality leads and build your email list.
No matter what type of content you create, make sure it’s valuable and relevant to your audience. The more helpful your content is, the more likely leads are to trust your brand and eventually make a purchase.
5. Use retargeting to stay in front of leads
One of the best ways to keep your brand top of mind with leads is to use retargeting. Retargeting is a type of advertising that involves showing your ads to people who have recently visited your website or interacted with your brand in some way.
You can use retargeting to show your ads to leads on other websites, in social media feeds, or even in their email inboxes. This can help you increase the number of touchpoints you have with leads and drive more conversions.
Retargeting is especially effective when you use it to show leads ads for the specific products or services they viewed on your website. This can help you increase the chances of converting leads into customers.
6. Test different lead generation strategies
The lead generation strategy that works best for your business will depend on the size of your company, the industry you’re in, and the types of leads you want to attract.
For example, a B2B company might find that creating a whitepaper is the best way to generate leads, while an e-commerce business might have more success with a contest or giveaway. For some businesses meeting leads in-person and collecting leads using digital business cards works the best on the trade shows.
The key is to test different lead generation strategies and see what works best for your business. You can also try combining different lead generation strategies to see if that helps you attract more high-quality leads.
7. Automate lead generation
Automation is a great way to improve your efficiency and save time in your marketing strategy. That’s also true for B2B lead generation. Use automation to streamline your lead generation efforts and free up your time to focus on engaging with your leads.
You can use automation to schedule social media posts, send follow-up emails, and more. This will help you stay in front of your leads and keep your brand top of mind.
Just be sure to use automation carefully. You don’t want to come across as spammy or impersonal. Be sure to personalize your messages and engage with your leads on a human level.
8. Consider using a lead generation company
Lead generation companies offer expertise and technology to help you generate high-quality leads for your business. They can take the guesswork out of the lead generation process and provide you with a steady stream of leads that are more likely to convert into customers.
Lead generation companies use a variety of strategies to find and qualify leads for your business. They may use advertising, content marketing, email marketing, social media marketing, and more to reach potential leads. Many businesses also partner with agencies that specialize in lead generation marketing to strengthen their pipeline and scale their results more predictably. Working with experienced specialists ensures your campaigns are targeted, optimized, and aligned with your long-term growth goals.
If you’re struggling to generate leads for your business, or if you simply want to increase your lead volume, working with a lead generation company can be a great option. They can help you save time and money while improving the quality of your leads.
9. Ask for referrals
If you have a good relationship with your current customers, don’t be afraid to ask them to refer you to other businesses. You can even use tools like ReferralCandy and offer an incentive, such as a discount on their next purchase, to encourage them to refer you.
Referrals are a great way to generate high-quality leads. When a potential customer is referred to you by someone they trust, they are much more likely to convert. In fact, leads that come from referrals are four times more likely to make a purchase than leads that come from other sources.
Conclusion
Lead generation is a critical part of your business’s future growth. If you don’t have leads, you don’t have customers. If you don’t have customers, you don’t have a business.
By following the best practices listed above, you’ll be able to build a lead generation engine that works to expand your reach and grow your business.
