Let’s begin by defining a lead generation and why you need lead generation strategies for your business to succeed.
Lead generation is a process of identifying and attracting potential customers.Without the right strategy in place, it can use up a lot of your time and resources.
Generating leads helps marketers to move customers along a “sales funnel” towards a purchase.
What is a Sales Funnel?
A sales/marketing funnel is a tool that can be used to help convert high ROI leads faster and more often. Also, it guides your market strategy and improve your branding. It may be used in any business within any industry.
Three main stages define a buyer’s journey:
- Top-of-Funnel/ Upper Funnel Marketing (TOFU)
It is the awareness stage that aims at getting prospects interested in your brand and draw leads. It is at this stage when people are out looking for opinions, insights, answers and research data. It begins when they first hear about your brand from any source.
Top-of-funnel marketing tools may include; social media, podcasts, blog posts, email newsletters and search engine ads. All these provide information and support as well as helpful ideas to the new leads.
It may be a costly investment, but one that generates you long term leads and high ROI over a long time.
- Middle-of-Funnel Marketing (MOFU)
This is the evaluation stage which starts with a customer’s peaking interest. It is at this stage where they are looking to decide on your product.
Hence, they get into a comprehensive research to determine whether your product or service solves their problem. The answers to their questions may be captured in datasheets, case studies, FAQs and product samples.
On this level, new data about your customer’s preferences are captured, which may help you re-strategize your lead generation goals and vision. After this level, you have more specific and clear target audience knowledge that your marketers can use.
Also, you can use the data to upgrade or improve products and add on features while prioritizing your leads.
- Bottom-of-Funnel or Lower Marketing
It is the most crucial stage- the decision/ purchase stage. It is where the consumers are trying to narrow down which product to pick over others. To get ahead of your competitors in convincing your prospects, you will need to offer your visitors answers to exact questions.
You may choose to provide those answers in the form of, consultation, free trials and demos, reviews and testimonials or coupons. Give them whatever you believe will convert them into long-term leads.
However, even after following the steps to the latter, a marketer’s journey doesn’t end there. You must create content that helps your customers pledge their loyalty to you. Give them content that delights them. These may include; how-to projects, user community invitations, special offers, customer support documents and user-generated content channels on social media or blog posts.
With an understanding of how buyers’ journeys’ look like, there are three main steps of lead generation that you will need to follow. The steps need to be included at every step of the buyer’s journey.
- Call-to-Action Stage
The CTA is a button, image or message that prompts website visitors to take some action.
Clicking on the CTA leads visitors to the landing page where you are expected to fill a form in exchange for some information. The content/offers may be presented as a webinar, whitepaper, e-book or newsletter.
For CTA to be successful, you need to match it to a landing page which relates to what the visitor is searching for on your site. It also needs to be clear and should use action verbs, e.g., “download” or “subscribe”.
- The Landing Page
It is a web page that is designed to capture leads using offers.
Once a visitor fills the form, the leads database captures the information. Captivating, clear and brief headlines and using relevant images have proved to improve landing page performance.
To get more landing pages clicks, you can use videos and testimonials and add social media share icons. You could also include some social proof in the form of recognition and awards.
- Thank you Pages
They are as important as the other two. Thank you pages should guide the newly acquired leads further into the buyers’ journey. It where you need to deliver the offer, provide additional useful and relevant information, and share social media options.
Do not forget to make the offer easily accessible to the new lead.
Getting Started
If you desire to succeed in b2b sales, all you need are the right strategies and reinforcement of the approach using the necessary steps of lead generation.
Your sales and marketing teams should also work together to ensure you achieve ultimate success. Feel free to adjust this general approach to fit your unique business needs.