Whether you are a startup or an established B2B company, it is crucial to create and regularly adapt your lead generation strategy to ensure the expansion of your business. The generation of leads aids in generating interest for your products and services, acquiring new clients, and establishing brand recognition.
Lead generation strategy
A lead generation strategy refers to any tactic or action that is employed to draw customers to your business with the aim of engaging with your company in some manner.
To illustrate, your approach to generating leads could involve advertising on a social media platform such as Instagram, where users are encouraged to share their email address in order to gain further information about your company.
By doing this, you are collecting leads from every individual who provides their email. This provides you with additional chances to reach out or target these individuals in order to persuade them to purchase from or collaborate with your company – which is the ultimate objective of lead generation strategies.
Best lead generation strategies
It may take time to find the appropriate lead generation strategies for your business as there are numerous options to consider. Additionally, strategies that have succeeded for other businesses may not be effective for yours. It is important to consider factors such as your industry, business size, nature of your business, and desired goals when evaluating these tactics.
When it comes to small-business marketing, discovering the most effective method to generate leads for your business will probably require experimenting.
1. Create an incentive-based referral system
Word-of-mouth advertising continues to be crucial, and advancements in technology have significantly altered the methods through which individuals promote their preferred businesses. With the availability of modern technology, customer referral programs have gained increased utility in generating leads, as they can now be quantified and tracked more conveniently.
If you have an online product or service, you have the option to create personalized referral codes for each client and potential client. By offering a discount to new clients for their initial purchase and providing a referral discount to your loyal customers, you can encourage them to share their referral code through various communication channels such as email, text, or social media. This strategy ultimately enhances the likelihood of receiving referrals.
2. Broadcast advertising to your niche audience
Because podcasts are highly popular, content creators require advertisers, enabling the conversion of listeners into leads. Due to the specific themes and selective streaming choices made by listeners, it becomes easier to determine what topics will be intriguing and pertinent to their lives.
By thinking systematically, you can determine the appropriate podcasts that cater to your desired audience and advertise in order to guide clients to either your website or physical store. Additionally, you have the option to integrate this approach with our initial strategy and provide podcast listeners with a special referral code entitling them to a discount on their initial transaction.
3. Take a new approach to direct mail
Instead of using traditional direct mail tactics, one can implement a fresh approach to lead generation by reinventing the way coupons are sent through mail. Instead of sending generic coupons addressed to the current resident, a more successful strategy can be employed.
Send out persuasive flyers that contain valuable offers.
Utilize referral codes based on data analysis.
Target smaller audiences to achieve better results.
By carefully choosing which direct mail efforts to pursue, you have the opportunity to allocate more resources towards the actual item you are mailing. Additionally, you can provide improved discounts, coupons, or other incentives to entice potential customers to move forward. Rather than considering direct mail as the concluding step in closing a sale, it may be more beneficial to view it as an initial attempt to persuade individuals to visit your business website or contact you.
4. Optimize your website and use CTAs
If you operate a physical store, it is essential to have a website that combines intelligent design with quick and effective functionality. Your website should provide visitors with essential information about your company, including the who, what, where, and why, and encourage them to engage in some form of action. Consider the desired actions you want customers to take upon visiting your website and devise strategies to encourage them to do so.
If you aim to attract customers to your physical store, you can create a call to action, or CTA, directing them to a page that provides information about the location or ways to contact your store. On the other hand, if your goal is to encourage customers to make purchases on your website, you should design a CTA that leads them to specific product pages or perhaps a discount landing page tailored for first-time shoppers.
5. Rethink deals and discounts
If nobody is aware of your business and the attractive offers you provide, offering sales or promotions to encourage new customers to purchase will be ineffective. Instead, you can consider collaborating with platforms such as Groupon that are specifically focused on showcasing deals and discounts.
Consider teaming up with other complementary businesses that specialize in the deals territory. By partnering with these businesses, who are experienced in reaching new customers, they will take care of the task of finding potential customers for you. This will help you showcase your product or service to a wider audience, potentially reaching customers you wouldn’t have been able to on your own due to budget limitations.
Despite the fact that the margins on deals sites may not be the highest, utilizing this strategy is crucial for startups aiming to enhance their visibility and establish brand recognition.
6. Learn search engine optimization
Search engine optimization, commonly known as SEO, is a highly effective approach for generating leads, particularly for online businesses, B2B organizations, and even B2C companies. To develop an SEO strategy, the initial phase entails making use of the available tools (which are often incorporated within website builders) and prioritizing search engine visibility.
At a fundamental level, you can begin by ensuring that your website offers precise information, provides responses to commonly asked questions, and has concise and clear writing. Acquiring knowledge of SEO best practices on your own does not require payment, but if your business operates in a highly competitive market, obtaining a consultation from SEO professionals may add additional value to your business.
7. Utilize an email marketing strategy
Email marketing is beautiful because it is a market channel that is powerful, flexible, and measurable. It is a strategy that is rich in conversions, enabling brands to reach new customers and increase revenue, all while utilizing a minimal budget.
In order to generate email leads, the initial step involves recognizing your target customers and comprehending their concerns. Afterward, devise a personalized solution to address these issues and establish a landing page that steers leads towards it, ensuring the inclusion of an opt-in form.
To start, consider promoting the offer on social media and running paid ads. The goal is to encourage potential customers to willingly provide their contact information, including names, email addresses, and any additional details that would assist in qualifying leads and improving understanding of their preferences. Ultimately, focus on reaching out to potential customers where they are most active.
Once you have a few leads, the process does not stop. Provide them with a compelling reason to not reject the service or product you provide. Send them personalized but valuable content to attract and convert them into customers. Email marketing software can assist in creating personalized emails and conducting A/B testing to refine the strategy when needed.
8. Join social media groups and communities
By finding a social media group and community that align with your industry, you gain direct access to potential customers.
If you are involved in creating CRMs or your company focuses on these individuals, it would be logical to join a CRM group on Facebook. A CRM group on Facebook includes individuals such as sales professionals, marketing teams, and customer support representatives who utilize CRM software.
To successfully connect with these individuals, simply immerse yourself in their community and establish genuine relationships. Share any meaningful content you create that you believe will be beneficial to them. Additionally, consider sharing exclusive promotions or offers you may have, along with a link to join your email list. Nonetheless, always bear in mind that these communities and groups have their own specific rules of interaction, so it is crucial to exhibit respect towards them.
If you fail to follow the specified guidelines while participating in these groups, the moderators will flag you, delete your content, or remove you from the group entirely.
9. Build your community
According to a study conducted by The University of Michigan, becoming a member of a brand’s online community has been found to result in customers spending 19% more, making online communities a valuable source of high-potential leads.
If you establish a branded community or a public social network, the main goal is to assemble a group of loyal supporters who have a genuine interest in your brand and desire to interact with it more. This does not necessarily require individuals who directly use your product or services, but instead those who have confidence in you and regard you as an expert in your specific domain.
By following this method, you will have a combination of individuals who accept your offer when you post it in the channel, while others will serve as supporters by spreading the word to their friends and associates who are not part of the community.
10. Incorporate backlinks
One of the things you need to consider if you want your website to rank high on Google SERPs is the number of high-quality websites linking back to your site. The more high-quality websites that link to your site, the higher your website will rank. As your website rank increases, your brand will receive more web visitors (leads).
To obtain high-quality backlinks, make contact with websites that possess high domain ranks and authority scores (you can utilize tools such as SEMRush or Moz to access these metrics). Present them with your pillar content and identify potential areas where they can link to it.
When choosing blog posts to link back to, it is advisable to select ones that discuss similar subjects and incorporate keywords that are relevant to your main articles. It is important to ensure that the linked content is logical and does not direct readers to overly promotional pages such as landing pages, pricing pages, or homepages.
11. Add paid ads
In order to generate leads, you can also use outbound strategies such as paid ads. Paid ads can come in various forms, including:
- Search ads
- Retargeting ads
- Social media ads
- Display ads
When creating your advertisements, be sure to include some form of promotion or offer that entices visitors to click and directs them to a landing page. This landing page should provide the opportunity for visitors to both sign up for the offer being promoted and join your email list.
12. Boost your content marketing efforts
A lot of small businesses depend on paid channels such as Google Ads in order to generate leads.
Although outbound strategies can be effective, they have a tendency to be more intrusive as they involve “pushing” a message towards the audience. On the other hand, inbound marketing takes a different approach by attracting customers to your business through problem-solving assistance, thereby “pulling” them in.
Types of content that can be created to generate more leads include content marketing. It is a form of inbound marketing strategy that involves the creation of relevant, high-quality content for your target audience.
- Blog posts
- eBooks
- Videos
- Infographics
- Resources
- Slideshows
- Webinars
According to data from the Content Marketing Institute, 75% of B2B marketers were able to generate leads by using content marketing in the previous year. In addition to lead generation, publishing high-quality content can enhance your credibility as an industry expert and establish trust among your audience.
Additionally, publishing each piece of content provides an advantage by improving your search engine optimization endeavors. This leads to increased traffic and more opportunities for generating leads. Commence by pinpointing the queries or predicaments your audience encounters, and utilize forums and other platforms for assistance during this procedure.
When you have researched specific topics, generate comprehensive articles related to those subjects and post them on your website. Make sure to prioritize delivering valuable information and take measures to enhance the SEO of your content, aiming to boost its position in search engine rankings.
You can also utilize this approach to develop lead magnets, which are anything given away in exchange for contact information. To gate your lead magnets, you can implement a website form that requires people to provide their information in return for accessing the content.
