Do you need more leads? A long-term lead gen strategy? Higher quality leads? Better sales qualification for them? Most marketers would happily take all of the above, but typically, the cost of lead generation and the need to produce measurable results cause us to prioritize. Here’s a step-by-step guide for gearing your lead gen strategy to the results you want and improving its overall effectiveness.
Discover
The first phase of your new and improved lead gen strategy starts with understanding where you’re already excelling and where you find your greatest challenges. How does your cost per lead compare to your industry average, and why? Can you improve that ratio best by economizing on investments, increasing the overall number of leads, or sorting and scoring leads more accurately? Planning for lead generation success with a thorough discovery process is fundamental to achieving it.
Define a Time
One of the issues many companies face when ramping up their lead gen is a simple time crunch. All too often, lead gen gets relegated to second-tier actions; it’s the thing you do when you aren’t doing anything else. Build time into your schedule to devote solely to lead gen and lead scoring to give these essential activities the attention they deserve. The good news is that the time you spend on lead gen decreases as you become more proficient at it.
Find Your Influencers
Who are your top referrers? If they aren’t already on your short list of MVP candidates, they should be. These customers are gold, so put them first. They’re first in line for product samples, customer appreciation programs, and invitations to community or industry events. Reward them for the time and effort they’ve taken to give your name to others, and they’ll pay you back with future referrals and brand ambassadorship. Marketing automation tools can also help here by making lead scoring more effective and pinpointing your most influential clients.
Automate
It’s almost impossible to work on lead gen activity when you’re wasting resources on actions you could automate. Hand over tasks that would be time-consuming for people to your marketing automation software and free your team for less labor-intensive pursuits. Automated systems are outstanding at routine operations such as sending out triggered emails, A/B split testing, and data hygiene. Letting the software take over for the tasks it’s best at lets your marketing team focus on the creative elements of their work that need the human touch.
Analyze
Only with frequent and thorough analysis can you tell if your new lead gen strategy is working. Tracking your progress not only gives you a better perspective on your goals, but it also gives you a useful history you can then use to improve future lead gen efforts. Analytics give you a much-needed baseline for monitoring progress, so don’t neglect this key part of an effective lead generation process.
Everything you do to build stronger relationships with your leads today translates directly into higher revenue tomorrow. Prioritize your lead gen and get an assist from marketing automation to make the most of your time, and you’ll send your ROI soaring.
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