In online marketing, lead generation is known as a strategy for building a high volume of potential customers with leads. As proactive lead building is increasingly popular, companies also have adapted lead generation strategies to require high potential leads. A higly porductive means of genearting higg value leads is via inbound marketing.
So what are leads? Definition of a lead?
In marketing, leads are potential future customers. These people suit the buyer personality of the company or ideal customer and have shown some interest in the company’s products and services.
Generally speaking, the goal of any marketeer at Leadstalents is to generate as many leads as possible as more leads lead to more customers.
In lead generation, leads are potential future customers who fit your potential client persona profile and have shown some interest in you as a company. Lead generators aim to generate as many high-quality leads (potential new customers) as possible to fill your order book with high-quality leads and conversions.
Different types of leads
There are different kind of leads. One lead is not the other. That is why we distinguish between leads. Each type of lead requires a different approach and a different plan of action.
Cold lead
A cold lead is someone you haven’t met or spoken to before. You are still unknown to him or her. That is why it is not wise to come up with your services and products immediately. You have to build that up slowly.
Warm lead
A warm lead is already familiar with you and your services. This could have been a cold lead. Someone you introduced to the company who still shows interest.
Marketing Qualified Lead
A Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL) is a possible new customer who has shown specific interest in your organization or product. For example, this MQL has downloaded a white paper or ebook.
We call this lead marketing qualified, because we follow up this person from marketing. By regularly feeding the lead with new information, it becomes a Sales Qualified Lead at some point.
Sales Qualified Lead
A Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) is convinced that you have a solution to his problem. This lead is about to make a decision. Now is the time to start selling. You therefore give the lead sufficient reasons to choose you and not the competitor.
With Leadstalents a lead sales is qualified if he has taken a number of actions on the website. With each action, the MQL moves closer to the SQL stage. With marketing automation you can keep up with this shift with software.
Nice such a lead and now?
A lead is not yet a customer. In other words: a lead does not yield anything yet.
Ultimately, the goal is to turn every lead into a paying customer. And if we go one step further, we turn every paying customer into an ambassador. Someone who brings in new leads and customers for us. It is important that you follow up on leads.
Difference between leads and prospects
The terms leads and prospects are often used interchangeably. Yet there is a difference. Often a marketing team takes care of the leads and they are followed up by the sales team. The salespeople of this team must then ensure that as many followed-up leads as possible result in a new customer. A prospect There is a phase of conviction in the process from lead to customer. The potential customers with serious interest are the prospects. Leads are the traces that can lead to these prospects. Usually a lot of leads have to be followed up before interesting prospects emerge.
Inbound marketing for leads
Collecting actionable leads is tricky. Inbound marketing is a great way to gather contact information from the right individuals and companies. By offering useful information you will get the right target group to your website. For example, you offer your valuable information in exchange for name and address (Name, Address and City) data. This creates a database of leads that you can follow up.
To generate leads, many organizations offer white papers, online magazines or handy tools in exchange for name and address details. Generating leads with digital publications is only effective if you provide the content that your target audience is looking for. A good content strategy is therefore important.
Generate quality leads
So a lead is someone who has shown to be a potential customer because of an interaction, while a prospect is more focused on making the buying decision.
It’s about generating quality leads. Between all leads are bad leads (they do not become customers) and qualitative leads, they do become customers. With these ways you ensure that you generate qualitative leads, so that there is a good chance that the leads you generate will actually become customers. You can compare them with a prospect. Do you want to effectively generate qualitative leads?
1. Convert your website visitors into qualitative leads
Almost all people who visit your website are interested in you and / or in your offer. If they contact you with a question, you can persuade them to become a customer with a follow-up system. People with a question but who don’t get in touch are missed leads. Therefore, make it easy to get in touch.
You can also offer a giveaway to inform the visitor. He leaves his details and you can contact him.
Do you want more leads from your website? Then increase the number of visitors or the conversion rate.
2. Analysis of data via Analytics
Analyzing your own data is a very effective method to ensure that you generate qualitative leads. In the introduction I mentioned that qualitative leads are the leads that eventually become customers (or at least where there is a good chance). Data about these customers is valuable.
You can get data from Google Analytics about the converted leads. For example, if you see that a large part of the converted leads come from social media, then you know where your focus should be.
3. Advertising Google Ads / Affiliate Marketing
Online advertising via Google Ads, in combination with extensive segmentation options, can be extremely effective for generating leads and prospects. The more specific – both keywords and websites – you will advertise, the more qualitative leads and prospects you will attract. The chance is greater that these people are actually genuinely interested.