The world of web marketing is continually expanding and generates new activities ready to launch businesses into the digital world. Due to the ever-evolving and dynamic nature of this industry, it’s not always clear which activities align best with our business goals. Today, we will shed some light on lead generation, an incredibly useful tool that has helped many companies grow online.
What is meant by lead generation
When we talk about lead generation, we are referring to marketing actions aimed at enriching a company’s database with new contacts. This definition may seem very simple, as indeed the goal of lead generation is clear and well-defined. However, like many things that may seem simple at first, there is a lot of complexity behind lead generation, and it’s essential to thoroughly understand how it works and the significant benefits it can bring to our brand.
The lead and its attributes
But let’s start from the beginning, what is a lead? A lead is a person who has shown interest in our company’s online activities. Among the many actions that a user can take to become a lead, there are, for example: filling out a form or downloading a brochure from our website, accessing online content, following us on social media, and so on. All of these actions have one common element: by providing us with their data, this visitor has left a trace that allows us to contact them in the future.
Inbound marketing
Leads are users who have spontaneously engaged with the company, expressing an interest in its products or services. It’s this genuine interest that we must treasure: every lead is a potential customer with whom a valuable connection has been established.
Our role now is to guide them step by step in their journey to transform this contact into a solid relationship. A process that can be facilitated through the savvy use of inbound marketing, the activity that aims to make us discoverable by potential customers, pique their interest, engage and entertain them, and build relationships.
Let’s now look at some examples of the most commonly used methods for adding new leads to our contact lists.
- Squeeze Page – One of the most common methods. Users are provided access to free content in exchange for their data. The content can be in the form of an e-book, brochure, tutorial, or discount.
- Call to Action – An essential element on our website. It’s an invitation to take an action directed at the user. The user subscribes to a contact list to receive something in return, such as informative material.
- Contact Form – This is a rather traditional method, and the form is typically found in the ‘Contact’ section of a website where users provide certain information if they want to get in touch with the company.
- SEO/Blog – As we’ve seen in previous posts, SEO is an excellent means to increase traffic to our website pages. With the increase in traffic, the number of leads also rises, and with tools like blogs, we can obtain high-quality leads that align with our target audience.
Lead Nurturing: from lead to loyal customer
Finally, we will discuss the best practices for turning a lead into a customer through a process known as ‘Lead Nurturing.’ The primary purpose of this activity is to ‘cultivate’ the lead, establishing a relationship that will eventually lead to their conversion. In this phase, communication is a crucial aspect: it builds a dialogue aimed at establishing a relationship of trust.
By studying our leads, we will also become more skilled at understanding their interests and sending personalized offers and content. Thanks to this practice, the user assigns value to the company and will be motivated to take a series of steps leading to purchase and loyalty.
Lead generation and marketing B2B
Lead generation currently holds a special place in B2B web marketing strategies. The opportunity to continuously expand the database of selected contacts is enticing for many companies and can be a cornerstone for revenue growth, but it’s also a significant challenge. We will need to be skilled at implementing diverse strategies and constructing a detailed path to guide our leads to the purchase phase.
Have you wondered where to start when creating a lead generation strategy? Trust in our consultation, and we will guide you through this new adventure that will give a significant boost to your company’s sales.
