Imagine a situation. You are sitting in a nice restaurant. And you are just about to dig into that bowl of your favourite dish. But, your phone rings. “Hello, am I speaking to Jake? This call is regarding your preferences for the refrigerator.” Such phone calls can be really annoying. That’s what we are here for. To help generate leads without those disruptive cold calling methods.

What is the bottom line of all marketing strategies for a business? Generation of “high-quality leads”. Why are we emphasizing the term high-quality? It’s simple. Nothing works until the prospects interact with your business.

Lead generation is the first phase of the marketing funnel. And many businesses fail to figure out how to do this. So, let us help you with the process. Before that, let’s understand the definition of lead and lead generation.

What is lead?

An individual who shows interest in a brand and its products is a lead. They mainly start interacting with the brand by submitting personal information, opting for free trials or other ways.

For instance, you took a survey about a product. You will get emails from the brand thereafter. From the business’s perspective, it allows them to gain information and understand whether it is a potential lead or not. Based on their interaction and activity, there are several types of leads. These are as follows:

• Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL)
  These are the leads that have engaged with the marketing activity of a brand. However, they are not qualified for a sales call. For example, the consumers who fill forms of marketing offers.
• Sales Qualified Lead (SQL)
  These leads are genuinely interested in purchasing the product of a brand. For example, they engage with your products and activities related to product purchase on your site.
• Product Qualified Lead (PQL)
  These leads have already used your products/services. Such leads mostly exist for platforms offering free trials. And they are further interested to purchase the products after the limited version is over.

Lead generation- An overview

It is defined as the process of attraction and conversion of the target audience into potential clients. There are several methods and strategies of lead generation. But, why is it so important? And how does its process follow?

Lead generation follows a step-by-step process. Here is how it takes place:

• A visitor gets acquainted with your business through blogs, social media pages, etc.
• They click on the CTA option and interact with your brand. This is done by visiting the site, or the landing page.
• Once they reach, they exchange information in return for an offer. This can be a newsletter, an offer in case of a business, a template, etc.
• And voila! Once they enter the information, you get a lead.

Methods for lead generation

 Before you actually start off with lead generation, it is essential to know the goals. How do you expect the leads to respond? What is your definition of high-quality leads? Once you figure out all of this, you can integrate other platforms to generate leads. Below mentioned are the different ways to do so:

1. Content

This is a great way to deliver value along with driving the audience. It basically involves providing the visitors with free and informative content. Following this, CTA’s are placed somewhere in the content. It can be the bottom of the post, in-line or elsewhere. The more engaging the content is, the more likely it is that the visitors will click on the CTA.

For instance, newsletters, blogs, quora questions for outbound marketing, etc. Another way is through long-form and short-form videos.

2. Email

Email is one of the best ways to reach your audience organically. Once you have generated the lead or have a subscription, you can easily keep the subscribers updated through emails. Most people have cluttered email inboxes. So, to attract the audience, ensure that you make it compelling with offers and designs. This will further increase the CTR.

3. Social Media

Everyone is present on social media nowadays. Leveraging it to the best use for a brand is quintessential. They further make it easier for users to understand your brand and take action. You can incorporate Facebook advertisements, Instagram marketing, and even use promotions. Social media campaigns are a great way to further increase the reach.

Alongside, another platform that is ruling is LinkedIn. From industry professionals to business owners, everyone is present there. You can connect with them and understand the audience’s expectations. Further, lead generation can be done by conducting marketing surveys, forms, etc.

4. Referral marketing

Many brands are putting this to use. Referral or word-of-mouth has been there for years. It is one of the most trusted ways to bring in an authentic audience.

For instance, you can provide coupons to leads or customers who bring in referrals. This will entice them to brand your products in front of others.

5. Product trials

Brands can overcome a majority of the hurdles by providing free trials. This allows the consumers to understand your products better, encouraging them to buy them.

For instance, many streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon, among others provide trial services. This engages the audience with the product, making them purchase it further.

6. Use Search Engine Optimization

One of the best ways to grow organically and generate high-quality leads is through SEO optimization. This is done by incorporating target keywords, inbound and outbound links on your site.

Try understanding Google’s algorithm. This will help you figure out what works best. You can do this by implementing lead generation software and tools. They provide you with a complete analysis of the site and its performance.

7. Webinars

Online platforms are undoubtedly a saviour. If you want your brand to grow, you can conduct free webinars. They are usually conducted to make the audience aware of a brand or a current topic. This will allow people to know more about your brand, further generating leads.

For instance, if you are a marketing service provider, you can conduct webinars about marketing strategies. This will be beneficial for both marketers and business. Thereby, it will further help you tap on the right audience and engage with them.

Lead generation tools

 After you have implemented all the methods and strategies, how do you track them? How do you know about the people visiting your site? The answer is simple. Through lead generation software. They help you gain an overview of your leads and strategies. Further, you can organize your data to drive successful campaigns.

There are many tools available nowadays. One of them is PeppyBiz. We are a one-stop platform catering to all your requirements. Here is a list of all the features that we provide:

• Creation and personalization of lead forms
• Getting leads from insights
• GDPR compliant lead generation
• Integration with other software
• Round the clock support
• Lead form testing
• Notifications for lead generation

These are just a few features that we offer. You can utilize our lead generation tools to easily convert the visitors into customers through the marketing funnel.

Conclusion

To summarize, lead generation can look like a tedious process. We will not deny that. But, if carried out strategically, it can provide amazing results. All you need to do is implement the lead generation methods along with constant analysis. Last and most importantly, never stop testing the strategies. Because you do not know what might turn in favour of you!

Nevpro India is the most trusted software consultant for digitizing and automating all your internal processes. We implement the most popular cost-effective Website, ERP, CRM, and Business Intelligence solution that’s tailor-made for your business’s specific needs. These services are for organizations of all sizes.

Author Bio

Sara Williams

Sara is a Content Writer at PeppyBiz. She is not only a creative writer but also paints a beautiful canvas. She makes sure that you are left with no doubt about keeping up with marketing and sales.