Guest post by Nadia Basaraba.
Generating high-quality leads is consistently cited as one of the top two goals (along with increasing brand awareness) of B2B marketers. But with so many lead generation tactics available, it can be difficult to determine the most productive techniques and channels to focus on.
Image credit: Scott Graham on Unsplash
More than half of B2B companies struggle to consistently generate high-quality leads. According to recent statistics, 62% of B2B companies lack an effective lead generation strategy. Why? Because B2B lead generation is more than just a numbers game. Companies require high-quality leads that have solid potential to be converted into customers. Otherwise, they risk ending up with negative ROI.
This post details seven of the best tactics to generate B2B leads. Whether you’re a seasoned marketer or new to B2B lead generation, you’ll find tips to help you generate more and better leads to drive business growth.
What is B2B Lead Generation?
B2B lead generation is the process of finding and attracting prospects who will likely buy a certain service or product. To attract B2B sales prospects, companies use a variety of strategies to grab the attention and interest of their target audience. B2B lead generation is the first stage in the buying process that aims at gathering information about the ideal client and then attracting them into the sales funnel.
B2B lead generation is a crucial component of business success. Without a steady stream of new leads, it can be challenging for a company to grow and achieve its revenue goals.
What is a “good” B2B Lead?
Typically, a high-quality B2B lead meets the following criteria:
- Relevant: The lead should be relevant to the business and its products or services.
- Qualified: The lead should have a genuine interest in the product or service being offered and have the means to purchase it.
- Decision-maker: The lead should have the authority to make purchasing decisions (or strongly influence them at the least) within their organization.
- Responsive: The lead should be responsive to communication attempts and willing to engage in a conversation.
- Timely: The lead should be interested in making a purchase in the near future.
Include the lead-to-conversion metric in your marketing reporting to see whether your lead generation strategies bring you solid leads that convert into customers. If the conversion rate is low, you should review your approach.
Best Tactics for B2B Lead Generation
Crafting an effective B2B lead generation strategy requires a combination of creativity to try new ideas plus a data-driven mindset to evaluate results. While there are no shortcuts to success, certain tactics have demonstrated the ability to enhance lead quality and yield better results. Here are seven that can help you refine your approach and improve lead generation quality.
Attract Organic Traffic with High-Quality Content
Improving content quality is among the most effective ways for B2B marketers to generate high-quality leads. B2B customers are seeking to solve a problem, not just buy your product or service.
B2B buyers expect a company to pinpoint their pains and offer a practical solution. Your target audience is looking for insightful information, real-life examples, and insider secrets that will help fix their problem.
To drive organic traffic to your website, focus on creating well-researched SEO content and sharing relatable case studies that benefit your customers. Additionally, become a trusted expert by fostering relationships with your audience through valuable webinars, podcasts, and videos. By offering informative and engaging content in various formats, you can establish yourself as a trusted information source in your industry.
Drive Inbound Leads with Reviews and Testimonials
Online reviews and testimonials are the new “word of mouth.” Today’s B2B customers want to experience a product before they buy it. The best ways to do that are either through a free trial or getting to know about a product from someone who has already tried it, and shared reviews and testimonials with pictures and videos.
There’s probably no need to dig deeper into why video testimonials are the most compelling, as it’s all there on the surface: they’re powerful, sincere, and most importantly, credible.
Image credit: TrustRadius
Build Thought Leadership on Social Media
Another long-term tactic to generate B2B leads more effectively is building a reputation as an expert in your field. Thought leadership not only has a strong impact on purchasing decisions, but it also helps to attract decision-makers willing to pay a premium.
Work to become a trustworthy thought leader on social media. Be the brand your audience wants to listen to and turn to for solutions. Share your expertise and make it relevant to your customers. Earn the interest of your B2B sales leads with business insights on trends, challenges in the field, and actionable guidance. Experiment with different social media channels, but LinkedIn has proven to be among the most effective for B2B businesses, and Twitter remains the second-most productive social network for B2B marketers.
Of course, social media content isn’t limited to written posts. Visuals can be a powerful tool in your social media strategy, as they can help you to communicate complex ideas quickly and effectively. Consider incorporating images and infographic ideas into your social media content to capture your audience’s attention. You can also try creating social media videos and interacting with your audience via live streams.
Image credit: Edelman
Use Ad Retargeting to Re-Engage Visitors
No matter how great your website is, sometimes browsing your pages once isn’t enough to turn a visitor into a lead. That’s when retargeting comes in. Re-engaged leads are warmed-up and just need a bit of a reminder.
However, you need to ensure the ads are highly customized to reach the right target audience. Retargeted ads should be based on visitors’ previous experience with the website and perfectly match their intent. That is to say, retargeted ads should aim directly at a person’s interests and what they were looking for on your website before. It’s adding the finishing touches to help close the deal.
Offer Meaningful Resources for Free
What’s the best way to show the value of your product? Don’t be stingy about offering free resources to get B2B prospects interested in purchasing from your brand.
Some companies may worry that free resources will lower the chances of acquiring potential customers when in reality, it’s the opposite. First-hand experience with a free trial, consultation, or additional helpful resources positively impacts purchasing decisions. Here are some handy resources you may offer for free:
- E-books
- Webinar recordings
- Guides
- Self-assessments
- White papers
- Free tools
- Playbooks
- Ready-made templates
Consider the newest consumer trends when choosing the type of resources and the channel to approach your sales prospects. By producing and gating valuable content, not only can you attract potential customers and learn about their interests, but also have their contact information for later outreach (as to download your free resources, they’ll leave their name, email, and/or phone number).
Optimize Website Landing Pages
Another essential tactic to generate B2B leads more effectively is optimizing your landing pages. Develop a conversion rate optimization (CRO) strategy to help maximize conversions.
Use the rule of “three Cs.” Make your landing page clear, concise, and compelling. Don’t include more than five information fields when creating a lead capture form. Few people will fill out a detailed survey to get a free eBook. Place the form near the top of your landing page, so your potential customers won’t miss it. Implement welcome or exit-intent pop-ups, but don’t forget to run tests to make sure they appear just at the right time.
Utilize Referral Marketing
A great way to get B2B leads of high quality is by obtaining them through your existing customers. Referrals build more trust and higher interest in your brand. Naturally, we will more likely believe our friend or acquaintance recommending something to us. To generate referrals, invest time in encouraging your customers to refer to your company.
Consider launching a referral program that would benefit both new and existing customers. Leads generated through referrals tend to convert at a higher rate than other types of leads, as they are already prequalified and more likely to be interested in your product or service.
Conclusion
Consistently generating quality leads is an ongoing project that requires creativity, persistence, and attention to detail. Above are seven B2B marketing lead generation ideas that have been proven to drive results. Experiment, determine which tactics work best for your brand, and acquire leads that will drive sales.
Nadia Basaraba is a Marketing Specialist at Coupler.io, a data analytics and automation platform. She’s passionate about content creation and data-driven marketing. Apart from experimenting with marketing tactics, she’s an avid reader and traveler.
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