Although many companies have different products and services their marketing goals are consistent. Companies competing in business to business sales are searching for more leads, more sales, and ultimately more ROI. In order to capture high-quality B2B leads, marketing strategy needs to be geared towards effective lead generation.
In this guide, you will find how to structure lead generation for the most successful B2B customer acquisition.
1. Choose Your Audience and Personalize Their Experience
As a marketer we have heard this before: KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. Breaking down the demographics can help focus efforts to find the exact target audience you are trying to reach. It is impossible to try and market to everyone at once. Concentrating on your core audience opens opportunities to create interest specific to their needs.
Almost every advertising method is using personalization, from your favourite shoes at Nordstrom to your next vacation spot on Delta Airlines. Although those are in the consumer marketplace, there is much to learn from the personalization of emails, ads, and content engagement. For lead generation, email marketing and content are important to focus on. Combining your targeted audience with relatable content, it is likely that your strategy is more effective.
In a recent study from Seismic and Demand Metric, 60% of B2B brands indicated that personalization has a higher retention rate than an impersonalized approach. That being said, the content being distributed should be appealing to your audience. Each email should be personalized. BE SURE TO TEST MERGE FIELDS BEFORE SENDING. This cannot be stressed enough. Reading {Contact.First.Name} is a sure way to lose your prospects interest. Finding other ways to personalize emails such as relevant news in the company, referencing past conversations, or making a common connection is another trick to add to your B2B marketing ideas.
2. Go Beyond One Blog a Month
In a time that content is key – blogs are becoming the most important aspects of lead generation and the quality of leads that are produced. A recent study by HubSpot stated B2B companies that regularly blogged 11+ times a month had nearly three times more traffic than those who did not blog or blogged once a month. Not only did their interest peak but also the leads generated.
Consistently finding relevant information to appeal to your audience will not only draw in the customers you are targeting but will create a sense of trust. Providing value through your content is another way to appeal to your target audience and attract inbound SQL’s.
3. Cold Emails Work
With email marketing making a comeback, it is essential to have it as a part of your B2B marketing strategy. As one of the most cost-effective forms of marketing, promoting products and content can be done efficiently at a low price.
Cold emails, done right, are most effective for landing phone calls with prospects and finding influencers. Paired with brand awareness through social media efforts, these emails can be used as effective touchpoints. The key is to pair it with additional marketing (i.e. brand awareness) to make communication easy and intriguing for leads to engage with.
4. Use Social Media to Complement Outreach
Many companies are familiar with the 3 powerhouses in the social media realm: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. These platforms house your audience. Many times buyers will search for product/service information through social media. As it’s known today, the majority of B2B advertising is done on LinkedIn. Instagram, usually known for its B2C advertising, is making moves in the B2B space. It is now known as one of the best places for B2B brands to advertise. This platform has shown that it has a higher sales interaction rate than other platforms.
Visual channels are continually growing as the most profitable advertising spaces and will continue to be a lead generator for B2B businesses. Branching out into new verticals, supplying interesting/visual content will allow your businesses to expand and reach your audience with multiple touchpoints.
5. Offer Incentive for Word-of-mouth Mentions
The marketing strategy that is as old as time… word of mouth. Review sites such as Better Business Bureau, Travelocity, and Yelp are so successful because people inherently trust others for recommendations. It is rare for customers to purchase something without having the assurance that someone else has
1. Tried out the company
2. Was happy with their work
3. Would recommend/use them again
Providing incentives for word-of-mouth mentions from your current clients gives you the ability to gauge their satisfaction with your work, as well as to gain new business. Referrals work that is why they are worth investing in.
Connecting with B2B clients can be a daunting challenge. Through lead generation, companies can reel in the prospects most important to them. Content syndication, social media, emails, and referrals all play crucial parts in landing new B2B business. Following this guide will create opportunities to promote business to business sales.