Lead generation is a very critical factor for well-oiled B2B sales and marketing operation. First, you need to get more people to know about your services and products. Then, you will get more clients. You have to let people know about your products and services so that they can buy from you. That’s where lead generation helps. It cultivates an interest in your services and products to generate leads. Leads are the companies who are interested and are a good fit as customers for your product. It’s more than a number game. Generating leads should be your main focus if you’re a B2B marketer. But if you don’t have a strong understanding of nuances of selling B2B services and products, then you will have to struggle to produce qualified sales leads. People now use a range of social media contents which keep the buyers engaged throughout the sales cycle.
Marketing departments have to take a multi-channel approach to generate B2B leads. B2B Lead generation using Google AdWords is also an effective approach. You shouldn’t focus all your efforts on one venue rather you need to tap into various channels to get the most bang for your efforts.
There are a variety of ways for lead generation but not all approaches are equally created. These channels provide the most ROI (Return on Investment) for B2B companies:
- Content Marketing
Nowadays, the most effective marketing techniques depend on content creation but creating a bunch of contents doesn’t assure you an outpouring lead. You have to create contents which will set you apart from other payers in the field. They have to be extraordinary.
The low-quality content is a curse for B2B marketing departments. Those contents don’t attract the readers as well as they leave the readers with very little value to take away.
So, your content should be able to hit them in different pain points throughout their journey. Your content marketing strategy for your company should be multi-faceted and has to be able to take buyers’ journeys into consideration.
2. SEO
Though it is known as a completely separate matter from lead generation, it plays a vital role in the process. Most people think that SEO is only important to bring people to your website so that your content and brand gets noticed. But it is also important in any B2B lead generation effort because it identifies how much potential your buyers find you.
The value of “user intent” is often restrained in many marketing departments. There lies the qualitative data such as keywords, competitor research, and page analytics, that can uplift the way you do marketing: understanding user intent.
SEO specialists help to unlock the keys of knowledge which will help the marketing department as well as the whole company.
3. Social Media
Social media is a must-have for your marketing effort. You should be effective in using social media to generate B2B leads. Studies say that 10% of marketers use social media for B2B lead generation and only 10% are able to report solid results. It means that many marketers are still not confident to incorporate social media into their lead generation campaigns. These social media sites are popular for B2B:
LinkedIn: A great site for showcasing your services, posting regular business updates, advertising new job opportunities. Social selling is easier because of its sales tools. The talking heads of your company can pose themselves as authorities in your niche with the “pulse” feature of this app.
Twitter: This site is very engaging with the influencer and decision makers. The practices of prospect research on this site are industries, job titles, connections, hashtags, lists, etc. It establishes thought leadership through constant updates and engaging in Twitter chats.
Facebook: It’s considered as a business-to-consumer playground but it gives you access to powerful data. It’s very standard for running targeted paid ads. There are also some opportunities for professional discussions in Facebook groups.
These three social media sites are very effective for B2B marketers. B2B marketers can get more quality and quantity of data from these sites.
4.Email Marketing
Email marketing is the most superior marketing channel in terms of ROI. Email marketing can be very effective, all you have to do is just strike a balance between assertive and polite. However, it’s essential for you to know what actually works and what not. Create emails and subject lines which will tickle the audience’s interest. If you do so, your job is half done.
5.Include a Human Touch in Your Campaign
Include telemarketing in your campaign. I know that it’s long gone but the human touch is more effective as people grow cautious of digital marketing. Making a short phone call to VP-level IT executive to discuss on a compelling offer is a very effective approach for B2B lead generation.
These channels are the most effective ones to create steady lead streams into your sales pipeline. Your company will have to struggle to keep afloat if you don’t have a productive lead generation campaign. B2B lead generation is the right hand for your sales development. They all work together to ensure your company’s constant growth.