leads

For anyone who isn’t familiar with the fable of “The Pied Piper,” it’s about a town called Hamelin that dealt with a horrible infestation of rats. To rid the town of the vermin, a piper who dressed in bright red clothing played his pipe to lure the rats into the river.

A company that can play the instrument of lead generation is much like the Pied Piper. All that’s required is the know-how to learn. A healthy combination of targeted content, email campaigns, display ads, webinars, social media, and keywords make a beautiful song that consumers will follow. This will lead to a larger audience and increased bottom line.

it’s a busy, busy online world

With everything transforming and becoming digital, the online world is busier than Grand Central Station. To navigate your way, it’s essential to understand how various programs complement each other. An opportunity to convert prospects into leads only exists when you know what to capitalize on.

Because people have more options than ever, you need to create an effective strategy that will lead consumers to your business over another. Enter, lead nurturing, an optimal process that differentiates your company from competitors by following up with consumers until they are ready to buy.

For example, when you think of a visit to a car dealership, odds are the car salesman will attempt to put you in a new car that day. If you walk away, you’ll get a call the next day to follow up on your experience…then again the next week to tell you about a new model you might like. The car salesman will follow up with you until you’re ready, and because of his persistence, he already has your business.

In essence, that’s what lead nurturing is. Only online, follow ups are done through emails, targeted ads, and newsletters. Determining where your customers are on the buying spectrum allows you to engage them in a meaningful way that will ultimately lead to a decision to work with you when the time is right.

You already have some of the insight you need if you have a blog or social media platform because you can physically see the types of content people engage with. Use this to tap into people’s behavior and patterns, and produce more of what your potential customers want. This will establish trust and build a strong relationship that leads to, well, leads.

start your lead generation journey

Because you already have some of the insight you need and the ability to tap into people’s behavior and patterns, you have the advantage of fully understanding the needs of your consumers and building on those relationships. Your relationship begins at the first engagement they make with your brand. From there, it’s all about nurturing that relationship, much how you would tend to a garden. By properly caring for your relationship with consumers, you’ll deepen your intuition of what works and what doesn’t while converting initial consumers into life-long customers.

First, though, it’s important to understand what your consumer is thinking when they first land on your website or brand. Initially they will look for a source of credibility. How reliable are you? What kinds of services do you offer and how well are they performed? Provide details of positive testimonials so you can speak to any concerns before a consumer moves on to another company.

Additionally, they are wondering how your services will benefit them, and if you offer short-term or long-term solutions. Along with that, they will wonder how much they need you, which is where cost often pops up as a potential hindrance. If you’re costly, speak to that by playing up your value and how it’s unlike any other competitor in the space.

If you know what your consumers are asking before they even have a chance to ask themselves, you can beat them to the punch by addressing those concerns. Write about the value of your business and the benefits of working together. Assurance is the best way to quell any concerns and gain trust.

choose your words carefully

Once a consumer is interested, you have the power to make them stay, or the power to make them leave. How you handle the next level of interaction is up to you, and it’s the place where most companies lose consumers.

The best way to further your relationships with potential clients is lead nurturing, as discussed above. Content is oftentimes the most premier way to deepen those relationships because you can positively and effectively use your words to grab people’s attentions.

Suggested ways are through consistent blog posts, social media updates, and monthly newsletters. This gives your business presence and staying power in a consumer’s mind. You can showcase your brand as an industry thought leader and a true source of industry knowledge.

create long-term customers

Lead nurturing isn’t about pitching or selling, it’s about becoming a helpful companion that consumers trust. Once you gain a buyer’s trust, you gain their business. And once you gain their business, you gain their future business. The common misconception about lead generation is that it’s cyclical–it’s not a one-off transaction.