The atypical is not to look at lead generation, personally the future profits of the business are in the business ... and there are many simple ways of doing things that have a huge impact on developing and growing the business before "lead generation" as we know it.
As one of the last things to get to in a business, it has the potential to be one of the most time consuming and expensive things you can get involved in, lead generation comes from everything else that has gone before getting the business to critical mass.
There are, personally, no new silver bullets and some of the ways that have worked best in the past are worth revisiting. As several people have said it's about connecting with people.
Stacy Hayes puts it all in context ... and very well I might add:
"Given current "strategies" I suppose what I'm going to say seems atypical...
I talk to EVERYONE. First, because I'm genuinely interested in what people do, what makes them tick, & their thoughts. I always say network for good karma, but it's really true. The vast majority of the people I talk to aren't potential prospects for me -- I don't care. I just like people & like talking to them."
There are some great quotes in Jerry Maguire that about sums it up....
Dicky Fox: The key to this business is personal relationships.
Dicky Fox: If this [points to heart]
Dicky Fox: is empty, this [points to head]
Dicky Fox: doesn't matter.
There's also a line that I couldn't find... Something like "to sell anyone, you have to love everyone".
Showing posts with label Small Business Leads. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Small Business Leads. Show all posts
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Monday, December 12, 2011
Tips For Generating Sales Leads
Do you have a marketing budget? That will help you separate the 'possible' from the 'probable'.
Bear in mind that you don't need leads; you need customers. If you just want leads, go to the library and get a local business directory. That'll have lots of names, positions and telephone numbers - there's your leads, now hit the phone and call them.
If you want customers, the first thing you should do is define who your customer is - and who he isn't. For example, we get a lot of calls from people who have an idea for starting a business, and want us to develop their website. We pass on those - our customer profile is a small/medium marketing agency with third-party clients.
We know who we want to contact, so we go to the places they congregate. If you want to hunt ducks, you go to a duckpond, not a local zoo; if you want to find a lion, don't bother looking around the duckpond. Guess what you'll find at a local Chamber of Commerce?
Talk to your customers about things that interest them - giving your spin on it, of course. Get involved in the general conversation, get known for being the expert in your field, and the customers will come.
Bear in mind that you don't need leads; you need customers. If you just want leads, go to the library and get a local business directory. That'll have lots of names, positions and telephone numbers - there's your leads, now hit the phone and call them.
If you want customers, the first thing you should do is define who your customer is - and who he isn't. For example, we get a lot of calls from people who have an idea for starting a business, and want us to develop their website. We pass on those - our customer profile is a small/medium marketing agency with third-party clients.
We know who we want to contact, so we go to the places they congregate. If you want to hunt ducks, you go to a duckpond, not a local zoo; if you want to find a lion, don't bother looking around the duckpond. Guess what you'll find at a local Chamber of Commerce?
Talk to your customers about things that interest them - giving your spin on it, of course. Get involved in the general conversation, get known for being the expert in your field, and the customers will come.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Generating Leads For A Small Business
Generating qualified leads is one of the most challenging processes you can go through in sales. It can be frustrating.
here's a few ideas to mull over for generating leads for your small business ....
• Website - Keep your business website clean, working correctly, and the content fresh. Make sure your Contact Us function works well. Test it. Test it again and regularly. Your website is your business face to the world. Keep it fresh and clean.
• SEO – Make sure to stay up on Search Engine Optimization techniques, which seem to shift over time. Keep your webmaster up-to-date on the latest industry key words that might drive leads on your website. Check your web pages for position in a Google search every so often. Don’t let SEO go stale.
• Conferences – Face-to-face discussions at tradeshows can generate some of the most qualified leads possible. But this can be expensive and is limited to the people you can attract to your booth. Booth graphics, give-aways, and pre-show marketing can help drive those leads. It’s also important to pick the appropriate venue and audience for your product.
• Linked-In – LI is ripe with leads. If you link-in with the right contact in an industry his or her contacts can be just the leads you’re looking for. This requires looking through your connections’ connection lists (if its public.) Pay attention to who’s linking with whom. Occasionally go through the suggested connection list. And you can join groups on LinkedIn that share common business interests. These group notifications can get overwhelming so develop as system to use them to your advantage. There is also an Answers feature that lets you create and publish interesting questions that might develop leads. Make sure your LI profile has key words that reflect your products, services, and target markets. Always keep your profile clean, professional, and with pertinent content to attract potential leads.
• Buy Lists - Purchase an email or direct mail list in an industry. This process has many variations, because privacy is of primary concern to people on-line. Usually these vendors handle your direct or email messaging for you, so you don’t actually get to keep the list unless someone responds to your message.
• News - Pay attention to news articles related to your customers, products, market or key issues within your industry. Many of these articles will note companies or even decision makers at companies that you may want to target. Get in the habit of quickly scanning articles for key contacts.
• Search Engine - Google or use other search engines to uncover lists of names. Attendee lists, target industry group memberships, or other sources. Google key customers to determine their competitors – your future customers. Use Google Alerts to comb the web news for key business issues.
• Network – Call key players in your target industries and ask them about their business. Tell them what you doing or thinking about and take notes. Usually, if you’re gentle and respectful, they will share some key nuggets and perhaps even list some key contacts. Call or email people you know to share key pieces of information about common business issues. You end up getting more than you give. And always recommend the good service people you know because the favor will be returned. Go to social media events for b2b crowds. Bring business cards, introduce yourself, and have a conversation. Follow-up with everyone you meet with a thank you email and a LinkedIn invitation.
• Advertise – Emailing or direct mailing a list is one way. Banner ads on target industry web sites can work. Make sure you have a viable, comfortable landing page that makes lead feel like they’ve come to the right place – instantly. Collect key contact info at all costs. Print Ads may be effective, but they are very expensive and difficult, if not impossible to track.
If you have other suggestions please feel to reply as a comment ....
here's a few ideas to mull over for generating leads for your small business ....
• Website - Keep your business website clean, working correctly, and the content fresh. Make sure your Contact Us function works well. Test it. Test it again and regularly. Your website is your business face to the world. Keep it fresh and clean.
• SEO – Make sure to stay up on Search Engine Optimization techniques, which seem to shift over time. Keep your webmaster up-to-date on the latest industry key words that might drive leads on your website. Check your web pages for position in a Google search every so often. Don’t let SEO go stale.
• Conferences – Face-to-face discussions at tradeshows can generate some of the most qualified leads possible. But this can be expensive and is limited to the people you can attract to your booth. Booth graphics, give-aways, and pre-show marketing can help drive those leads. It’s also important to pick the appropriate venue and audience for your product.
• Linked-In – LI is ripe with leads. If you link-in with the right contact in an industry his or her contacts can be just the leads you’re looking for. This requires looking through your connections’ connection lists (if its public.) Pay attention to who’s linking with whom. Occasionally go through the suggested connection list. And you can join groups on LinkedIn that share common business interests. These group notifications can get overwhelming so develop as system to use them to your advantage. There is also an Answers feature that lets you create and publish interesting questions that might develop leads. Make sure your LI profile has key words that reflect your products, services, and target markets. Always keep your profile clean, professional, and with pertinent content to attract potential leads.
• Buy Lists - Purchase an email or direct mail list in an industry. This process has many variations, because privacy is of primary concern to people on-line. Usually these vendors handle your direct or email messaging for you, so you don’t actually get to keep the list unless someone responds to your message.
• News - Pay attention to news articles related to your customers, products, market or key issues within your industry. Many of these articles will note companies or even decision makers at companies that you may want to target. Get in the habit of quickly scanning articles for key contacts.
• Search Engine - Google or use other search engines to uncover lists of names. Attendee lists, target industry group memberships, or other sources. Google key customers to determine their competitors – your future customers. Use Google Alerts to comb the web news for key business issues.
• Network – Call key players in your target industries and ask them about their business. Tell them what you doing or thinking about and take notes. Usually, if you’re gentle and respectful, they will share some key nuggets and perhaps even list some key contacts. Call or email people you know to share key pieces of information about common business issues. You end up getting more than you give. And always recommend the good service people you know because the favor will be returned. Go to social media events for b2b crowds. Bring business cards, introduce yourself, and have a conversation. Follow-up with everyone you meet with a thank you email and a LinkedIn invitation.
• Advertise – Emailing or direct mailing a list is one way. Banner ads on target industry web sites can work. Make sure you have a viable, comfortable landing page that makes lead feel like they’ve come to the right place – instantly. Collect key contact info at all costs. Print Ads may be effective, but they are very expensive and difficult, if not impossible to track.
If you have other suggestions please feel to reply as a comment ....
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Which Type Of Lead Generation Is Best For Small Business? - - Part III
There are 101 different methods of lead generation and what works for you and your business depends on the products and services you offer, your target market and sometimes personal preferences. (There's little point in cold-calling if you absolutely hate it - and let's face it most people don't like doing it and even more importantly, don't like being on the receiving end.)
Essentially, people do business with people (or businesses) they know, like and trust and that can take time to build.
They can get to know, like and trust you from meeting you face-to-face at networking meetings, seeing your expertise through articles, demonstrations, blogs, referrals and recommendations, a regular newsletter ... etc.
Leaflets, advertising, email and direct mail campaigns, free offers, events, workshops can also work. Pick half a dozen and try them out - test which ones work best and stick with those. If something doesn't work, adapt, modify or change it to see if you can improve your response rate or find something that works.
For a web designer or internet marketer - I would choose someone I know or who was recommended to me. I certainly wouldn't pick someone from the many emails I receive, on an almost daily basis, offering their services.
I've gained most of my business from networking - both online and offline. Social media has widened the opportunities and the audience but can be a slower, more long-term method.
I can recommend the Ultimate Small Business Marketing Book - by Dee Blick which has great tips for small businesses and more importantly practical examples.
Above contibution by Clare Evans
Essentially, people do business with people (or businesses) they know, like and trust and that can take time to build.
They can get to know, like and trust you from meeting you face-to-face at networking meetings, seeing your expertise through articles, demonstrations, blogs, referrals and recommendations, a regular newsletter ... etc.
Leaflets, advertising, email and direct mail campaigns, free offers, events, workshops can also work. Pick half a dozen and try them out - test which ones work best and stick with those. If something doesn't work, adapt, modify or change it to see if you can improve your response rate or find something that works.
For a web designer or internet marketer - I would choose someone I know or who was recommended to me. I certainly wouldn't pick someone from the many emails I receive, on an almost daily basis, offering their services.
I've gained most of my business from networking - both online and offline. Social media has widened the opportunities and the audience but can be a slower, more long-term method.
I can recommend the Ultimate Small Business Marketing Book - by Dee Blick which has great tips for small businesses and more importantly practical examples.
Above contibution by Clare Evans
Monday, October 24, 2011
Which Type Of Lead Generation Is Best For Small Business? - - Part II
For more than 10 years now, there has been a powerful trend for people to search the internet for the products and services they want. Not only is this the current trend, but it is accelerating.
The consequences, for offline marketers, have been brutal, with them increasingly fighting over a shrinking piece of the pie. They are in the unhappy position of investing an increasing amount of resources (both time and money) for a constantly shrinking return, while online marketers dine on their lost market share.
Ask anyone who has been doing it for a while how hard it is to get a new client, or sale, from networking, telemarketing, cold email campaigns, direct mail and a host of others. Especially compared to 5 years ago.
Regularly, on LinkedIn Q&A, there are questions from traditional marketers, that reveal the strain of trying to adjust to the tectonic shift from offline to online.
At the risk of mixing metaphors, the online marketers are catching the wave. The offline marketers are pushing a rope. Naturally, there are exceptions to both of these, i.e. successful offline marketers and failed online marketers, but that is exactly what they are, the exceptions.
As I say, the trend is accelerating. There is still plenty of time to catch the wave. You don't have to plunge in with a big budget. You can baby-step into it at a pace you can digest. A year or two down the road, you will be glad you did.
There is tons of free information available if you search 'Inbound Marketing'. If you want to accelerate the learning curve, there are plenty of people out there you can hire to help out.
The big winners here, will be the ones who learn how to substitute website visitors for sales calls.
Above contribution from Carl Diamond
The consequences, for offline marketers, have been brutal, with them increasingly fighting over a shrinking piece of the pie. They are in the unhappy position of investing an increasing amount of resources (both time and money) for a constantly shrinking return, while online marketers dine on their lost market share.
Ask anyone who has been doing it for a while how hard it is to get a new client, or sale, from networking, telemarketing, cold email campaigns, direct mail and a host of others. Especially compared to 5 years ago.
Regularly, on LinkedIn Q&A, there are questions from traditional marketers, that reveal the strain of trying to adjust to the tectonic shift from offline to online.
At the risk of mixing metaphors, the online marketers are catching the wave. The offline marketers are pushing a rope. Naturally, there are exceptions to both of these, i.e. successful offline marketers and failed online marketers, but that is exactly what they are, the exceptions.
As I say, the trend is accelerating. There is still plenty of time to catch the wave. You don't have to plunge in with a big budget. You can baby-step into it at a pace you can digest. A year or two down the road, you will be glad you did.
There is tons of free information available if you search 'Inbound Marketing'. If you want to accelerate the learning curve, there are plenty of people out there you can hire to help out.
The big winners here, will be the ones who learn how to substitute website visitors for sales calls.
Above contribution from Carl Diamond
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