One of the most important factors that affect the success or failure of any business is its ability to promote its products. You can have the best products in the world but you won’t generate any sales unless you get the word out to people who are willing to buy them.
Fortunately, generating leads on the internet is easy. Not only does the internet offer a large market, it also offers a lot of tools. So if you’re trying to generate new leads for your brand then here are several tips that will help you do it.
What is Online Lead Generation?
Before we talk about the best methods for generating online leads, let us first discuss what it actually is. Online lead generation is stimulating online consumer interest, pure and simple.
Lead generation may be initiated to attract consumers into buying a particular product or set of products. It can also be used for the purposes of creating mailing lists and market research. In certain cases, leads generation may also be used to promote a particular brand or event.
Additionally, online lead generation may also be used as a public relations tool. For example, it can be used to improve public perception of a particular product and, at the same time, reduce negative sentiments. If done correctly, a well-crafted online lead generation campaign can even be used to spark interest in an old or ignored product.
So those are basics behind online lead generation and its benefits. It’s a simple concept, but its applications can be quite complex. If you want to set up your own online lead generation campaign, here are several tips that will help you.
New Technology
You can find all kinds of lead generating technology on the internet, and they always set the trend. There are, for example, special apps and software that allow businesses to track consumer behaviour through machine learning algorithms. There are also special market research tools that allow website owners to conduct their own research by analyzing the popularity of certain keywords and phrases.
If you don’t like apps or programs then you can always look at online databases like Data.com or even Google Analytics. These services offer all kinds of information that you can use to organize your lead generation strategy. New online marketing databases pop up all the time. Most have fees but they also offer great services, so go ahead and give them a try.
In any case, technology will always play a major role in lead generation. They are your tools and if you use them correctly, they will provide you with great results. Some technologies allow you to gather new leads while others will show you how to find them. In any case, they can help you with your goals.
Quality Content
On the internet, content is king, and you can’t create new leads on the internet without them. Good content includes things like articles, reports, videos, podcasts and even memes. Basically, anything that attracts user attention is content.
If it’s informative, useful or entertaining then it’s good content, and good content almost always generates online leads. All you need to do is distribute them far and wide, and people will come to them.
A good example of great content are YouTube videos. YouTubers monetize their videos through ads. So the more people see their videos, the more money they make. Another good example are monetized blog content.
Website owners can monetize their platforms through adsense and other similar payment schemes. So the more content they make, the more traffic they get; the more traffic they get, the more money they make through ads.
The same principle applies to lead generation. Offer good, free content and people will come to consume them, and while they’re enjoying your content, you promote your products and services. You can also add them to your list of potential leads.
Social Media
You can use social media sites to generate new leads. Not only do social media platforms, like Twitter, Facebook and even Instagram, offer many potential leads and traffic, they can also be used to magnify the reach of your online lead generation campaign.
In order to take advantage of such traffic, however, you will need to analyse the social media platforms themselves. You can start by analysing community stats or by looking at popular hashtags and keywords. With a little luck, not only will you be able to generate new leads for your business, you may even be able to create viral materials that will attract large numbers of people.
Consider a viral hashtag on Twitter for example. Hashtags that go viral attract a lot of potential leads because of the momentum that they generate among social media users. Eventually, these people will investigate the origins of the hashtags or memes, at which point they become potential customers.
Finally, it’s also worth mentioning that social media platforms can be used to help you expand the reach of your business. Even a moderately successful Facebook page or business Twitter account will attract a hundred followers if it’s maintained consistently. So even if you can’t create viral materials, you should still use social media to promote your business. Over time, you’ll be able to generate a large enough following to promote your products to a large number of people.
Great Deals
Everyone loves great deals and freebies, and you can use them for lead generation. There are even plenty of online marketing campaigns that use free or heavily discounted items to attract consumer interest. They may lose a little money per sale, but it’s a small price to pay for generating new leads and potential customers.
Take Steam.com, for example. Steam is a relatively popular video game platform the regularly offers special sales to attract many gamers. Every time, these sales happen, they get a spike of new buyers and customers, many of whom set up new Steam accounts.
Another great example are ‘free’ trial products. Many online businesses use this strategy to generate leads and it’s quite effective. The idea is to offer simple/basic versions of their products – usually a software or service – for free. Their customers will not hesitate to get the product, but they won’t be able to use any of the extra features until they purchase an upgraded version.
The important point to remember here is that you can use your own products to generate online leads. It’ll take a little creativity and some sacrifices but offering deals and freebies can lead to a lot of potentially happy and dedicated customers.
Set Up A Special Site for Generating Leads
You should dedicate a special site for generating leads online. This secondary website should offer free, consistent content, and it should be actively promoted on social media and other high traffic platforms. It should also have several links to your main site.
Now, why should you set up a special site for generating leads? The answer is that people don’t like being sold to. When they see that your site is selling something, they will most likely turn away, which is bad for business.
On the other hand, if they see that your site has no intention of selling anything then they will most likely relax and look around. If they look around enough they may eventually find the links to your main site, and they may click on those links to see what else you have to offer.
The value of having a special website for lead generation is that it attracts a lot of people, but it also screens out those who are not interested in buying what you have to offer. The end result is that you get a lot of high quality leads who are willing to buy what you’re selling.
If you want to set up a dedicated lead generation site, you have several options to choose from. Wix.com is a great example of a platform that will allow you to create new and exciting websites at low cost. It also allows you to customize your website anyway you like. If you want to try something simpler, set up a WordPress blog, and if you have a little extra funds, you can create your site. In any case, having a special site for lead generation will help you with your business’ long term prospects.
Hire Specialists
If you need help setting up a lead generation campaign, hire a specialist to help you. There are plenty of online marketing companies that offer such services and they can help you generate the leads you need for your business. They can also advice you on strategy, targeted marketing and other related topics.
If you’re stuck or you can’t seem to attract consumer interest on your own, they may help you set up a new and effective campaign for lead generation. So if you are having trouble with online lead generation, don’t hesitate to contact a specialist. They may just have the solutions you need.