A Beginners Guide to Inbound Lead Generation

Marketing has changed more in the last two years than in the previous 50 combined. Have you adapted your marketing strategies and tactics to keep up?

If your company is focusing solely on outbound “push” marketing methods like messages sent through direct mail, telemarketing, print advertising, radio or TV then, you have some catching up to do.

For the last several years, company after company has proven that inbound marketing is a far more effective way to reach potential customers. With inbound marketing, the goal isn’t to interrupt people from what they are interested in. Instead, the goal is to become what they are interested in.

Want to know who to make the transformation? Read on…

What is a Lead?

Before you can think about inbound lead generation, you must first understand what a lead is. Anybody who has indicated an interest in the product or service that your business is selling is considered a lead. These include people who:

Call you for information.
Respond to a survey.
Visit your store.
Submit their information on your lead capture form.

The Benefits of Inbound Lead Generation

Customers Reach Out To You

With inbound lead generation, you attract a steady stream of potential customers to your website with interesting content and build their interest in your products and services over time. By attracting people to your website with quality content, you are “getting them in the door.” When they are ready to do business down the line, you are one of their first choices because they have a relationship with your business.

Results are Measurable

Inbound marketing measurements reveal precisely how your prospects are engaging with you, how often they’re converted from website visitors to customers, and how much revenue each of your marketing channels are producing, down to the minute, penny, and click. Not to mention, you’ve just captured their name, title, company, and biggest unmet need from a landing page – information you can use to qualify, convert, and monetize that lead. Minnesota Business Magazine

The Ways in Which Leads Are Generated

Think of inbound lead generation as the hiring process. When a prospective employee fills out a job application, they are willing to share a huge amount of personal information in order to have a shot at getting the job.

The same idea is true for lead generation. When your prospective customer is interested in what you have to offer, they will share important information in return.

Lead nurturing starts by collecting contact information in exchange for something the visitor deems of value, but with little risk. Often, this entails some form of information or product trial intended to help solve the visitor’s problem. Jeff Bullas

Coupons

If your business puts out a coupon on the Internet, people who find it valuable will likely share their name and email address to get it. That’s not much information, but it opens the door for you to continue the conversation through email and indicates this person has a direct interest in your product or service.

Content

Unlike a coupon download, content consumption doesn’t indicate that the potential customer has a direct interest in your product or service (unless you only offer one thing). To understand their interest, you will need to collect additional information.

The goal is to collect enough information for the sales rep to understand whether a person is interested in your product or service, and whether they are a good fit. This can be done all at once, or over time.

Here on Groove Digital Marketing we collect:

First & Last Name: used to personalize email communications
Company Name: Allow sales to research the prospective client and see how they might benefit from our services.
Primary Email: used to communicate through email marketing campaigns
Website URL: Allows sales to research the prospective client.
Best Describe Me: Allows us to customize our communications into different funnels.
- Marketing Manager Who Needs a Boost
- CEO/Owner Who Needs Sales
- HubSpot Client Looking for Help
- Other

Inbound Marketing 101: A Beginners Guide to Lead Generation #contentmarketing

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Components of Successful Lead Generation

The lead generation process can be broken down into a few key components

Landing Page: the part of your website that the customer “lands” on in search of a product, service, or an answer to an important question. Once the visitor is on your landing page, you can collect information via a form.
Form: a component on your landing page that collects information in exchange for something in return.
Offer: This is your “something in return”. It must have enough value that it entices the visitor to fill it out.
Call to action (CTA): This can be an image, message, or some other type of element that calls the lead to take action.

Conclusion

Inbound lead generation is one of the most effective ways to take leads and turn them into customers. It’s a win-win for everyone – customers don’t feel like you’re being invasive, and your sales team has an easier time converting leads into sales.

What’s holding you back from getting started on inbound lead generation? Please share your comments below.

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About
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Trent Dyrsmid

Founder at Groove Digital Marketing

Right after being a husband and father, and riding dirt bikes, Trent's next love is digital marketing. He is the author of the Digital Marketing Handbook and spends most of his time helping his clients succeed.