Generating business leads follow pretty much the same principles as fishing. Both require patience and plenty of innovative strategies to hook the perfect tuna. You constantly have to be a step ahead of the school, if not, your bait will become stale and your fish will be few and far in between. Speaking from personal experience, using unconventional and interesting bait methods such as hotdogs usually, do the trick.
Lead definition:
A lead is an individual or organisation that has previously shown interest in your particular product or service through some form of communication – whether it may be through social media, email marketing or networking events.
Top 5 ways of generating a potential lead:
- Newsletters
- Content marketing such as blogs/articles
- Networking events
- Webinars
- Social media
Finally, how to hook a lead:
It’s one thing generating a potential lead, it’s a whole different ball game trying to hook one. These days, people are becoming more and more skittish when it comes to buying into something that’ll cost them money. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when trying to hook a potential tuna:
Have a quick response:
Hook them while they’re still in the vicinity by responding to requests in a quick and timely manner. It’s no use waiting around for the day that you decide now’s the right time. Leads will get bored and move on to oxygen-richer waters.
Know the customer:
By knowing what your customer wants and needs, you’ll have an upper hand compared to your competitors. The trick is to always be ahead of the game, even ahead of your customer – making them do less work explaining to you what they need and giving you the chance to blow them out of the water.
Offer incentives:
Incentives can be in the form of discounts on a next purchase, free samples to test your new product, or in the case of fishing – offer hotdogs! Creating a worthy word-of-mouth effect will boost your reputation and ultimately, your leads.
Be target driven:
Nothing worthwhile has ever been achieved by having a shady goal. You’re more likely to achieve more by setting a target on a number of leads to generate per month, than sitting on the edge hoping for a fish to bite. Be proactive.
Ensure your leads don’t fall through the cracks or get lost somehow by investing in quality lead management software such as Leadtrekker – because how else are you supposed to improve your hooking techniques without actively measuring your incoming leads.
Sources:
https://www.marketingdonut.co.uk/sales/sales-lead-generation/nine-top-tips-for-finding-new-customers
