What the Heck is Lead Generation?

Originally published March 16, 2022

Lead generation is one of the most effective digital marketing strategies to find potential clients or buyers. Lead generation matters because it brings you closer to turning a stranger into a prospective customer. But it's not an easy task by any means. In fact, 61% of marketers say it's their number one obstacle.

However, once you learn the lead generation strategy, you'll race to implement it in your marketing efforts and increase sales.

In This Article:

What Is Lead Generation?

First, let's define a couple of terms. A lead is someone who has shown interest in your product or service – typically through performing a trackable call-to-action like clicking a button or downloading something. So then lead generation is the process of capturing leads and collecting their contact information with the hope of converting them into customers.

Next, it's vital to know the two types of lead generation: inbound and outbound. Inbound lead generation is how we collect potential leads through marketing efforts that aim to lead customers to your website. Blogs, organic social, guides, and newsletters are all examples of inbound lead generation. Outbound lead generation is the controlled outreach to your target audience, like cold calls or direct mail.

Why are both types of lead generation important? For starters, it's one way to increase your brand awareness. It always helps your business when more people know who you are and what goods and services you provide. Second, they can attract qualified leads who will likely buy from you. 

Multiple lead generation strategies exist, so designing the right marketing campaign is critical to success. Think about the buyer persona you've crafted for your brand. Would your potential customers respond well to a cold call about your product or service, or are they likely to visit your website to download a free ebook about a specific topic they're interested in?

How Does Lead Generation Work?

The process may seem simple, but it’s more complex in execution. We break it down into four key steps.

1. Discovery

First, the user discovers your brand through inbound marketing or outbound marketing. This is where your digital marketing channels come into play. You must promote and increase your internet presence so people can find you.

How do you do that? Here are several ways to drive traffic to your website.

• Blogging – One of the best ways to build a massive internet presence is by writing blogs. Not only does it keep your website fresh and updated, but it improves your SEO rankings. When your blog posts focus on answering relevant industry questions, it gives you more opportunities for a potential customer to find you through search. Research shows that those with blogs increase their monthly leads by 67%.

• Social Media – There's no denying the importance of social media marketing for any business. Actively engaging and posting content on social networking sites like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn is a great way to increase brand awareness and spark conversation. Social Media is a cost-effective marketing tool to promote your business and funnel potential leads to your website.

• SEO – Search engine optimization helps increase your visibility through organic search, leading a prospect to your website. The content on your website plays a massive role in your Google rankings. So be sure that for every page, you include keywords, utilize meta-descriptions, provide valuable content, and ensure the customer journey when landing on your site is straightforward.

• Email – Emails remain a highly effective marketing tool because they're a personal way of contacting your leads. Not to mention, they're powerful traffic drivers. Weekly newsletters are great for linking and promoting your latest products and content to attract a high-quality lead back to your site. 

• Ads – Investing in paid search or social media ads is a quick way to gain more visitors. Google Ads allows businesses to appear at the top of the search results for specific keywords. It's an efficient strategy that garners instant traffic and potential leads.

The more marketing channels you use, the higher the chance you'll reach your target audience. Each strategy has its unique advantages of pushing your business in front of the right audience.

2. Call-To-Action

When practicing inbound marketing, your target audience will land on your page already in need of a product or service. Their next step is clicking on a call-to-action – a button that tells the reader what they should do next. Prime examples of this are "Subscribe," "Learn More," or "Download Here." As they are surfing your LinkedIn, blog, or website, you want to include a CTA button somewhere on the page – whether they're embedded within the content or as a pop-up banner.

These buttons are usually tied to an offer to incentivize people to click, which will lead them to the next step.

In outbound lead generation, when cold calling or sending direct mail, you will still want to have some type of 'Next Step' for your potential customer.

3. Landing Page

After they click the CTA, they will arrive at a landing page. A landing page is a standalone web page that’s free from distractions where the user will share information such as their name, email, and number in exchange for an offer – usually a free piece of gated content.

That piece of content is what is also known as a lead magnet. A lead magnet is the driving component of this entire process. Without it, you won't be able to complete step two. What makes a lead magnet so enticing is the valuable information that it provides.

Here are examples of a lead magnet:

• Ebooks

• Calendars

• Templates

• Checklists

• Email newsletters

Other things you can offer that are not content-related can be webinars, online workshops, coupons, or free trials.

4. Lead Capture

Once they fill out the form in its entirety, you have successfully generated a lead – specifically a Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL). But the work doesn't stop here. Now, it's time to go for the close.

Moving forward, you want to maintain communications and build a stronger relationship with your prospects. This is known as lead nurturing. It's a critical stage to turn those leads into customers. So, use your email marketing service to deliver relevant content and spark conversation. Each email could bring them closer and closer to making that purchase.

Start Generating Leads Today

Every business needs to have a lead generation strategy in place if they want to be successful. So, use every bit of internet real estate you have and start generating future customers.

Need help with your content offer? People First Content can help you create ebooks that attract leads like moths to a flame. Click the button below to learn more.

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