When’s the last time you talked with a telemarketer who persuaded you to try his product? For many people, the answer is never. Most people are really put off by invasive marketing techniques. So much so that less than 20 percent of marketers gain high quality leads from outbound tactics.
With traditional marketing strategies rapidly falling out of fashion, how does one generate leads? Mom-and-pop companies and large businesses have both benefitted from a successful inbound marketing strategy designed to create interest in their goods and services.
How Does Inbound Marketing Create Leads?
The philosophy behind inbound marketing is that customers should seek you out, not the other way around. Instead of forcing your advertisements on the general public, you turn your website into a reliable source of important information in your particular field. This, in turn, attracts potential customers to your website.
Turning Visitors into Leads
In order to generate leads using inbound marketing, you’ll first need visitors to convert. This is done by routinely posting valuable, industry-related information on your blog or website. The longer you do this, the more your viewer base will expand. Some of it will be from word of mouth, but much of it can be attributed to building a better Google ranking.
Turning these visitors into leads requires a few important elements on your landing page, primarily:
- Straight-to-the-point information about your goods and services.
- A persuasive call-to-action located in a visible location.
- Some type of form to gather more information about your visitors, like email addresses.
Once you receive contact details or some form of communication, you officially have a lead. You can move onto the next phase of the marketing process – the sales funnel. Now that you have your visitors’ attention and email addresses, you can create mailing lists that serve two distinct purposes:
- Keeping your prospective customers interested by giving them valuable information.
- Advertising your goods and services.
It goes without saying that the goal of the sales funnel is to turn visitors into leads, and leads into customers.
But Wait, There’s More
Your inbound marketing strategy enables you to generate a lot of leads through social platforms, not just your webpage. Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram have all been used for marketing in the past. However, utilizing these sites with an inbound approach is different.
You won’t be using social media to spam your product or services on a Facebook page or someone’s Twitter feed. Instead, you use these platforms to set yourself up as an authority in your field. You write informative articles, share works written by other experts, and engage one-on-one with your customer and potential customer base. All while casually linking to your landing page, where the realIt’s an Organic Approach to Lead Generation
The key to inbound lead generation is activity. As long as you’re actively engaging with people on social media and actively publishing new content, the rest seems to work itself out. The success behind inbound marketing stems from the fact that you’re not being pushy and invasive. Instead, you’re respecting the boundaries of your customers and pitching to those who’re sincerely interested in what you have to offer.