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What is the best B2B lead generation?



What is the best B2B lead generation?


The importance of generating qualified business opportunities has never been greater.  With more than 2 billion businesses in operation today, it’s not easy to find a niche where you can make an impact with your product or service.  But by following these simple steps on how to generate better quality leads, you will be able to increase profits in any industry.  The first step is getting started!  

There are many ways that you can start finding new prospects. Some methods include cold calling, networking events, paid advertising (PPC), blog posts and content marketing, social media campaigns, etc… These techniques all have their place but when looking at the big picture, there really isn't one way that works for everyone.  There are no short cuts to success, so don’t get discouraged if something doesn’t work right away.  Just keep trying different things until you see results.  Let's take a look at some of the most effective B2B lead gen channels available to us.

Where does B2B data come from?

While this might seem like a silly question, the answer is actually quite important. If we aren’t careful about who we gather our information from then we could end up wasting time and money chasing down fake leads. So let’s talk about what makes someone qualify as a prospect.

Qualifying a lead means understanding exactly why they would be interested in purchasing your product or service.  For example, maybe you provide software solutions for accounting firms while another company provides technology services to manufacturing facilities.  Both of those types of products/services require specialized knowledge and expertise.  It also helps to know what problems they encounter regularly which could indicate that they need help solving a problem similar to yours.  This is called “pain points”.  You want to understand what the issues are before you try to sell them anything.

Lead sources are usually broken out into two categories – organic & non-organic. Organic refers to customers searching online for particular keywords related to your product line. Non-organic refers to sales reps contacting people directly through phone calls, emails, direct mailings, etc..  This distinction is extremely useful because it gives you insight into whether prospects are actively seeking your type of solution or just stumbled across your website.  Here is a quick breakdown of the primary source of leads based on whether they're coming from organic or non-organic sources:

Organic Sources:

Social Media - Social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, Tumblr, etc...

Web Search - Websites that contain targeted keyword phrases in relevant pages

Direct Mailing - Emails sent directly to potential clients

Non-organic Sources:

Cold Calling / Telephone Sales Calls

Email Marketing Campaigns

Online Advertising

Here are some examples of common questions asked during the qualification process:

1) What do I call my team?

Call them a contact center, customer support team, operations department, etc… Whatever you choose to use internally should match whatever you plan to present to vendors, partners, and other third parties.

2) How often do you send out newsletters?

A lot of organizations set aside certain days of the week to send out regular updates. Make sure you check with your vendor to ensure that they offer the same frequency as well.

3) Do you accept unsolicited proposals?

If you haven't heard back after sending them an inquiry then chances are good that they won't respond. Be prepared to turn off the spigot if necessary.

4) Are you open to working with startups?

When starting a new venture, it may be difficult to attract investors due to lack of experience. However, there is always room for growth once a company becomes successful enough to warrant investment.

5) Is there a minimum order size?

You'll likely run into buyers who only purchase small quantities of inventory. This is especially true if the item being sold requires significant customization.

6) What's the turnaround time?

It’s crucial to determine how long it takes between making inquiries and receiving responses. Many times, this number can vary depending on the nature of the inquiry. A fast response time indicates that you've made progress towards qualifying a lead. On the flip side, slow responses mean that you probably didn't reach out quickly enough.

7) Can I track my leads?

Track every conversation that occurs throughout the entire buying cycle. This includes sales conversations, follow ups, quotes, orders, invoices, payments, etc… Keep detailed notes of everything that happens.

8) Where are leads generated?

Some leads are generated from traditional sources such as telephone calls and face-to-face meetings. Others are generated from online searches conducted on search engines, websites, blogs, articles, etc… Still others are generated from offline activities such as speaking engagements, trade shows, conferences, exhibitions, workshops, etc…

9) Who decides what goes into the proposal?

Who determines what information gets included in the initial outreach? Will it be determined solely by the buyer or seller?

10) Does the pricing structure change over time?

Are there discounts offered for larger purchases or volume commitments? What kind of guarantees do you offer? When does the payment schedule begin?

11) Who owns the relationship post sale?

Do you retain ownership rights to the client once the transaction completes? Or do you give control of the account to the client?

12) What is the typical lifespan of accounts?

Is the average amount of time spent working with a client typically less than 6 months or much longer?

13) What is the total cost per lead?

Does the price depend upon quantity purchased or the level of complexity involved?

14) What is the return policy?

Will the vendor allow refunds or exchanges within 30 days or 60 days?

15) How long does it take to close a deal?

Most deals are closed within 3 weeks to 1 month. However, this varies greatly depending on the nature of the agreement.

16) Why do sellers prefer you instead of other providers?

Why did they select you above all else? Were there specific features or attributes that stood out? Did you deliver faster, cheaper, or higher quality goods or services? Was your approach unique?

17) How does a prospective client decide whom to go with?

They weigh several factors. Which provider is closest geographically? Has the vendor worked with them previously? Can they trust the vendor? Have they felt comfortable with the provider?

18) Is there a difference between a contract vs. a lease?

Contractual agreements are generally shorter term whereas leases are permanent arrangements. Leases tend to involve large capital expenditures or assets. Contracts are used primarily for smaller amounts of equipment or supplies.

19) How does the vendor handle warranty claims?

Warranty coverage is very important. Most vendors offer warranties ranging anywhere from 90 days to three years.

20) How does the vendor manage the project scope?

Scope management is defined as the ability to clearly define tasks, responsibilities, timelines, resources needed, budget requirements, etc…

21) How do you protect against fraud?

Fraud prevention measures are essential. They range from anti-falsification policies to internal controls designed to minimize risk exposure.

22) Does the vendor conduct background checks?

Background checks are performed prior to signing contracts. Depending on the circumstances, this could entail credit reports pulled from public records databases or employment verification forms completed by employees.

23) How much training is required?

Training programs are provided by both sides. Training sessions are aimed at improving communication skills, negotiating tactics, business etiquette, conflict resolution, etc…

24) How are vendor relationships managed?

Relationship management involves maintaining positive working environments among the various departments of the organization. It covers topics such as ethics, confidentiality, harassment, performance expectations, etc…

25) How are vendors vetted?

Vendors are evaluated based on their past performance history, financial stability, integrity, ethical standards, etc…

26) What is the average value of transactions?

Average values can fluctuate widely from vendor to vendor. Typically the lower the value, the tighter the margins. Higher priced items carry bigger profit margins.

27) What is the average length of time between placing an order and having it shipped?

Order fulfillment time ranges from 5 minutes to 45 days. Shipping delays occur due to weather conditions, delivery errors, transportation accidents, inventory shortages, etc…

28) What percentage of orders are cancelled?

Cancellations happen for numerous reasons. Items were damaged, incorrect sizes ordered, shipping costs exceeded, etc…

29) What percentage of sales are repeat orders?

Repeat orders represent additional revenue streams for the vendor. Repeat business is great news for the vendor since it reduces overhead expenses associated with managing multiple projects simultaneously.

30) What is the maximum age of existing clients?

Clients are allowed to remain active indefinitely. Some even continue to grow their business with the same supplier year after year.

31) How long does it take to onboard a new client?

Onboarding processes differ significantly from vendor to vendor. Some are streamlined and automated while others rely heavily on manual labor.

When it comes to business-to-business (B2B) sales, there's no such thing as a "one size fits all" approach. The same goes for how we generate those leads. There isn't one set of tactics that works with every company or industry out there. Each has its own unique challenges and opportunities. That being said, though, there are some general trends that can be applied across most industries. And if you're looking to improve your results, then these will help ensure you're doing everything possible to get more qualified prospects into your pipeline.

Qualifying leads is an important step when generating them through any method, but especially so when using cold calls. It may seem like a simple enough process, but without proper qualification techniques, you could end up wasting time on leads who aren't interested in what you have to offer -- or worse, spending money chasing something they don't want at all. So let's take a look at qualifying leads from a few different angles.

How do you qualify for B2B leads?

There are many ways to go about finding B2B leads, and while not everyone needs to use the exact same methods, knowing which ones work well for your particular situation can make all the difference between success and failure. To avoid getting lost in the weeds here, let me start by saying this: Qualification should always happen before anything else. If you've got great content that provides value to prospective customers, chances are they'll appreciate it regardless of whether you call them. But if you're just trying to chase down people who might be willing to buy from you, that's where things become much trickier.

To begin with, you need to know exactly what you mean when you say qualification. This means making sure that the person you speak with understands why they would benefit from working with you. You also need to think critically about their interests based on previous experiences, behaviors, demographics, etc., and decide whether they're likely to be receptive to your message. When you understand who you're talking to and why they'd be interested, you can figure out what kind of information you need to provide to gain their interest.

The next step is determining how to reach out to potential clients. As mentioned above, there are several different types of outreach available. Which ones you choose depends largely on what stage your organization is currently at, among other factors. For example, someone in the early stages of building his/her brand may find that having a conversation via phone is less effective than approaching them online. On the flip side, a mature marketer may prefer reaching out over the phone, even if she doesn’t personally feel comfortable sending emails.

Once you've decided what type of contact you want to pursue, you must determine how to make that initial connection. Are you going to send an email first? Or maybe you're planning to follow up with a phone call after you connect on LinkedIn. Either way, you need to consider how to present yourself to your prospect. Will you include visuals that show off your knowledge, expertise, and credibility? Is there a video testimonial that shows how happy past clients were after working with you? These elements play a huge role in increasing engagement rates.

In addition, you'll need to create a system around how often you communicate with your contacts. Do you expect to talk regularly throughout the year? Once per quarter? At least once per month? How long does your interaction last? What happens if you miss a day or two? All of these questions impact how frequently and effectively you engage with your target audience.

Finally, you'll want to keep track of how successful your efforts are, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Use tools like Google Analytics to see how specific campaigns perform and measure their effectiveness, along with qualitative feedback from your team members and clients. By tracking data like this, you can identify which parts of your strategy worked better than others and adjust accordingly.

If you're still stuck wondering how to properly qualify leads, check out our guide to understanding how to qualify leads.

How do you qualify for inbound leads?

While traditional forms of advertising tend to focus heavily on quantity rather than quality, search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC), social media, and blog posts can bring you plenty of qualified traffic -- provided you put in the right effort beforehand. Let's review how each of these sources differs from each other and how you can leverage them to increase your ROI further.

Search Engine Optimization

Google Ads, Bing ads, Yahoo AdCenter - these platforms allow businesses to bid on keywords related to whatever products or services they sell, allowing advertisers to display ads in front of relevant audiences. While SEO can be expensive depending on the amount of traffic you receive, it gives you a lot of bang for your buck.

Social Media Marketing

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest - as I touched upon earlier, social media allows you to quickly build relationships with existing and new followers alike. Since Facebook and Twitter are free until paid accounts are reached, you won't break the bank either. However, you'll want to invest in high-quality profiles to ensure your presence stays consistent and recognizable.

Blogging

Medium, WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr, Squarespace - blogging offers another opportunity to establish yourself as an expert in your niche. Writing informative articles and answering customer inquiries helps position you as an authority in the eyes of readers, giving you greater visibility overall. Plus, blogs give you the flexibility to write whenever inspiration strikes, unlike other formats.

Pay Per Click Advertising

LinkedIn Pulse, Hubspot, Salesforce1 - if you're serious about attracting visitors who have already shown an interest in your product or service, you'll need to utilize digital advertising. Pay-Per-Click advertising involves bidding against competitors to appear higher in organic searches. Depending on your budget, you can run multiple placements per week, targeting certain locations or specific keywords.

Email Marketing

AWeber, Constant Contact, MailChimp, Campaign Monitor, VeroMail - email remains one of the most cost-effective ways to promote your business, since you only pay for incoming messages sent to subscribers' inboxes. Most email programs also have automated systems built in to handle unsubscribes, bounces, and spam filters.

Where do business leads come from?

Now that you're armed with the basics necessary to successfully attract and nurture your leads, let's dive deeper into the world of B2B lead generation and learn where they actually come from. There are three primary places that B2B leads come from:

Direct mailings

Cold calling

Online research

Let's examine each in detail below.

Direct Mailing

As mentioned previously, direct mailing plays a vital role in generating leads, particularly for smaller organizations. A single piece of personalized letterhead can yield significant results, given how much personal attention it gets compared to mass-produced letters. Even if you're unable to afford professional printing materials, you can easily produce basic printouts of your logo and website address on plain white paper and hand deliver them directly to recipients. Alternatively, you can hire a third party to distribute your material professionally.

Cold Calling

This form of lead generation requires considerable investment upfront, as you'll need to purchase lists of names and numbers to call. With the advent of telemarketing software designed specifically for small businesses, however, cold calling has become easier than ever for entrepreneurs to implement. Some even claim that using these apps makes cold calling obsolete altogether, although the reality is that cold calling is far from dead yet.

Regardless of how you plan to acquire your list, it's crucial that you stay true to your original intent and never stray too far away from your mission statement. Also, remember that cold calls are typically made during non-working hours, so try to limit your calls to evenings and weekends unless your goal is to land large contracts that necessitate regular office visits.

Online Research

While researching potential leads offline is certainly viable, it takes longer and requires a lot more energy than simply browsing websites. Online research enables you to gather information about businesses within minutes instead of days. Here are some tips to get started:

First, conduct keyword searches on popular databases like Crunchbase and Hoovers. Doing so reveals useful tidbits like revenue figures and clientele, which can help you narrow down your options and focus your resources on the most promising targets.

Next, browse through relevant directories, forums, and publications to discover additional information about your ideal candidates. Look for mentions of similar companies, awards they've received, and any special events that relate to your field.

Lastly, read customer reviews and ask friends and colleagues for referrals. Their insights can shed light on what kinds of problems your potential clients face and which solutions they recommend.

After identifying your leads, it's time to evaluate their qualifications. Now that you know what qualities to look for in candidates, let's explore how to spot a bad fit.

What are the key points to qualify leads?

The most effective way to get your business found by prospects is through targeted advertising. This involves targeting people who have certain characteristics or problems that can be solved with your product or service.

In order to find these potential customers, it’s important to know where they hang out online. To help you in this endeavor, we put together a list of some popular places on the internet where business owners go when looking for new customers. We also share some tips on how to effectively reach them.

Is there such thing as a good B2B lead generation company?

Yes! There certainly is such thing as a “good” B2B lead generation company. Lead Generation Company (LGC) has its own definition of what constitutes a good LGC. It defines an excellent LGC as one that meets all five criteria below:

1. Has been around for more than 10 years

2. Offers free trials to test their products/services before buying

3. Allows clients to sign up via multiple methods so they don't feel like they're being sold to

4. Provides ongoing training and support

5. Is ethical - meaning they follow industry standards

If you want to learn about the different types of businesses that use lead generation services, check our article here explaining why lead generation is critical for every business. If you still aren't convinced, read our guide to understanding the difference between direct sales and selling your services.

How do you generate high quality B2B leads?

Quality leads require time, effort, and resources. The key to getting high quality leads is not just finding interested parties but making sure those individuals become actual paying customers. Here's how to make sure you get the right kind of prospect:

· First, define exactly what type of customer you need to attract. Are you trying to sell to small businesses? Large corporations? Do you prefer working with individual professionals or large teams? What size of budget will you work within? Once you've answered these questions, then move onto the next step.

· Next, create a profile for the person you’re hoping to land. Think of this as creating your personal ad – make sure everything is accurate and relevant. List down any special skills or interests they might have. You may even want to include things like hobbies or favorite activities. These details will give you insight into who they are and how much they value their privacy.

· After completing your profile, start searching the web for similar profiles. Look at LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and other networking sites to see if anyone else is already using your desired keywords. Try adding variations and synonyms too, since many people tend to search for something differently from what they actually say.

· When you find someone who shares your interests, look over their profile carefully. Make sure that they really do match your target audience. Does their background line up with yours? How many followers does he/she have? Be careful not to waste time talking to someone whose values don’t align with yours.

· Finally, set up a call. Ask yourself whether you would hire this person based purely upon his knowledge and experience. Would you trust him enough to recommend others? Or would you rather talk to another professional first? Remember that no matter how great the content looks on paper, nothing beats hearing it directly from the source.

Once you successfully connect with a prospective client, ask them if they'd be willing to take part in a short survey which will allow you to better understand how you can improve your communication strategy going forward.

How do you generate high-quality B2B leads?

There are four main ways to get qualified leads:

Social Media Marketing (SMM): SMM uses digital platforms like blogs, websites, YouTube videos, forums, etc., to promote your brand to consumers and build relationships. While it isn’t always possible to convert viewers into buyers immediately, it gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your expertise and establish credibility.

Pay Per Click Advertising (PPC): Pay per click advertising allows you to place ads on specific locations across the web. Advertisers pay only when a user clicks on the link provided, thus giving you instant results. However, keep in mind that because you’re spending money without knowing if anything happens, you should limit your campaigns to less than $50.00 per day.

Email Marketing: Emails provide an excellent medium for reaching potential customers. They’re easy to send, and if done correctly, they can easily turn readers into subscribers. One way to ensure success is to offer valuable information along with a clear benefit statement. Another tip is to avoid sending emails during nonworking hours. People are less likely to respond during off hours, especially during weekends and holidays.

Direct Mailing: A mailing list is created after collecting contact info from previous contacts. The contact lists generated usually contain names, address, phone numbers, and sometimes e-mail addresses. Companies use mailings to remind current clients about upcoming events, promotions, and discounts. But remember, while direct mailings seem like a quick fix, they often fail due to low response rates.

What are 4 efficient lead generation strategies for B2B marketers?

Here are some proven tactics to increase your chances of generating quality leads:

· Use content marketing: Content marketing refers to the process of creating, publishing, distributing, and measuring content designed to meet the informational needs of particular audiences. It includes blog posts, whitepapers, articles, guides, podcasts, videos, infographics, presentations, and newsletters. By sharing useful information in bite-sized pieces, you'll gain authority among your targets while building a reputation for yourself.

· Start conversations: By starting conversations with people whom you consider to be influential, you stand a chance of getting noticed by them. For instance, if you notice that a prominent blogger writes frequently about topics related to your field, approach her and introduce yourself. Then ask if she knows of anyone else writing about similar topics. You could even suggest writing guest posts for both of you.

· Create an opt-in form: An opt-in form lets users subscribe to your newsletter instead of having to fill out an application manually. The beauty of opting in is that once you collect their name and email, you won’t have to worry about spamming them ever again.

· Get involved in community groups: Join local associations and participate in their discussions. That way, you can show that you care about your industry and are eager to contribute. Plus, you can earn brownie points for helping others.

These are just a few examples of how successful B2B marketers leverage various lead generation tools to increase profits. Of course, there are plenty of other creative ideas waiting to be discovered. So stay tuned for further updates on this topic.


Author

Anyleads

San Francisco

We are the leading marketing automation platform serving more than 100,000 businesses daily. We operate in 3 countries, based in San Francisco, New York, Paris & London.

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