10 Simple Lead Generation Strategies for your Business

Simple Lead Generation Strategies

As a business owner, it’s vital that you use lots of different tactics to move people into your sales funnel. And you want to ensure you’re attracting the highest quality leads possible. 

So, in this article, we are going to look at ten powerful lead generation strategies that you should be using to grow your business. Read on to learn more. 

1. Create content for every stage of your customers’ buying journey

The people in your target audience will all be at different stages of their buying journey, which means they’ll also have different needs. For instance, some people might not even know that your business exists, while others might be at the stage where they are comparing different options before deciding what to buy. So, you’ll want to create different pieces of content for each stage. 

Creating content for different buying stages can also be a very effective lead generation strategy for your business because it allows people to find your site when they are doing some research using search engines. 

We have three main stages in a buying journey: awareness, consideration, and decision. For the awareness stage, you could create educational blog posts or infographics that attract prospects and introduce people to your business and what you do. 

Then, for the consideration stage, you want to create comparison pieces or buying guides that allow your prospects to weigh up their buying options. Finally, we have the decision stage where people are ready to decide what to buy. And some of the content you can create here are testimonials or case studies that do a great job of convincing potential clients to make a purchase. 

Now, let’s take a look at some examples of web content that has been designed to target people at different stages of the sales funnel.

Ping created a helpful blog post on security assertion mark up language SAML and how it works

Ping Identity is a company that offers identity and access management solutions for businesses. And, to introduce prospects to their brand and services, they’ve created a helpful blog post on security assertion mark-up language (SAML) and how it works. This works well as a lead generation tactic as it could help draw in prospects who might have come across this post while doing preliminary research about SAML or a related topic. 

So, when those visitors come across this post, they’ll be able to get more information about SAML authentication, how it works, and whether it could be the solution to some of the problems their companies are having. And, if they like what they read, they’ll be encouraged to start a conversation with the company and possibly invest in their services. 

Drift creates case studies that can convince prospective customers who are in the decision stage of their buying journey

On the other hand, we have Drift, a company that provides a conversational marketing platform for businesses to engage in personalized conversations with customers. On their website, they’ve done a great job of creating case studies that can convince prospective customers who are in the decision stage of their buying journey.

Take, for example, their case study on how they helped one of their customers, Okta, to increase conversions and scale revenue growth. This type of content is likely to work well in generating more leads for the company because it shows people the results that Drift has been able to get for past clients. 

Failing to create content for different stages of your customers’ buying journey is one of the content marketing mistakes that can cost you more money and potential clients in the long run. So, if you haven’t already, it’s time to outline your prospective customers’ needs and start addressing them with content. 

2. Consistently engage with your audience on social media

One of the most effective ways for you to attract ideal customers on social media is by regularly engaging them. But, to do this effectively, you first want to make sure you’ve done your research very well and have chosen the right social media platforms where your target audience is usually active. 

Now that you’re on the platform, you want to start by posting content consistently as this will increase your chances of attracting potential customers. To help with this, you could create a content calendar and then use social media management tools like Buffer or CoSchedule to bulk schedule all your posts in advance. 

You should also make sure to reply to comments or questions that followers leave on your posts so people can feel like they are actually engaging with your brand. Many social media platforms nowadays even have various engagement features like polls, surveys, or public chat spaces that allow you to engage followers or speak directly with them.

For example, the Instagram Live feature is a great way to hold public discussions with followers, give free advice for their businesses and even invite some of them up on stage so you can have one-on-one conversations with them. 

If you can do this regularly, chances are your followers will get interested in what you do and they’ll start to ask questions about how your business can help them. You can also check out this guide from Marketo on other effective tactics you can use to generate leads from social media while also engaging your audience.

3. Guest post for authoritative sites in your field 

Guest posting involves writing blog posts for other sites so you can get links that will lead back to your own website. This can help to get the word out about your work and show that you’re an expert in your industry. It’s also one of the great ways for you to grow your business and can help get you more leads because it exposes your brand to new audiences. 

But, for this strategy to work well, you have to make sure you choose relevant websites that serve your ideal audience. One simple way to do this is by conducting a search on Google with a relevant search query like “write for us [your niche]”. For example, if you work in the health industry and wanted to write for relevant sites, you would search Google with this kind of query: “write for us health”. These are the kinds of results you would get. 

write for us health google search results

Now that you’ve gotten a list of websites in your niche, you’ll be able to sift through them to pick the ones that are worth guest posting for. To help with this, try using a domain authority (DA) checker that can help you determine the domain authority scores of these websites.

A high domain authority is a sign of a website’s quality, so checking for this can help you determine which sites’ backlinks will help you to rank well on relevant search engine results pages. And, when you’re checking the DA scores of the sites you’re considering guest posting for, keep in mind that you should be looking for a score of 50 or more.

After choosing the sites you want to write for, make sure you also pick relevant topics that will interest your audience. One way to do this is by joining social media forums like Quora or Reddit so you can look for discussions on relevant topics or problems in your niche. This will help you come up with helpful topics you can use to create content that will answer some of your audience’s questions or help solve their pain points. 

The entire point of writing these guest posts is to generate more leads for your business, so try to ensure you’re creating high-quality content that will attract people to your website. And, when your guest posts have been published, make sure to share them on your social media platforms so you can increase their reach, get new eyes to see them, and attract more leads. 

4. Cold email people who are likely to be interested in your services

Cold emailing is a marketing strategy and lead generation technique that involves sending emails to potential customers who don’t yet know of your business. People do this in the hopes of establishing a connection with new leads that will eventually end up converting into customers. 

Even though cold emailing can be very productive, you need to be careful that you get it right so your emails don’t go unopened, unanswered, or straight to spam. Make sure you’re personalizing the emails you send, so the recipients feel like you’re talking to them directly. If possible, include their name in the subject line and body of the email. 

You should also try to keep your emails short and easy to read, but don’t forget to include a call-to-action that tells recipients what to do next. To help you get started, Bookyourdata has a very in-depth guide on how you can use cold emailing as the most effective marketing channel to get more leads. 

And, when you’re ready to start crafting and sending cold emails that will get more leads, check out Woorise’s post on cold email outreach examples that you can replicate for your business. 

5. Invest in SEO 

Search engine optimization is the process of improving your website’s visibility on search engines like Google. This digital marketing strategy is vital for generating leads because it helps put your website in the view of your ideal audience so you can attract new visitors that will be interested in your business and the services you offer. 

There should be three elements to every SEO strategy and those are content, technical SEO, and link building. Content is the information you have on your blog and website pages that tells people more about your business and educates them on the ways you can help solve their pain points. Technical SEO refers to the activities you do to make sure your website meets the technical requirements that will increase its chances of being found on search engines. And, as for link building, this is the process of getting links from other websites that lead back to yours.

Each of these three elements plays a very important role in getting your website to rank higher on search engines, so it’s important you pay attention to them if you want to get more traffic and increase the number of qualified leads you’re bringing in for your business. To give you more insight, here’s a beginner’s guide to SEO from Moz that can help you get started. 

6. Provide a taste of your services for free

If you are able to give prospects a taste of your services for free, they’ll be far more likely to convert to customers. And, one easy but effective way you can do this is by offering a free trial period or free consultation for people who aren’t yet ready to become paying customers so they can see what they’re missing out on. Let’s take a look at the Woorise pricing page to give you a better understanding of how to do this. 

Woorise Pricing and Plans

Woorise is a company that helps businesses create landing pages, forms, or social promotions that can help with lead generation. Now naturally, they will have some prospective customers who want to be convinced before making a financial commitment to any of their plans.  

So, to give them a taste, Woorise has a free plan for $0 per month that allows subscribers to send out unlimited campaigns and receive up to 500 entries per month from these campaigns. It’s a great way to show people how their platform works and it can help them get more leads as people will be more likely to pay for more features if they get great results after testing out the free version.

This approach might not work for all businesses, as it depends on what you offer. But it’s a great tactic for most companies that sell digital products using a subscription-based model. So, if you fall in this bracket, you might want to consider giving your audience a free trial period of your products, as it will increase the chances of them becoming customers in the long run.

7. Offer referral incentives to your existing customers

To turn your existing customers into brand ambassadors and generate more leads, you could implement referral marketing. This means when someone recommends your services to a friend or colleague and this leads to a sale, they’ll receive something in return.

You could create an affiliate marketing scheme where people can sign up to promote products with a personalized link and then receive a commission whenever anybody uses their link to buy your product. Or you could provide discounts for customers who love what you do, recommend your business to friends or family, and make you more sales as a result. To give you some inspiration, let’s study an example of a company that does this well. 

Semrush affiliate program

Semrush is a company that provides an all-in-one tool for SEO, keyword research, advertising, and other marketing solutions. Looking at its affiliate marketing program, you’ll find that they offer great deals for their affiliate partners. 

They give out great benefits like $200 for every new subscription sale and $10 for every new trial. These incentives are a great way of getting more people to promote their platform and they also do a great job of increasing the leads and customers the company will get. If you don’t already have an affiliate initiative for your business, you should consider creating one and you can use this example as a guide. 

8. Use paid search and social ads

Even though there are benefits to investing in paid advertisements, many business owners are often reluctant to do so because they fear it might not give a good return on investment (ROI). But, when done properly, investing in different types of paid marketing campaigns can be very fruitful. 

To do this well, you need to first choose the right advertising platforms. To make the right choice, you should consider factors like your budget and the advertising formats used by the different platforms available. There are lots of different options to consider, including Facebook Ads, Google Ads, and Instagram Ads, so you need to think about where most of your prospective customers are and how you can best reach them. 

When you’ve chosen a platform, try to make sure that you include relevant keywords in the content of the ads you’re creating to increase the chances of them being seen by your target audience. And, if you’re just getting started with paid advertisements and need more guidance, you can check out Active Campaign’s guide on paid search marketing 101.

9. Create lead magnets your ideal customers will actually use

A lead magnet is a free resource or service that businesses give away so they can get the contact details of prospective customers. Lead magnets are great for attracting people who are likely to be interested in your business because they show what you’re all about and sometimes even give prospective customers the opportunity to experience your services for free. 

Some common examples of the types of lead magnets your business could create include white papers, free templates, e-books, and free trials or consultations. To help you with this, you can study Woorise’s step-by-step guide on how to create an effective lead magnet and get the most out of it. 

Now let’s take a look at a business that knows how to create effective lead magnets to give you some inspiration. 

Hootsuite provides free social media resources and learning materials that are very useful for their audience

Hootsuite is a social media management platform that helps businesses improve their presence on social media. On their website, they have a library where they provide free social media resources and learning materials that are very useful for their audience. This includes their content creation toolkit for businesses that want to create better content for different platforms. 

To get access to this toolkit, their prospects need to provide some details about the work they do and how Hootsuite can contact them. This works as a very effective lead generation tactic and it can help the company get new leads who can then be nurtured into paying customers. 

You can also do something similar for your business depending on the products or services you sell. For instance, a law firm could offer a free consultation as a lead magnet or a design platform could provide free templates to get people interested in their tool. 

10. Regularly assess your strategies and tweak where necessary

As time goes on, you’ll need to regularly assess the performance of your lead generation strategies and start making any tweaks where necessary. This is important because it allows you to see which strategies are working and which ones aren’t so you can quickly take action.

You first need to set some key performance indicators (KPIs) for your campaigns so you can monitor them effectively. Some important metrics to measure are click-through rates, the number of leads gotten, and the overall time prospects spent on your campaign page. 

To help you get started with this, Lead Forensics has a great guide on lead generation metrics and measurement for success that you can use to track and analyze the results of your strategies.

Summary

As a business owner, you need to ensure that you’ve set up various ways to get new leads so you can keep making sales. And, in this article, we’ve looked at 10 different strategies you can use. 

You don’t have to do everything all at once. You can start with cold emailing, guest posting, or paid advertisements, and then work your way up to implementing each of these tips. And, if you want even more information about developing your business, you can follow Woorise’s blog for useful growth marketing and social media tips. 

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