Five Ways to Spice Up Your Lead Generation Efforts

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Five Ways to Spice Up Your Lead Generation Efforts

There are several tried-and-true methods to generate leads for your business. Periodically, however, businesses may need to augment those efforts with some fresh tactics.

Even if you aren’t desperate for leads at this moment, it is always good to mix things up a bit. By doing so you may attract some leads that you otherwise may have missed. Since coming up with new ideas to attract leads can be difficult, we’ve come up with some you may not have tried or have not used in a while.

  1. Networking events. Since everything seems to be done online these days, meeting with people face-to-face may feel like a novelty. You will be amazed at how much traction you gain by handing out business cards, shaking some hands and asking for referrals at networking events.
  2. Videos. While in a perfect world, you would post a video on YouTube and sit back and watch it go viral, this probably isn’t going to happen. However, by posting an entertaining video that tells a little bit about your brand—without selling—you may find yourself getting some unexpected attention from potential customers.
  3. News outlets. Ever heard of a slow news day? Well, a slow news day can do wonders for a brand. While you should never be pushy, consider calling some local journalists and telling them a little bit about your business. Has it been in your family for generations? Does it support an important local charity? You get the idea. If you have a good story and you explain it well, you may find yourself getting a call one day from a news reporter that needs to fill some airtime.
  4. eBooks. This type of lead generation works particularly well for B2B companies. The key to any eBook is that it is worth reading. If you are going to sell, you can be sure it won’t get read. However, if you provide readers with insights and expertise they can really use, it definitely will get read. And you’ll be seen as a thought leader in the industry.
  5. Webinars. Webinars are easy to broadcast and allow you to get your message out to a large number of potential prospects. If you hold webinars regularly, you are likely to gain a healthy following, as well. At the end of your webinars always ask attendees to visit your website or follow you on social media.

The traditional forms of lead generation are popular because they work. While no one is proposing you give up on these traditional forms, it never hurts to mix things up a bit.

How to Win Back Lost Customers

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How to Win Back Lost Customers

Losing a customer is never a good a thing. Customer churn impacts a business in countless ways. When a business experiences customer churn revenue and profitability are reduced while marketing, lead generation and reacquisition costs increase.

In spite of this, statistics show that almost 70 percent of businesses have no strategy to win back customers who have walked away. This is especially surprising since every business will lose a customer at some point.

While it is easy to blame the customer for having unreasonable demands or expectations, the truth is, an unsatisfied customer is a great way to find out what you could be doing better. And when you discover areas to improve, you might be able to win customers back.

The most important step you can take after a customer leaves is to figure out why. People don’t want to switch companies or find another drycleaner, for example. So what happened that made them want to leave? Were your prices too high? Are your competitors offering better service? It is imperative that you get the answers to these questions to prevent more customers from walking away. If appropriate, you could even ask for an exit interview. When talking to a customer who is leaving, be sure and take responsibility and apologize if there were failures on your part.

Another approach (which if often overlooked) is to ask that customer what you could have done to keep his or her business. The answer to this question could provide priceless information on not only winning that customer back but on keeping others, as well.

Keep in mind that some customers simply aren’t a good fit. Maybe they aren’t willing to pay a fair price for your products or services. Or maybe they want something you simply cannot provide. In such cases, it is best to wish them well and walk away.

Many businesses wait a long period of time before they approach a client who has left. This is a mistake. Check in with the former client on a regular basis beginning soon after their departure. A quick note or phone call will make a big impression and might even lead a disgruntled customer back to your door eventually.

Finally, it is important to remember that some customers who leave aren’t disgruntled at all. They may have left for reasons that have nothing to do with you. In such cases, it pays to offer these customers an incentive to come back. Be careful, however, that the incentive you are offering is worth their while. Nothing will turn off a customer faster than a worthless offer.

When a customer walks away from you, it is tempting to write him or her off and never look back. With a little effort, however, you may be able to lure that customer back and find your relationship stronger than ever.

Seven Ways to Target and Connect with Prospects

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Seven Ways to Target and Connect with Prospects

Targeting and connecting with prospects is crucial to any effective lead generation strategy. Implementing such a strategy involves a great deal of time and money and the success of the strategy can literally make or break a business.

If you are in the market for some new customers, it is essential that you don’t waste your resources on a strategy that is unlikely to reap any rewards. If you want to be as successful as possible in attracting new customers, here are some ways to help make that happen:

  1. Get to know your target audience. Surveys are a great way to get to know potential customers and also allow you to present your brand in the best possible light. Surveys also allow you to find out where prospects hang out online and how they prefer to be contacted.
  2. Pinpoint your competitors customers. Why reinvent the wheel if you don’t need to? Finding out who your competitors are trying to attract-and how they are doing it-can help you figure what you might be overlooking.
  3. Up your social game. The best thing about social media is that a little effort goes a long way. Instead of just promoting your brand on social media, use Facebook and Twitter, for example, to leave a solid impression on potential customers. When you put personality into your social media posts people will feel like they know you—and over time they will come to trust you, as well.
  4. Be responsive. Always answer calls, respond to emails and engage on social media. You never know when the person contacting you is your next big client. You also want to gain a reputation as a company who cares and really listens.
  5. Get reviewed. More and more people won’t even consider making a purchase unless they have read what others have to say about a product. That is why it is so important that you publish customer reviews and testimonials on your website. You also can send samples of your products to trade publications for their review
  6. Remember that content is king. It sounds cliché but content is still king. The more you publish original and compelling content the more potential customers will come to know your name and trust what you have to say. If you don’t have the resources to write your own content, hire someone to write it for you.
  7. Publish a newsletter. Personalized email newsletters are a cost-efficient way to get in front of customers and prospects. Again, if you don’t have time to author such a newsletter hire someone to do it for you.

Getting in front of new customers isn’t an easy job. It takes time and money. However, if you don’t get the job done right, chances are you won’t land any new customers, either.