In an ideal world, where every seller sells what they produce and every buyer purchases what they desire, we would all live happily ever after. Of course, reality paints a different picture, especially in today's market where there are countless offers and endless demands.
Nowadays, to make oneself known to the masses, it's imperative to have a presence on the web so that all internet users can find us. Being online ensures visibility in the potential customer's buyer’s journey, where they compare alternatives, ask questions, and seek answers and solutions to their needs.
"When people search for information about products and brands in a category, they explore available options and assess which one best meets their needs." (Thinkwithgoogle.com)
Therefore, every business needs an adequate digital strategy to reach as much audience as possible, utilizing various methods offered by modern technology.
Currently, the channels for advertising have shifted to the screens of our devices; the walls to post our ads are web pages, and the showcases to display our merchandise are websites. Most business activities, especially B2B ones, are now conducted online, partly due to the pandemic which has accelerated this phenomenon.
One of the strategies that help companies monitor and optimize the entire sales process, from finding potential customers to managing them completely, is Lead Management.
But let's take it step by step and first understand what a lead is.
Each of us can become a lead because we all can purchase a product, service, or experience online.
A lead is a potential buyer who navigates the internet in search of information and is generated when a company obtains useful data through marketing activities to establish contact with that user.
The marketing activities introduced to generate these leads are diverse and all fall under the lead generation process, which aims to increase the consumer's propensity to purchase by generating increasing levels of attention and engagement, ultimately leading to a purchase decision.
The models and business approaches adopted in this phase are varied and have changed over time. With the advent of digitalization, the consumer's decision-making process has become more complex, revolving around various stages, all aimed at ensuring that the customer or potential customer experience is active and proactive throughout their journey. But what is the most effective B2B marketing strategy in lead generation?
Inbound marketing is the best digital strategy to convert people who are not yet aware of your company into contacts, and subsequently, these contacts into potential customers. This is done by the company entering the web with the construction of content structured for the web. This strategy perfectly adapts to the most innovative and advanced means of the digital world, such as social media and search engines, based on the creation of a series of content designed to attract those genuinely interested in the company and its product.
The aim is to attract as many leads as possible and convert them into business contacts, then into satisfied customers, and finally into brand advocates.
The lead is the protagonist of a journey that unfolds as follows.
The company sets up mechanisms to facilitate the conversion of users into valid contacts through a series of content marketing and marketing automation tactics, including creating blog posts, ebooks or white papers, or creating "call to action" to direct users to specific landing pages, subject to specific campaigns. Once the user is genuinely interested in a specific product or service, they communicate their personal data to the company, such as email address and phone number, to be contacted. This is the moment of lead collection.
All leads that come in must then be worked on to understand if they are genuinely interested and aligned with the company's offerings. This involves what is called the profiling process, which qualifies the individual lead through a series of parameters decided by the company, and if there is a good chance that they will become a customer, they are then "handed off" like a ball in the middle of a soccer field to other team members, namely those comprising the sales team, who will contact them with the goal of scoring and selling.
But of course, like any good customer retention strategy, the strategic path entails that leads are not abandoned to themselves. Since there are few chances that all leads will become customers on the first attempt, they must be nurtured and delighted through a lead nurturing process with scheduled and targeted content for each specific category, thereby increasing their interest in purchasing. In practice, the follow-up process is essential at every stage of the buyer’s journey, both before and after the lead becomes a customer.
The lead management process helps companies understand the best strategies to implement to achieve the best results, optimizing the sales process to make it as effective and efficient as possible.
Furthermore, to best manage all processes, modern technologies offer platforms and marketing automation software capable of handling huge quantities of contacts, collected following marketing campaigns, and preparing them over time for purchase, thereby providing them to the sales force and representing a sales opportunity.
Takeaway
Lead management is the pencil with which the sketch of every successful sales operation drawn from the web.
To leverage B2B digital strategies, every entity navigating the online world must outline precise drafts of a roadmap, covering all phases of acquiring new customers.
When a lead is generated, it must be profiled, qualified, nurtured, guided to become a satisfied customer, and continuously delighted to ensure a satisfactory lead management process.
Lead management encompasses several fundamental steps that begin with lead capture and continue with tracking, qualifying, distributing, and nurturing leads until they are converted into customers. This process helps to focus on leads that match the ideal customer profile, thus optimizing the time and resources dedicated to the most promising prospects.
Lead qualification and segmentation are essential to identify prospects ready for sales or to be placed in specific nurturing paths. These processes enable focusing on the most promising leads, speeding up the sales cycle. For effective qualification, it's crucial to clearly define the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP), including job titles, company sizes, industry, and other relevant criteria.
Lead management can be significantly enhanced through the use of tools such as CRM software to centralize all customer information, sales enablement tools to provide the sales team with necessary resources, and sales engagement tools to maintain and build relationships with prospects. Lead nurturing tools automate the distribution of content and personalized email campaigns, essential for advancing leads in the funnel.
Lead nurturing requires a targeted and personalized approach, using frequent touchpoints to cultivate a relationship with the lead. It's important to regularly clean and update lead data to maintain a reliable and accurate database. Accurate lead segmentation allows sending targeted messages that address the specific needs and interests of each segment.
Automation can lead to significant time savings and increased efficiency by minimizing manual data entry and ensuring no leads are overlooked. Adding automation to lead management processes can result in a decrease in no-shows and considerable time savings each month, allowing focus on activities that drive growth.
