Congratulations on starting your business! You have a brilliant product that you are immensely proud of and you have advertised it on a few appropriate channels.
You may think this is it, but it’s not. Now begins an endless cycle of creating and implementing intelligent marketing campaigns to ensure that your creation reaches the maximum number of potential buyers.
Even if your product is ‘average’ but your marketing strategies are brilliant and creative, you can generate a great number of leads. Hence, your marketing techniques can either take your business to new heights or in a downward spiral to doom.
Let’s discuss a few ideas that will bring you more leads and allow your business to flourish:
1. Direct engagement.
Interact with your consumers on a personal level and ensure that a seamless CRM pipeline management system is in place.
Despite the common occurrence of feedback forms and FAQs on various forums, connecting with customers on a personal level makes them feel valued and influences them to consider your products.
Direct mode of interactions include hosting live sessions, being present in chat forums and providing the users with easy access to representatives that are always available to handle queries and complaints.
Customers who feel important are prompted to share their experiences. Which results in generating better word-of-mouth publicity and thus more leads.
Also, take active part in and make good use of networking events to communicate with people and gauge out your target audience.
While digital marketing is all the rage these days, some engagements are most rewarding when they are done face to face instead of from behind a screen.
2. Content generation.
The hype that surrounds content generation is real and justified. The importance of content generation cannot be stressed enough as well-crafted content results in an active page that ranks high on the SERPs.
Smart use of SEO keywords in your blogs lead to greater page visibility in an organic search which translates into more inbound traffic. Blogs that are educational or have insightful information about your products in general tend to have a positive influence on the readers.
According to a survey, 53% of marketers position blog content creation on the top of their inbound marketing strategy.
Another research says that companies that publish more than 16 blogs enjoy 3.5 times more traction as compared to companies that post less than 4 blog posts a month. Therefore, integrate content creation in your marketing discipline to rope in more leads.
3. Employ social media.
Use Twitter Cards to display information in a visually attractive manner that compels the viewers to visit your website.
Twitter Cards are an ingenious social lead generation tool as you can attach beguiling photos, videos and media experiences to highlight simple Tweets.
You can also use Twitter to engage with the influencers of your industry thus tapping into their pool of followers who may turn out to be your potential customers.
You can also post tweets with a trending hashtag pertaining to your field to put yourself out there and become more noticeable.
As the largest professional network, Linkedin can provide you with multiple opportunities to produce more leads.
Linkedin is like a perpetual virtual networking site with over 500 million attendees. Therefore utilize it smartly to expand your network and connect with people. Here are some ideas on how you can do that.
You can use any form of social media to promote your e-commerce branding. But make sure that you can find your target market on your preferred social media platform.
4. Dabble in email marketing.
Drop in an outreaching email to convey your message to the receiver in a more personalized way.
It is imperative to note that your email serves as a means to humanize your business. Begin with a riveting subject that immediately piques interest and compels the user to open the email.
The email should contain:
- Informative yet concise content outlining your business
- A relevant image
- An integrated link which directs the reader to a relevant blog or page on your website
- A call-to-action button for easy contact
5. Make use of your contacts.
Marketing is not a singular job. You need to include other people in your marketing strategy for more link building opportunities that can eventually help both parties reap the rewards from increased lead generation. You can:
Feature market influencers related to your product on your website, blog or social media. Get insightful quotes or interview them to attract their followers on your digital platform.
Serve as a guest blogger on other web pages that host your potential customers. Remember to keep your blog entertaining, perceptive and unique. Embed a relevant link to your landing page and actively promote the posts on social media channels.
Ask your loyal customers to refer you into their peer circles. If you have an impressive business which provides high-quality service, you are probably already being endorsed. Nonetheless it doesn’t hurt to take an initiative.
6. Make videos and infographics.
You could write lines and lines about the merits of your products. Or you could illustrate your message through an engaging video or an enthralling infographic. Nothing gets the point across more effectively than portraying it in an illustrative manner.
Furthermore, you can post your video on YouTube, one of the biggest video search engines. If it’s brilliant enough to go viral, you can create a ripple effect that ensures continuous lead generation.
7. Try automated marketing.
As a novice entrepreneur, you may have to fulfill a lot of roles in a limited span of time. Consider automating your marketing plan to save time, money and resources.
Use intelligent tools specially designed to handle your marketing tasks and to bring in more leads to grow your business. Here is a list of tools that can help you automate your marketing without burning a hole in your pocket.
You can use all the above-mentioned ideas simultaneously or you can employ a potent combination that is relevant to your needs. The key to a smart marketing strategy and productive lead generation is to communicate with your customers intermittently and keep them engaged with regular updates.
About The Author
This is a guest post by Alycia Gordan, a tech junkie who divides her time between travel and writing.