Posts Tagged ‘Sales Lead Generation’
The Key to B2B Lead Generation and Customer Retention
You can study all you want, learn every sales lead generation technique and install the most advanced client management and retention system and it will do you no good at all – until you learn the most valuable lesson of all.
I meet so many people that do business at a “head” or business level and expect this to be enough to win and retain valued and loyal customers – WRONG!
You do a good (or even great) job – but that is what your client expects. If you did NOT do a good job they would throw you out on your ear. After all, your competition does a good job and on the whole does pretty much everything you do. True?
So what makes the difference? You need to do business at the “heart” level. No, not some mushy gooey love story thing (thank heavens I hear you say).
It is simply getting to know your customer at a deeper level than the business level. You need to be genuinely interested in their personal goals and hopes. It is important that you know about their family and their passions and interests. This is why “fact finding” questionnaires should be “fact and feeling finders.” Yes, you have heard it before but I bet you don’t do it well enough!
Genuine interest makes you trusted and valued beyond the competition. It will lead to the trust that creates a relationship that in turn leads to recommendations to friends and family – future business!
It also ring fences your existing clients. The opposition may present cheaper products and glossy brochures but they simply will not be able to compete with the fact that you are a friend of the family.
There are eight recognized ways that you can build a long lasting relationship with clients – and there is not enough space to put them in here.
In the mean time there is a powerful tip I can leave you with. Presents! It may not be applicable for all your clients but your category “A” clients deserves a little more effort.
It is not the dollar value that counts – it is the thought and applicability to the client that matters. For example, I had a client that liked to help train his son to be a better goal keeper in soccer but the son progressed beyond his skill. I keep my eyes open for all my clients all the time and stumbled across a video on advanced goal keeper training for $2! Do you think the dad valued the extra time with his son more than a bottle of wine?
So you need to make the effort to know your clients at a deeper level and put a bit of thought into your relationship and they will stay with you forever and bring their friends!
Author: Bill W James
If you dread making cold-calls or are struggling to find new sales leads, http://www.billjamesspeaker.com, has a free report for you How To Network For Profit At Business Events.
Bill James, The Smart Business-maker.
This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.
Bill hasn’t made a cold call in 18 years.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bill_W_James
Challenge: Client Retention (i.e., keeping the customers you have) Solution: Regular Logo Thank You Gifts. Saying “Thank You” is still one of the most important things we can do to show appreciation. We can help you calculate the value of each customer and how much you can afford to spend to acquire each new custome ror lead.
He speaks to thousands of people a year on improving sales effectiveness, marketing and lead generation strategies. A key aspect of lead nurturing is the ability to provide valuable education and information to prospects up front, to become a trusted advisor. You are then perceived to be an expert. You don’t sell, you don’t make pitches.
Because B2B sales leads can significantly influence sales and therefore help boost revenue, increasing B2B sales leads is often one of the key objectives of marketing in the technology industry. Where do our best B2B sales leads or sales opportunities come from? Ask your marketing team to help you understand: Which lead generation campaigns have been the most successful? Which market segments have shown better results than others?
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8 Powerful B2b Sales Lead Generation
Sales Lead Generation: 8 Powerful B2b Sales Lead Generation Techniques To Help You Reach Your Sales Prospects
Most of the fastest growing B2B companies do not rely solely on just one sales lead generation method. They have a complete arsenal of sales lead generation tools at their fingertips, that they can use at ay given time.
Here are my eight proven B2B sales leads generation techniques gleaned from helping over 170 B2B companies reach their sales prospects:
1. Sales lead generation using relationship marketing
Relationship Marketing is the approach underlying all of the ’sales-lead-generation-success’ methods. Relationship marketing simply refers to cultivating a personal, sales-winning relationship with your prospects. It’s about developing longer-term relationships with customers rather than individual transactions.
During my 20+ years of experience in B2B sales lead generation, I’ve discovered the key to picking up sales others leave on the table is to keep in touch with your prospects via a series of ongoing communications and offers throughout your prospective customers’ consideration processes.
2. Sales lead generation through complementary partner referrals
By joining forces with complementary partners, you can instantly multiply your sales lead generation pool and make it easier for companies to engage in doing business with you. Out of all the sales lead generation programs available to you, complementary partner referral programs can generate the highest qualified B2B sales leads.
3. Sale lead generation using search engine optimization and Internet marketing strategies
Business buyers are more sophisticated and getting harder to reach than ever. Studies show that about 90% of business buyers start with research on the Internet, therefore it’s critical to have a well-tuned sales lead generation program that includes search engine optimization (SEO)/Internet marketing strategies to attract prospects at the beginning of their buying cycle.
4. Sales lead generation via telemarketing
Even though many people despise the thought of telemarketing, when executed properly it is a very effective sales lead generation tool. Telemarketing is a personal marketing and sales lead generation technique that offers a cost-effective, efficient alternative to field selling. However, it can be significantly more expensive than direct mail or email.
By including telemarketing in your B2B sales lead generation marketing plan, you can reach up to thirty decision-makers a day at a cost of $15 to $20 per contact. In contrast, with field sales you can reach only four or five decision-makers a day at an average cost of $392 or more per contact. Direct mail may cost as little as a dollar, and email is often much less. However, if you consistently prospect and nurture leads via phone, you will consistently generate qualified sales leads.
5. Sales lead generation with email publications
By creating your own email newsletter, you could send out industry news and tips to suspects in your market. Since you will be on your prospects’ minds more often than your competition, eventually, your sales leads will turn into actual sales.
If you subscribe to my e-newsletter, Sales Lead Report, you will see an example of an email publication that keeps my name and business in front of over 8,000 people every month.
6. Sales Lead Generation With Direct Mail
There is an entire industry of people like Dan Kennedy, Bob Bly, and Bill Glazer who are dedicated to business-to-business selling through direct marketing. Sales letters can be an excellent sales lead generation method. But, most sales and business professionals do not know how to use this lead generation technique effectively and efficiently.
The complaint is a common one among B2B companies that depend on direct mail and direct response marketing as their only sales lead generation program: "I’m sick of spending a fortune to send out thousands of full-color catalogs and direct-mail pieces only to get a measly 1% response rate. How can I cut costs and find a more practical way to get my target market to respond to my direct mail or catalogs?"
My clients have found that the best place to start revamping their direct response marketing is by determining who their best customers are, then trying to target their database marketing efforts at companies and individuals who are similar in nature.
7. Sales Lead Generation Using Print Advertising
When done correctly, print advertising can be a highly effective sales lead generation activity. When using print advertising as your B2B sales leads generation method, you must remember to focus your advertising’s message on the benefits and applications of your products or services. Then let the layout and design of your ads enhance your company’s image. And, don’t forget to only use publications that deliver messages directly to your targeted audience.
8. Sales Lead generation via Event Marketing
Whether you do it live, through the telephone (teleseminars) or via the Web (webinars), seminars and workshops are a great sales lead generation tool. People who attend your seminar have an interest in the information you are presenting and a need for your product or service.
The goal: Connect with customers in a meaningful way
By using these eight proven B2B sales leads generation methods gleaned from helping over 170 B2B companies reach their prospects, you will capture more sales-ready opportunities for your salespeople to turn into new business, meaning greater sales revenue and profits for your company.
By: Mac McIntosh
There is an entire industry of people like Dan Kennedy, Bob Bly, and Bill Glazer who are dedicated to business-to-business selling through direct marketing. Sales letters can be an excellent sales lead generation method.
Sales Lead Generation: 8 Powerful B2b Sales Lead Generation
Brutally honest reviews of both the internet marketing guru and their latest products.
Tactical Uses of Telemarketing
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Sales Lead Sources
Sales leads are the lifeline of most small business owners, business professionals, and salespeople, especially in B2B marketplaces. Sales managers pressure their staff to get more sales leads and close more sales. But, you cannot close sales, even with the best sales closing techniques, without leads. It all starts with a lead.
So, where do you get sales leads? Where do leads come from? There are plenty of sources for leads with some being better than others. Here is my list of ways to generate sales leads:
Customer Inquiries: A customer inquiry about your product or service is the best source of new business imaginable. The customer has sought you out so you know that he is already interested in your product or service. In this case, it is your job to keep that customer and be sure that he does not look elsewhere. You need to know your product inside out, know the features and benefits, and make sure the prospect likes you. Your closing ratio should be highest with customer inquiries.
Customer Referrals: When a current customer refers a colleague to you it is the same as him vouching for you. There is nothing better than this as a "trust" factor has already been developed. He would not give you a referral if he did not trust you. This is a good reason to ask for testimonials from all your clients. Your closing ratio from customer referrals should be high as well.
Advertising: There are many places where you can advertise your services, some expensive, some cheap, and some free. This includes yellow pages, flyers, and online business directories, classifieds, and websites such as trade-pals.com, craigslist.org, and LinkedIn.com. Your closing ratio should be good with advertising as well.
Cold Calling: Not everybody can cold call well. If you make an attempt at cold calling be prepared to put a lot of time and energy into it and be prepared for a lot of rejection. A lot of busy executives and decision makers are unresponsive to cold calling; it is interruption marketing and that usually doesn’t work out well, especially if you called someone unknowingly that was on a "do not call list." However, it is still possible to generate some new business through cold calls just make sure that it isn’t the only think you do to generate sales leads. Expect your closing ratio to be quite low with leads generated from cold calling.
Sales Lists: Companies such as InfoUSA, ZapData, and Dun & Bradstreet compile and sell targeted lists of contact names in specific industries, geographic locations, and company sizes of your choice. From this information, you can cold call, email, or do a direct mailing campaign to reach specific executives or decision makers. The closing ratio here should be better than doing random cold calls, but still not as good as direct customer inquiries or business referrals.
Author: Tino Buntic
Your Best Source For Auto Sales Leads.
5 Great Sources of Local Sales Leads
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