Improve Your Lead Generation Strategy

As any user will tell you, social media is chock-full of ads. This is a strategic attempt on behalf of businesses to not only grab your attention but also hold it long enough to pique your curiosity and send you looking for more information. The more often a brand can get in front of its target audience, the better its chances are of turning that audience into paying customers.

Digital marketing and ad spend is expected to reach over $1.5 trillion by 2030, which means that if you want your business to be part of the conversation, you need to narrow your focus.

Converting leads into customers is the main goal, and getting more eyes on your content is an effective means to that end—these tips can help you do just that.

Ascertain your audience

Before you can think about how to bring new leads to your website, you need to have a clear picture of who your audience is and what places they frequent online.

Analyze your client database, then ask yourself the following:

• Who do I enjoy working with?
• What do my top clients do for a living?
• Where do most of my clients live?
• What kinds of lifestyles do they have?
• What do they value?

These questions can help you determine the types of clients you work best with and who you’d want to attract. You should also monitor how your target audience behaves online by noting the times they are most active, what kinds of content they are most likely to interact with, and what information they are willing to give you.

One way to do this is by looking at the analytics on your most recent email or post. Review information like the time it was sent or posted, how many people viewed it, and who engaged with it and how (e.g., Did they click through? Leave a comment? Save the post?). If the engagement on it aligns with your target audience, then you’ll know you’re on the right path; if not, you’ll want to pivot and test sharing content at different times and on different platforms until your engagement analytics are more satisfactory.

Methods for attraction

Once you know your audience, the kind of content they respond to, and when they’re most active, you can begin thinking through and improving your content strategy. The ideas that follow are some of the most efficient and cost-effective.

Social media ads
Many businesses have found success through targeted social media ads. This should be a tactic in every business’s marketing plan, but not many people are aware of how to streamline the process. There are three types of ads I recommend every business runs:

• Branding ads: Solidify your position as the go-to expert in your industry by making your name and business synonymous with it. These ads may not generate leads right away, but they will keep you top of mind with your audience.
• Product ads: Tout a specific product or service that you offer. You could prompt visitors to buy directly through these ads or redirect them to a landing page or your website.
• Lead magnet ads: A lead magnet is an item of value you give to someone in exchange for their email address and other contact information. You can save this information, add it to your database, and retarget the leads later.

Platforms like Facebook allow you to narrow the target audience of your ads by factors such as location, age, and interests to make them even more effective. These ads are also inexpensive (costing less than a cup of coffee a day in some cases), and you can manage the cost by manipulating the frequency and reach of your ads.

Landing pages and lead magnets
Landing pages are designed to be lead-converting machines, encouraging visitors to buy something directly from your website or to give their information in exchange for an item of value (lead magnet). When designed well with a clear call to action, they are a highly effective way to gather information from qualified leads that are already looking for what you have to offer.

Think about what kind of information your audience needs, and then give them just enough of it to trust your authority and want to learn more. Be sure to input any contact info from those who clicked on and downloaded it into your database for retargeting.

Other forms of content marketing
In addition to ads and lead magnets, sharing relevant content is guaranteed to help you stay top of mind with your audience and encourage visitors to spend more time on your website and social media pages. There are a variety of approaches you can take, including blogging about topics important to your industry, posting videos of client testimonials, and sharing industry updates. For any strategy you use, the most important thing is consistency. Posting content on an irregular basis will not drive the results you want.

At its core, content marketing presents you as the authority, promotes trust, and draws more attention to your business. And the more people see others engaging with and enjoying your content, the likelier it is that they will do the same.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Luke Acree is an authority on leadership, a lead-generation specialist, and a referral expert who has helped more than 100,000 entrepreneurs and small businesses grow their companies. He hosts Stay Paid, a sales and marketing podcast, and has been featured in Entrepreneur, Forbes, and Foundr.com.

TAKE ACTION:
Make sure to add every new lead to your database with as much information as possible, including their name and email address.