Five Effective Lead Nurturing Tools
Lead nurturing is a strategy of maintaining contact. An effective campaign should build a relationship that turns marketing leads into qualified prospects. In order to change a lead to a prospect, it usually takes multiple communication channels used during different buying phases. There are several digital and customer-facing options that are effective in building relationships. Let’s look at five lead nurturing tools that can transition leads into sales opportunities:
Web Content Articles
Publishing articles that interest your markets is a good way to connect with leads. Companies maintain contact by providing knowledge, ideas, advice or reviews to their audiences. Selecting topics and creating articles that are relevant to both your business and the interests of your markets is critical to success. Links to a landing page or squeeze page connect the reader with your company or product. Content articles can be effective when they’re posted on the company website, but are more effective through distribution via content publishers and directories.
Webinars
Hosting or participating in webinars provides a vivid impression on leads. The practice of using webinars to attract leads has been used in B2B commerce for years. Shared knowledge and engagement through Q & A and post-event information requests provide a connection that builds trust. Webinars are often most effective within a tiered exposure strategy, where touch points are introduced during advanced stages of the decision cycle. Most hosting software vendors provide reports about attendance duration, IP addresses, and other valuable data.
Trade Shows & Conferences
Attendance at trade shows and conferences allows businesses to connect with their markets, partners, vendors and competitors. Lead nurturing can be achieved through presentations or exhibits. Presenters are seen as industry authorities, which boosts company credibility. Q & A sessions and social events provide great opportunities to establish deeper connections with leads.
Trade show exhibition should be used to nurture leads that are almost prepared to buy. The level of personal engagement that trade show exhibition can provide surpasses many other lead nurturing tools. It is a great way to announce new products, perform market testing and engage new markets.
Email marketing can be effective at the start and throughout the lead nurturing process. Email drip campaigns provide continual contact; companies connect through news, offers, references, advice, and other helpful information. Email is effective for lead nurturing because of its message reinforcement capabilities, allowing you to review previous messages while adding new information. One strategy is to set up auto responders that provide solutions to questions or issues that are raised through other channels or previous messages.
Press Releases
Press releases provide occasional opportunities to connect with leads. Announcements that are newsworthy – such as events, releases, achievements and company activities (such as executive appointments) – allow leads to become familiar, and comfortable, with your company. It is important to note that press releases should be used to announce significant news that may be interesting to your audience; saturating readers with insignificant news will likely turn leads cold in a hurry.
Many of today’s lead nurturing tools not only connect companies with their markets, they provide detailed reporting on campaign effectiveness. This allows marketers to be nimble. The trick is to use each tool at the appropriate stage of the sales cycle.
To find out more about how Lead Liaison’s Revenue Generation Software™ can provide your organization with professional-grade, effective lead nurturing contact us.
