All about B2B lead generation
More and more companies know that generating leads has become the main objective of any activity. However, the concept remains opaque for many, as do the techniques to implement to achieve it.
What is lead generation?
You hear a lot about lead generation. Like many companies, you would like to master these techniques, those that will allow you to increase your sales.
But, by the way, what is a lead?
A lead is someone who has shown interest in the product or service you offer.
This person becomes a lead from the moment they voluntarily provide you with their personal information:
- Their first and last name
- Their email address
- Their phone number
- The name of their company...
Generating a lead happens in several stages:
- The visitor establishes a point of contact by visiting your website, social networks, etc.
- The user receives a Call To Action offering them something: an ebook download, a free trial of software, a newsletter subscription...
- By clicking on the CTA, they are redirected to a contact form to fill out. In exchange, they receive the offer.
From the moment the visitor has completed and submitted the form, they become a lead.
The lead at the heart of inbound marketing
Les techniques de génération de leads sont majoritairement mises en place par l’équipe marketing d’une entreprise, ou par des professionnels du marketing indépendants. Certains outils, comme LaGrowthMachine, se sont spécialisés dans les techniques de lead generation.
Aware of the weariness caused by outbound marketing (considered too intrusive by consumers), they are increasingly turning to inbound marketing, which is considered much more effective than outbound.
Indeed, inbound marketing is based on two fundamental principles:
- The approach is initiated by the potential client (and not the other way around).
- The problem encountered by this potential client is at the heart of the company's message (and not the product).
For the process to work, you must attract visitors and make them want to provide their contact information.
Note that a lead is not a prospect. At the lead stage, the person is in the discovery phase of the purchasing process. To become a prospect, they must express an intention to purchase.
Why is lead generation important in B2B?
A relevant sales pitch must follow 5 essential rules:
A visitor who becomes a lead is someone who shows initial interest in the company. They have a need and are looking to satisfy it.
Once captured, she will be more inclined to complete the sales process, since she initiated it herself.
To achieve this, the company must:
- Be perceived as an expert by this lead
- Having demonstrated its added value compared to the competition
A lead is more inclined to purchase the product or service.
67% of B2B customers complete their purchasing journey by consulting the internet
This figure alone is reason enough to start generating B2B leads.
The B2B client will have consumed a lot of information on the web before embarking on a purchasing process.
To capture their attention, you will need to offer them, at the right time, educational content tailored to their situation.
An entrepreneur, regardless of their company's size, has no time to waste. When they conduct research, it's with the aim of finding a solution.
The person who captures their attention will have less difficulty in closing the sale, because the B2B lead is more qualified than the B2C lead. It corresponds to the company's target. It's somewhat the ideal client.
The B2B lead is often qualified
How to optimize your lead generation?
To generate qualified leads, it's important to adopt an effective strategy by optimizing lead generation.
To achieve this, some rules must be followed.
Clearly defining your persona
We can't say it enough: the first thing to do is to perfectly define your persona.
In B2B, this refers to the company to which you are offering your product.
To help you, you can answer a few questions such as:
- What is the size of the company?
- What is their industry?
- What problem are they encountering?
By knowing your target perfectly, you will be able to offer them adapted content, responding to their issues.
Taking care of your content
In B2B, lead generation requires high value-added content. You need to demonstrate your expertise through the content you put online.
This content is intended to educate your target audience, especially if it is lead nurturing that needs to be brought closer to their purchasing decision.
Your task is therefore to attract the visitor, arouse their interest and then convert them into a lead.
Choosing the right publishing channels
There are a multitude of channels for generating leads. The first one that comes to mind is the website. Through a blog section, many companies share content with high added value.
But it is also possible to use social networks.
Create low-friction forms
Some visitors tend to abandon the process when faced with a form that is too long or too intrusive.
Paying particular attention to the creation of the contact form is a key step in lead generation.
To achieve this, you can use different types of forms:
- Progressive forms, which unfold in 2 or 3 steps. Email address and phone number are requested at the end.
- Automatically filled forms: with just an email address, the other information is automatically retrieved. This saves time for the visitor.
What are the benefits of automation?
And why not automate lead generation?
Thanks to very powerful tools, it is now possible to collect a large quantity of information, while assigning a quality score to each lead recovered.
They have the advantage of reducing the workload of marketing teams and improving the quality of leads.
They also help reduce the sales cycle and human errors.
These software solutions, highly valued by companies, also allow you to program powerful marketing campaigns, for example, by re-engaging a prospect who has not completed their purchase.
There are numerous tools available to automate lead generation, including:
- LaGrowthMachine
- Phantombuster
- ProspectIn
- Expandi
- Apify…
Note that the majority allow you to generate leads from LinkedIn, the preferred network for B2B prospecting.
As you've probably gathered, increasing sales today involves generating qualified leads. However, the process can sometimes be lengthy and difficult. In this case, it's possible to call on marketing professionals who can implement appropriate techniques.