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Buy software is easy. Fixing lead generation is hard.

Guest post by: Jeff Ogden

Article Overview: Buying a product like marketing automation is very, very easy. But fixing the sales lead quality problem is hard. In this article, Jeff Ogden of Find New Customers shares the ugly reality for B2B sellers today.

Buy software is easy. Fixing lead generation is hard.

By Jeff Ogden, President of the B2B Lead Generation consultancy, Find New Customers.

SaaS products like Marketo, Hubspot, Eloqua and the like are very, very easy to buy. Give them a credit card, they give you a login. Done. It can be done in minutes.

It's actually way too easy. But just like dieting, promises are easy - reality is something else. So things are too good to be true. There is no "wonder herb" in B2B marketing.

What does the purchase of software do toward fixing your company's problems with generating quality sales leads? Absolutely nothing!

The only way to REALLY fix your lead generation challenges is to do a lot of hard work - which we summarize in these 10 steps. Are you ready to do what it takes?

1. Craft deep buyer personas
2. Define your keywords
3. Agree on the common definition of a lead and identify key trigger events which drive decisions.
4. Map content to the buyer personas and buyer variables (using keywords)
5. Fill in the gaps with new content (using keywords)
6. Optimize the website, blog and social media based on keywords
7. Design lead nurturing campaigns in a Problem to Solution story-telling format using your content.
8. Using the agreed lead definition, agree on the behaviors and demographics that indicate buying propensity (lead scoring).
9. Create metrics to measure the effectiveness of your programs.
10. Deploy everything in your new software.

Notice that the real use for the software you bought is in Step 10?

Unless you are ready to invest in those 10 steps using internal and/or resources like Find New Customers, you will never really fix your sales leads problem.

Why don't you visit and download our free white paper, How to Find New Customers?

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Article Tags: b2b lead generation, b2b lead generation strategies, btob lead generation, find new customers, lead generating, lead generation, lead generation companies



Related Forum Posts
Re: Kevin's Case Study #6 - Marketing an information resource? - [quote="Evan":3ndb7usp]Hi Sebastien, I'm wondering about two things: 1) What is your current revenue model? 2) Why would franchise owners choose to sign up with you over the lead generation companies? Is there some kind of quality control certification that you could award them to say that they are a World Franchising certified franchise? I'm not clear on what benefits a company seeking to franchise would really get from your site beyond the lead generation component.[/quote:3ndb7usp] Hello Evan, 1. We currently make money from what you may call lead generation. Franchisors pay us a fee to be on our websites and in our top seller franchise guides. We also generate money from other avenue; mostly by selling hard-to-get information about franchising (UFOCs, etc...) 2. That's exactly what I'm trying to answer.... I want to get away from the lead generation perception. I want to be seen as a good information resource, which we are. I have started to take the association angle and I am now looking to provide great benefits to our Members (used to be called clients). I think I'm on the right way. I made a lot of progress the last couple days.
Re: Kevin's Case Study #6 - Marketing an information resource? - Hey Sebastian, Congrats are starting to think beyond whats currently being done. My question is why do you want to get away from lead generation if that is where you make your money. What if you just because THE SOURCE for lead generation and high value content/information? Then you'd get more business because franchisors would HAVE to be listed with you.... J
Re: Kevin's Case Study #6 - Marketing an information resource? - Hi Sebastien, I'm wondering about two things: 1) What is your current revenue model? 2) Why would franchise owners choose to sign up with you over the lead generation companies? Is there some kind of quality control certification that you could award them to say that they are a World Franchising certified franchise? I'm not clear on what benefits a company seeking to franchise would really get from your site beyond the lead generation component.
Re: Email Marketing, Permission Based - As a financial advisor myself, I've harnessed technology through my business dealings as best I can. Email marekting has been an essential service for sales, lead generation, and networking. As some of you have already mentioned, we use an opt-in system where our clients agree to sign up for a monthly newsletter. We use this newsletter to market new products, new investment considerations, and general information about policies or functions our office is holding. I've had many clients tell me they've forwarded the emails off to their familes and friends. This can only mean good things for our business development, so I can say I've been quite pleased with email marketing. Unfortunately as the original poster has mentioned, it is so easy to get signed up for spam or unsolicited email. Many of our clients still have hesitation in opting in to our newsletter because they feel we may sell or otherwise distribute their information. We work hard to ensure our reputability as an email marketer. I think building that trust and reputation is essential to a successful email marketing campaign.
Re: What is your EVE Ratio? - Hi GT, Thank you for posting this. Like Michelle, the hard part is applying everything. I admit that mine is balanced, with entertainment on the lead, but with a very small lead. I was on a lecture last week, and one of the teachers said: it not the amount of knowledge you have, it's how you use it every day. So true.


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