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Use Your Web Site as a Qualification Tool
To get the right answer - Ask the right question
Sell Your Prospects on Providing Their E-Mail Addresses
Use Interactive Elements to Give Immediate Information
to Prospects
Lead Generation Tips (Article #1)
Lead Generation Tips (Article #2)
You Can Generate Leads for New Business in
a Tight Market
In designing Web sites for clients, we often hear "I don't want
to get a lot of meaningless requests for information through my
Web sites. I'm just too busy to waste time."
What our clients are really saying is quality leads are OK - but
don't build a site that results in follow-up requirements for people
unlikely to buy. If you find it hard to quickly identifying a quality
lead, consider the following.
We suggest that companies clearly review the characteristics of
people (or companies) that are most likely to buy their service
or product. From this profile, we recommend that clients build a
few open-ended questions to help them quickly determine whether
or not a prospect is ready, willing and able to buy.
If you create good qualifying questions, you can incorporate them
into your request for information forms on your Web site. This way,
when you receive the e-mail info requests through your site, you
will have some way to spot potential qualified leads. Not all leads
are created equal. If you serve only East Coast US-based companies
and you receive an e-mail request from a New Zealand firm, you can
quickly tell that this is not a strong lead.
So think through your qualifying questions and build them into
your Web site forms.
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A potential client mentioned that he was not getting any response
from his Web site. When we asked what call to action he had on his
site, his reply was "none." And, therein lies the problem. From
a marketing perspective, a Web site is closer to direct mail than
any other marketing activity. To be successful in direct mail, you
need to have (in order of importance) 1. The right list. 2. A compelling
offer. 3. A good format, and 4. Winning copy and graphics.
Today a successful (marketing) Web site must have 1. The right
audience. 2. A strong offer (a good reason for visitors to self-identify
themselves) 3. An easy to navigate format, which downloads very
quickly. 4. Strong copy and good graphics.
If you want to generate client leads through your Web site, look
very carefully at the #2 success factor (a strong offer). You must
give your visitors a compelling reason for them to provide their
name and contact information. For example, if you provide financial
planning, you could offer a free asset allocation analysis if the
visitor answers a few questions. In this instance, you might even
offer an interactive element for free on your site; and, a slightly
more comprehensive version for a charge of the individual's name,
address and e-mail. To get contact information, you often must give
something of value.
To get the response you want from your Web site, you must attract
the right audience and ask the right questions. If you need help
in developing a response strategy for your Web site, please contact
us. We have staff very skilled in building Web audiences and in
generating desired responses.
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E-newsletters are great tools for building a presence with your
target audience. To communicate with e-newsletters, you must develop
an e-mail distribution list. If you are trying to build an e-mail
list, you must convince prospects to furnish their e-mail addresses.
With all of the spam and viruses spawning on the Internet, people
are reluctant to furnish their e-mails.
- To build a strong list, follow these guidelines:
- Explain the benefits you provide with your e-newsletter
- Clearly state your privacy policy
- Make it easy for people to add to and remove from your list
- Promise not to exchange, sell or provide their e-mail addresses
to others (and abide by that policy)
- Use traditional communication channels to promote your on-line
e-newsletter
Once you've built your list, set a production schedule you can
live with. If you cannot produce a monthly publication, try bi-monthly
or quarterly. If possible, have someone in your office become the
e-newsletter steward. Your steward should set the article topics
for each issue, assign authors, and manage the production and distribution
process.
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You can improve the effectiveness of your Web site with interactive
elements. We recently researched the cost of CD reproduction for
a client. On a Web site we visited, we discovered a very useful
tool. Viewers could answer a few questions and receive via e-mail
a quote for their job - in seconds. When the vendor responded, the
e-mail included several caveats. The vendor told viewers to speak
with a representative before they considered the quote final. With
this tool, the Web site's viewers received instant information.
And, the CD vendor reduced the amount of staff time spent answering
very basic pricing questions.
What part of your sales process can you automate through your
Web site? You could consider any of the following:
- Helping prospects pre-qualify themselves. Your service or product
might not be the best fit for everyone. Ask a few basic questions.
Then (based on the viewers answers) tell the viewer whether you
are the ideal fit for their needs. You could also use this interactive
tool to direct the prospect to the correct contact in your firm.
- An online forum to answer customer questions. We recently completed
a Web site for a printing company. Our client produces very high-end
publications. In the production process, customers send our client
complex electronic files. We created an online message board.
Customers can post questions to the board. Our clients' production
staff will post answers. As the message board grows, customers
will find answers to a wide variety of questions. The message
board will save the client's and their customers' valuable time.
If you want to discuss which interactive elements are appropriate
for your sales process, please drop us a line.
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Your marketing program will be most effective in generating leads
when you follow the proven techniques of direct marketing. To develop
a successful lead generation program, you should incorporate the
following concepts:
- Clearly define the program goals and expectations.
Define what you consider a successful program and determine your
measurement criteria. Whenever possible, include your sales force
in developing your lead generation program. The sales people are
your best resource for what is working and what isn't and will
ultimately feel the effects of the program.
- Clearly define your target market.
Determine the characteristics of your ideal customer. Be specific.
You can define your target market by characteristics such as SIC
code, company size, annual revenue, or location.
- Buy a good list.
We cannot emphasize this enough! In order for your campaign to
be successful, you need the right information to get to the right
person. For example, if you sell telephone systems to large companies
and your list includes mostly companies with under 20 employees,
your product will likely NOT be relevant to these people.
- Provide an incentive for the prospective client to respond.
If you want a strong response to your marketing program, you must
entice people to respond. Do not merely ask recipients to call
for more information. You must give a strong incentive for your
ideal customer to contact you. To do this, you must make it worth
their while to visit your Web site, pick up the phone, send an
e-mail or a fax.
- Choose the correct format to reach your prospects.
Do most of your customers shop on-line, or do they order via the
telephone or have other purchase desires? Determine what your
customers needs are and fill those needs. Companies that have
the most successful lead generation program send their messages
seven or more times to target customers.
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In the last issue of Market Wise E-news, we published an article
on how to achieve results when designing and implementing a lead
generation campaign. Provided below are additional items that are
required to generate results.
- Create a well-designed piece.
You must create a piece that is well-designed, utilizes good graphics
and is well-written and informative. The goals of the piece are
to grab the reader's attention, generate interest, and guide reader
to take action, namely to contact you!
- Ensure you are reaching your target audience by asking appropriate
qualifying questions.
This may be as simple as ensuring the company has enough employees
to support the employee benefits package you are selling, or the
company has enough computers to require networking services. Base
these questions on the target market criteria established earlier
on in your lead generation campaign.
- Define what is and what is not a qualified lead.
Does the prospect have the money to buy your product/service?
Does the person you are dealing with have decision-making authority?
Do they have a need your product/service can fill? By taking a
few minutes to qualify your leads, you allow your sales force
to do what they do best, sales.
- Make it easy for your prospective client to respond.
By utilizing multiple mechanisms to respond, you allow your client
to reach your more easily and demonstrate your customer service
commitment.
- Make sure you can support the increase in business.
Nothing will ruin a lead generation program quicker than to not
respond to prospective customers in a timely manner. By determining
the number of leads your sales force can effectively handle, you
will be better able to meet your client's needs.
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Even in a challenging market, you can generate leads for new business.
However, you cannot waste time or money on a poorly conceived or
executed program. We list below five keys to generating leads for
new business today.
- Do your homework. Now is not the time to let the market
be your test. Test your copy and list prior to launching the campaign.
Don't rely on instincts as to what will work. Find out what matters
most to key customers or prospects. Build your program around
their issues. You may want to institute a customer panel to get
regular feedback on your marketing communications -- a great way
to deepen your relationship with exiting customers.
- Be patient. Don't kill the program with the first hint
of low response. A down market will take longer to show results.
You may need multiple waves to the same market to get the same
results you previously achieved with one program. If your research
shows that your message is on-target, let the program run for
a while. After you've waited a sufficient time, do stop a program
that's not performing.
- Measure response. If your budget is limited, tracks response
for each program. You'll only know what's working and what is
not is if you can track inquiries to specific campaigns. You can
use your Web site to do this very effectively. Make each campaign
direct prospects to an inquiry form unique to that campaign.
- Build a program that matches your budget. Prospects must
see your message multiple times before they will respond. Plan
for several waves of communication and budget accordingly. If
you cannot afford 3 mailings of a 4-color postcard, try a 2-color
postcard (or a letter) - if that works better for your reduced
budget.
- Keep at it. New business will not drop out of the sky.
You must actively seek it out. Continue to attend functions, send
mailings, work your network. Stay up-beat. Give you (and your
staff) morale booster incentives. When you get your 100th inquiry
from a campaign, celebrate in some fun way. Redefine success so
that your team can feel some sense of accomplishment.
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