How To Implement Lead Nurturing Without a Huge Budget
Posted by Jeff Machado
There's a basic fact about Inbound Marketing that we all must understand - generating a lead and turning that lead into a customer both require skill and hard work. While the activities look different on the surface, they both share one powerful and common thread however.
That powerful and common thread is none other than content creation.
Want more leads? Create more content.
Want to turn more leads into customers? Create more content.
Why Content Is The Answer To Your Lead Generation Problems
Whenever I talk to anyone about lead nurturing, I ask them to think about their own buying habits. I ask them if they're willing to drop down the cash or sign the check as soon as they find out about a potential service or product. Usually, the light bulb goes off right at that moment. People need time to think about the product or service they're considering.
Usually, this same person will then take this info and start blasting sales messages to their leads, hoping some of them will be reminded of what's available and take instant action. I'll shake my head a bit and let them know that this just doesn't work either.
Following up with content changes everything. When you're not promoting yourself, you're adding value. The best thing is, this type of lead nurturing doesn't require you to shell out a ton of cash in order to see results. All it takes is some time and a willingness to take all the information and resources you have available to somehow make the lives of your potential customers better.
It should go without saying that you need to treat your leads like gold if you want them to take the next step in the sales process.
Not sure what type of content to share as part of your lead nurturing? Here are 3 quick ideas:
Tell A Story Through Video
Creating content doesn't require you to sit down and write for hours. All you need to start with is an easy to use video camera like the Flip video and the willingness to put yourself out there for the world to see. Every business has a story - something that makes you more human to your prospects.
Doing a video that has personality helps increase the Know, Like, and Trust factor that helps loosen up and want to know more about what you have to offer.
Share A Blog Post
One of the things I emphasize most to my clients is that blogging generates business. The reason for this is two-fold. First, blogging helps you to get found online and makes it easier for you to convert those visitors into leads.
Second, blog posts can be used as part of a lead nurturing campaign to help answer some of the questions your leads have. If you have one blog post that is particularly insightful, you need to make sure your leads have read it and have a chance to interact with you in the comments section.
Conduct a Survey
Need an easy to follow up with your leads? Put together a survey to start gauging where your leads are at in their knowledge of your niche. By doing this, you'll be able to look at what you're offering and see if those offerings are in line with where your leads are at.
Using that information, you can also fine tune your lead nurturing even more. If it turns out that your leads are beginners, you can get rid of that technical and advanced whitepaper that you inserted into your automated lead nurturing campaign and replace it with a webinar that explains the basics more in depth.
How have you used your content as part of your lead nurturing process? Do you find that it helps your leads to get to know you and your company better? Let us know in the comments!