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In the October edition of "The LeadGeneration" we discussed lead management and the steps that need to be taken to prepare companies for effective and profitable lead generation.  In this month's edition we offer some specific tactics you can use to generate profitable leads and leverage your online presence to improve your conversions.

In the most recent "2006 Response Rate Trends Report", a study published by the Direct Marketing Association, email marketing and telemarketing were cited as the top lead generation methods, garnering 2.60% and 2.45% respectively among direct marketing media channels.  In addition it is worth noting that when the telephone is used as a follow-up method to online lead generation methods it can greatly increase their response rates.  Notice that email, which is by far one of the most cost efficient methods of generating leads, resulted in only 0.15% less response rates than the telemarketing.  This suggests that organizations must have a strategy to utilize both online and offline marketing tactics to maximize the results of their lead generation initiatives.  But which combination of tactics should you use?  When should you engage your inside sales reps?  Below I've outlined 6 tips that will help you prepare for lead generation success in 2007.

#1:      "Truly" Integrate Your Marketing
While many companies have embraced the "integrated" marketing approach still too many look at e-marketing and other "traditional" marketing channels as different silos.  They use different agencies, and in many cases even different creative resources.  We've seen this first hand, both with major global clients as well as smaller regional organizations.  The results almost always tell the same story, with online marketing being measured one way, offline another way, and no one counting the leads that are related to both types of campaign.  Few companies have truly "integrated" their marketing efforts and to do that you need to use the same rules for qualifying leads in the online world as you do in the offline world.  You also need to recognize that your prospects may be interacting with you through a combination of offline and online methods, and as a result your lead management process should accommodate this.

#2:    Increase Online Marketing's Share in you Marketing Mix
Your online marketing strategies can produce tremendous results at lower incremental costs than traditional media.  Kent Lewis, President of Anvil Media, Inc., a recognized nationwide expert in online marketing stated:

"The Internet has been an effective lead generation medium for many years.  Over the past year especially, evolving technologies have enabled vast improvement in targeting and tracking.  While the ability to target paid advertising in search on a local level has been available for a few years, Google, MSN and Yahoo! are rolling out enhanced demographic targeting capabilities."  This speaks directly to the need for all marketing executives to understand the rapid changes going on around them in the online marketing space, the many new online lead generation techniques, beyond just pay-per-click and search engine marketing.

#3:    Promote benefits to prospects... not just capabilities
We've all been though the "focus on the benefits" presentation and heard expert after expert discuss why providing clear concise benefits are so important.  Then why do I still get e-mail, direct mail, read print advertising and visit websites where I have no idea what the company does?  Or even worse, what the company can do for me and my organization?  Your product or service is likely a means to an end. Your customers are buying the result. This is why people buy based on benefit statements.  Some of you may feel that your "company has been around a century and the benefits are obvious".  The benefits of doing business with you are never obvious. If you have even one competitor for the budget you aspire to direct towards your firm then you will understand you have to communicate the unique benefits of investing in your services or products.    One of my favorite branding examples is  BASF, a German based chemical company that does not sell direct to consumer, who spent hundreds of millions of dollars marketing only their benefits. You may have heard of the campaign:  "We don't make the products you buy, we make the products you buy better".  This campaign generated record revenue and shareholder value by making people believe in their benefits, which in turn made their potential customers believe in doing business with them. 

#4:    Don't forget about direct mail and print!
Just a few years ago you could pick up any direct marketing publication and the  tips, strategies and approaches revolved primarily around direct mail. Now it's all about e-mail, search and other online approaches.  Is this right?  Not if you are targeting C-Level Executives, providing high ticket items or are in the financial services sector.  While direct mail and print is a more costly approach, it is also one of the most effective tactics for reaching senior management and decision makers for big budgets items. Support your direct mail and print with relevant web content and landing pages, follow-up with emails, and in some cases telemarketing or sales reps. Moving to 100% online marketing can make reaching some markets almost impossible. 

#5:    Drive Brand Synergy!
Now here is a phrase we have heard increasingly over the years.  But, what does it mean now?  It doesn't mean a whole lot more than it did in 2000, 1990 or even in 1980.  While I realize people may have different definitions we'll use this for the sake of argument:  Be consistent in your brand no matter what method of communication you are using.  With the explosion of online marketing tactics, namely search, RSS, blogs, online forums and e-mail marketing, companies have consistently been challenged to keep both their offline and online marketing consistent.  But you must do this well if you expect to maximize your lead generation.  Scattered messages and images can hurt your ability to gain "mind share" with your target market.  There should be minimal difference, if any, in your direct mail, e-mail, website or tradeshow booth from a message and branding perspective. 

#6:    Map out your targets, media, and messages to maximize effectiveness
Many of us have taken the time to develop webinars, sales sheets, whitepapers, online demos, case studies and a slew of other resources to fuel the sales process.  But few companies truly maximize the usage of these resources.  The resources you've developed can be used very effectively to assist in the education and qualification of new business and to improve the revenues from your installed base.  To do this though, you must strategize how each will be used, with whom, and when.  An irritant of mine is that within a couple of days of attending a tradeshow, or signing up for a newsletter, a sales rep calls asking me to go through a 90 minute online demo.  Now I appreciate a good sales person but why not ask me if I would like to receive a sales sheet, or maybe a case study, before asking for a much bigger commitment of my time.  Possibly even send me something via e-mail vs. calling me just because I stopped by your booth and "got scanned".   In a recent article in the AMA magazine, Rubicon's CEO, Kevin Joyce outlined the need for online dialogue and some ideas that can help you better communicate online.  It's a great read, I strongly recommend you taking a look at it.

The pace of change in marketing has never been greater. The advent of new techniques and tactics for reaching out to prospects has made the task of demand generation more complex than ever. The possible combinations and permutations of touches that we can share with prospects is growing rapidly, and discovering the mix that produces the best qualified leads can be a daunting task. Test new tactics, test new sequences of tactics, and learn how your market wants to buy.

 
For more information on lead generation, please visit www.rubiconway.com or e-mail me at robert.moreau@rubiconway.com.
 

Robert J. Moreau
EVP Sales & Marketing
Rubicon Marketing Group, Inc.