7 Steps to Master Lead Generation in B2B

Lead generation is the process of attracting and converting potential customers into leads, which are people who have shown interest in your product or service and provided their contact information. Lead generation is essential for B2B businesses, as it helps them build relationships with prospects, nurture them through the sales funnel, and ultimately increase revenue.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Lead generation is the process of attracting and converting potential customers into leads

Lead generation is essential for B2B businesses, as it helps them build relationships with prospects, nurture them through the sales funnel, and ultimately increase revenue

To master lead generation in B2B, you need to follow these seven steps: define your target audience, create valuable content, promote your content, capture leads, nurture leads, score leads, and hand over leads

To succeed in lead generation in B2B, you need to use various tools and tactics, such as content creation, content promotion, lead capture, lead nurturing, lead scoring, and lead handover

To overcome the challenges of lead generation in B2B, you need to follow the best practices and measure your results

But how do you generate leads effectively in B2B? Here are seven steps to master lead generation in B2B:

1. Define your target audience.

Before you start generating leads, you need to know who your ideal customers are, what their pain points are, and how your solution can help them. You can use tools like buyer personas, customer surveys, and market research to segment your audience and tailor your marketing messages accordingly.

2. Create valuable content.

Content is the fuel of lead generation, as it educates, entertains, and engages your audience. You can create content in various formats, such as blog posts, ebooks, white papers, webinars, podcasts, videos, infographics, and more. The key is to provide value to your audience and address their challenges and goals. You should also optimize your content for SEO, using relevant keywords, titles, headings, meta descriptions, and links.

3. Promote your content.

Once you have created your content, you need to distribute it to your target audience and drive traffic to your website or landing page. You can use various channels to promote your content, such as email marketing, social media marketing, paid advertising, influencer marketing, guest posting, and more. The key is to choose the channels that match your audience’s preferences and behavior.

4. Capture leads.

After you have attracted visitors to your website or landing page, you need to convert them into leads by capturing their contact information. You can use various tactics to capture leads, such as forms, pop-ups, chatbots, quizzes, calculators, and more. The key is to offer something valuable in exchange for their information, such as a free trial, a demo, a consultation, a coupon code, or a lead magnet (e.g., an ebook or a webinar).

5. Nurture leads.

After you have captured leads, you need to nurture them until they are ready to buy from you. You can use various tools to nurture leads, such as email marketing automation, CRM software, personalization software, and more. The key is to provide relevant and timely information to your leads based on their stage in the buyer’s journey and their behavior and interests.

6. Score leads.

After you have nurtured leads, you need to score them based on their level of interest and readiness to buy from you. You can use various criteria to score leads, such as demographic data (e.g., industry or company size), behavioral data (e.g., website visits or email clicks), or engagement data (e.g., downloads or registrations). The key is to assign a numerical value to each lead based on these criteria and rank them accordingly.

7. Hand over leads.

After you have scored leads, you need to hand them over to your sales team for further follow-up and closing. You can use various methods to hand over leads, such as email notifications, CRM integrations, SLAs (service level agreements), or lead routing software. The key is to ensure a smooth transition between marketing and sales and provide all the necessary information about each lead.

TIP

To generate leads effectively in B2B, you need to provide value to your audience, optimize your content for SEO, use various channels to promote your content, offer something valuable in exchange for their information, provide relevant and timely information to your leads, assign a numerical value to each lead, and ensure a smooth transition between marketing and sales.

What is Lead Generation in B2B?

Lead generation is the process of identifying and attracting potential customers for a business’s products or services. In the B2B (business-to-business) context, lead generation involves finding other businesses that have a need or problem that can be solved by the offering of the seller. Lead generation is a critical first step in the sales funnel, as it helps to build awareness, interest, and trust among the prospects.

How is Lead Generation in B2B Changing?

The global pandemic has disrupted the traditional ways of generating leads in B2B, such as face-to-face meetings, events, and cold calling. According to a recent survey, over 70% of B2B decision makers prefer remote human interactions or digital self-service. This means that B2B sellers need to adapt to the new environment and meet their potential customers where they are: online.

Some of the emerging trends and strategies for B2B lead generation in 2022 are:

Content marketing: Creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and engaging content that showcases the expertise, solutions, and value proposition of the business. Content marketing can include blogs, ebooks, whitepapers, webinars, podcasts, videos, infographics, case studies, and more. Content marketing can help to attract organic traffic, generate leads, educate prospects, and nurture relationships.

Social media marketing: Leveraging platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter to build a personal brand, share insights, join conversations, and network with prospects. Social media marketing can help to establish credibility, authority, and thought leadership in the industry, as well as generate referrals and recommendations.

Email marketing: Sending personalized and targeted emails to prospects who have shown interest in the business’s products or services. Email marketing can help to deliver relevant content, offers, and calls to action to prospects at different stages of the buyer’s journey. Email marketing can also help to follow up, remind, and re-engage prospects who have gone cold or inactive.

Pay-per-click advertising: Using paid ads on search engines or social media platforms to drive traffic to landing pages or websites that capture leads. Pay-per-click advertising can help to increase visibility and reach among a specific audience based on keywords, demographics, interests, behaviors, and more. Pay-per-click advertising can also help to test and optimize different messages, offers, and creatives.

Website optimization: Improving the design, functionality, and performance of the website to enhance the user experience and conversion rate. Website optimization can include using clear and compelling headlines, subheadings, images, videos, testimonials, social proof, trust badges, and more. Website optimization can also include using lead magnets (such as ebooks or webinars) and lead capture forms (such as pop-ups or chatbots) to collect contact information from visitors.

What is the Global Demand for Lead Generation in B2B?

The global demand for lead generation in B2B is expected to grow steadily in the coming years. According to a report by ResearchAndMarkets.com, the global B2B lead generation market size was valued at USD 3.26 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach USD 9.82 billion by 2028, registering a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.8% from 2021 to 2028. The report attributes this growth to factors such as increasing digitalization of businesses, rising adoption of cloud-based solutions, growing need for data-driven decision making, and expanding use of social media platforms for lead generation.

FREQUENTLY QUESTIONS

Q: What is a lead in B2B?
A: A lead is a person who has shown interest in your product or service and provided their contact information.

Q: What are the benefits of lead generation in B2B?
A: Lead generation in B2B helps you build relationships with prospects, nurture them through the sales funnel, and ultimately increase revenue.

Q: What are the best practices for lead generation in B2B?
A: Some of the best practices for lead generation in B2B are: