9 Ways To Increase Lead Generation For Your Business
All companies go through ups and downs. Sometimes it seems that the prospects are endless – new deals are concluded every day, and the phone is torn from calls.
There are other times when things are slow, there are few offers, and you suddenly find that you have a lot of free time and do not even know where to put it.
It’s easy to panic when lead generation and business growth slow down. In some situations, this concern is well founded. It can help you make the right decisions to save your business and get you more creative with strategies to increase sales.
But even if all you have to do is get through a period of recession, why not start looking for and exploiting any new opportunities at this time?
WHAT TO DO IF BUSINESS STAGNATES?
If you want to set your business up for long-term success, you need to focus on these nine things.
1. Clear your email list
When was the last time you updated your email list? How many real and verified contacts are in it, and how many are invalid or outdated?
We all know that feeling when, at first glance, a promising lead turned out to be a dummy. Now is the time to purge your mailing list of all fake accounts, misspelled addresses, and duplicates.
An accurate and up-to-date email database will reduce bounce rates and improve the overall effectiveness of your email campaigns. By tidying up your mailing list, you will also protect your brand reputation and improve email deliverability.
2. Fill up and update contact details
What is the state of your CRM system? Do you have up-to-date data? Is all contact information accurate and updated regularly? If yes, then you are great! Your business is an exception to the rule that most salespeople don’t like doing administrative work.
But what if the CRM system is in a state of disrepair? Well, you are not alone in this.
Given that B2B data is like fresh produce – it degrades at a rate of 70% per year – this is a problem that many companies face.
Fortunately, if you replenish and update your customer data, then your work will more than pay off immediately after the crisis. Reliable consumer information is critical to the sales process. It will help your team work much more efficiently.
Perhaps now is the time to integrate CRM with other systems. For example, with a marketing automation application, a customer support platform, or a VoIP provider.
3. Optimize your business strategy
It’s pretty easy to forget about your brand, marketing, and overall business strategy. However, it is very important to update them from time to time and remind your team about them.
A period of stagnation in a business is a great time to take a step back and reevaluate the company’s offering and positioning.
As part of a strategy review, you can also conduct a quick competitor analysis. Take care to identify gaps in the market. Thus, you will open up new opportunities for your company.
Understanding exactly what your competitors are offering will put you in a better position both during sales negotiations and when developing your own proposals.
You can even post a comparison on your blog or website to help clients make the best decision based on their goals and pain points.
And remember: your competitors are not standing still. New players bring new challenges, and the market situation is constantly changing.
4. Improve SEO
Whenever you have a little free time, spend it on SEO (search engine optimization) – it’s always a good investment. In this way, you will increase the ranking of your site in Google and attract new relevant traffic.
Start by conducting a thorough site content audit to identify any opportunities for improvement. Review existing blog posts and update them with internal links to new articles and landing pages. A technical SEO audit will help your site perform even better.
Fix any broken links and add CTAs (calls to action) with marketing offers. Make sure all your pages are in good shape and have optimized page titles, meta descriptions, and image alt texts. SEMrush or Ahrefs are great tools for website analysis and optimization.
5. Communicate with your customers
When was the last time you personally spoke to clients on the phone? This is a very underrated practice that has the potential to revolutionize your business.
Communication with customers allows you to see your product through the eyes of the target group and often brings new and important ideas.
Make a few calls to people using your product and listen to what they have to say. You will certainly be surprised at the amount of useful information that this simple action will bring.
Of course, praise is always welcome. If you stumble upon someone who loves your product, be sure to ask for a review. But even more, value can be drawn from those customers who are not very satisfied.
Why are they unhappy? Product problem? Maybe they are not your target audience? Perhaps it’s time to update your buyer persona?
6. Improve email workflows
Well, let’s say your lead generation has slowed down. This does not mean that you can continue to send the same emails. This is a great opportunity to streamline and build your email workflows and make sure you’re doing the best you can to move your prospects further up the funnel.
The fewer new customers you bring in, the more important it is to take care of those you have already attracted.
Analyze your email and find out where in the customer journey you are losing the most leads. This is the problem you need to focus on in order to improve efficiency.
Change the content of your emails, experiment with subject lines, and test different CTAs to see what happens. Sometimes even small edits lead to an unexpectedly significant difference.
7. Expand your business network
Business is relationships. You should start making new connections just when things are going slowly. This can be done physically by attending networking events and dining with old colleagues. Also, everything can take place in a digital format – we are talking about the development of networking.
Join business groups on LinkedIn and Facebook, invite new people to your network, and start conversations by posting content and interacting with other people’s posts.
Fueling and expanding your business network can be the fastest, most efficient, and most enjoyable way to get new offers and deals.
8. Guest post on other people’s blogs
Are there other companies that share your target group but are not your competitors? Find businesses with offerings that complement yours and reach out to them to write a guest blog post.
You don’t have to write everything from scratch. Recycle your old content and offer it to publications and business blogs for guest posts.
Don’t be too intrusive, but make sure your bio includes your website address. This backlink will strengthen the authority of your domain. The opportunity to be seen in reputable publications next to famous brands will also help promote your business and help you create an image as a thought leader in your industry.
9. Set SMART goals
When business growth slows down, you have the opportunity to rethink your goals and strategy. Ask yourself and your team:
- Is there a need for change?
- Are your goals aligned with those of the team?
- Are your goals SMART (are they specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely)?
If the answer to any of these questions is no, then now is the time to fix it. With a well-structured strategy and clear goals, you can get your business up and running faster and more efficiently.
It’s easy to get stressed out when it seems like company growth and lead generation have slowed down. However, with the right approach during the “low season,” you can improve your business. By focusing on the above aspects, you will build a healthier and more resilient organization and be able to jump right into action when things start to pick up again.