You’re busy; your customers are too. And there are only so many hours in the day.
When you first connect with a lead, they might not be ready to buy, so you need to find a way to nurture them and make sure your brand is at the top of their mind for when they are ready. And you want to make sure you do this in a relationship-driven and time-effective way.
Here’s how to nurture your leads effectively and efficiently.
How is a lead defined?
Firstly, let’s check in with what we mean by a ‘lead’. The definition of a lead is specific to your company. A lead definition should be agreed upon between sales and marketing teams, and criteria should be developed to ensure each team knows which leads should be nurtured and how.
What is lead nurturing?
A carefully thought-out sales nurturing strategy enables you to build relationships with your leads through effective communication, helping to build a positive perception of you and your brand.
Why do I need to nurture leads?
Lack of lead nurturing can be correlated with poor conversion performance. Modern businesses and individuals expect personalised experiences, and they want to be listened to rather than spoken at.
Lead nurturing helps the lead understand your business better and establishes a relationship that builds trust throughout the nurturing process. It will increase the lead’s propensity to purchase, help with brand advocacy, and potentially shorten your sales cycle.
For those early in the purchase process, effective early-stage nurturing may even mean the prospect comes to you to help make decisions on their business plans, meaning you can help shape their specification and are more likely to be chosen as the provider.
What kind of activities are involved in lead nurturing?
Lead nurturing campaigns can involve multiple activities across different channels, including:
- Telephone prospecting
- Follow-up emails
- Content downloads
- Social media campaigns
- Personalised social ads using targeting
How do I create a lead nurturing strategy?
There are several steps involved in creating a strategy for successful sales lead nurturing, from goal setting to consideration of the technology you may use to automate the process.
1. Lead Generation & Qualification
Once qualified, your team can identify what is on the prospect’s priorities and what information may be helpful to them. Team members should always consider next steps when speaking with a prospect, and discuss openly with them what their sales process is and how your business can ensure they are involved in a way that adds value to the prospect.
2. Timing
Creating an effective nurturing campaign means not spamming your leads. Look at the information gathered during qualification and working with the prospect’s timeline. Consider that you may need to contact them slightly ahead of when they recommended to ensure you are ahead of the curve.
4. Content Creation
Work with marketing to create materials that can help nurture leads. Prioritise only sending information that can genuinely be of use to the prospect considering their needs and priorities. Content could include:
- Case studies
- Whitepapers and eBooks
- Webinar invitations
- Newsletters
- Market reports
Lead nurturing can be hard work, but when done well it can monumentally increase the chances of converting a customer. Always put the prospect front and centre, working together to develop a relationship throughout your engagement.
If you want to know more about B2B sales and marketing activities, including lead nurturing, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
