Getting Started with Lead Nurturing
Once you are gathering quality leads, you need to develop them to make a sale. The whole process is call lead nurturing, it’s the crucial next step after lead generation.
In our previous blog posts we’ve covered lead generation, you can catch up here:
What is Lead Nurturing?
Lead Nurturing means supporting consumers at each stage of the buyer’s journey. It’s about encouraging your leads to become paying customers.
Lead nurturing typically involves using marketing and communication to promote consumers to make a purchase. This involves listening to their wants and providing the information and answers to their questions.
Businesses are positively influencing their buying decision, through popular tactics like targeted content (for example, through email and eBooks) and timely follow-ups to provide support for potential buyers.
Nurturing your leads until they become paying customers is crucial, according to Marketo, around 50% of leads In any system are not ready to buy!
A staggering 80% of new leads never become sales! Therefore, it’s important businesses nail their lead nurturing strategy to maximise profits and convert consumers to buyers.
Top Tips for Lead Nurturing
1. Prompt Contact
Once a consumer has shown interest in your products or services, it’s important you contact them as soon as possible because:
A. You don’t want a competitor to have reached them first
B. You don’t want them to forget they enquired and discard your communication
Contacting your leads right away shows you’re professional and ready to help. It prevents the lead getting old and the consumer no longer wanting your services.
2. Build a Relationship
Consumers will only buy off businesses that they know and trust. Lead nurturing is a fantastic opportunity to show how your business is a market leader in your industry and that you know your products / services inside out. The more knowledge you demonstrate when nurturing a lead, the more likely consumers are to trust you and convert.
3. Be Consistent, Not Persistent
It’s important not to look desperate, nagging consumers who have shown interest but are clearly no longer interested will just put them off you even further. In addition, you could get a bad reputation for being annoying …
However, consistent communication will ensure you remain at the forefront of consumer’s minds and will help you to build a stable relationship. It’s important you start out how you intend to go ahead, remember first impressions are key.
4. Don’t be Afraid to Ask Questions
Showing a genuine interest in your leads will show them you want to understand exactly how to help them. The more you understand about them, the greater you can help them. Ask them what they’re looking for, what products or services have caught their eye and why. You might even be able to suggest alternate products or services better suited to their needs.
Whilst doing so, you could learn more about your target market and how to better promote your brand.
5. Encourage Consumers to Pass on the Message
Lead nurturing opens doors for more consumers. Share content with your leads and remind them they’re more than welcome to pass it on. You might want to offer incentives, for example: refer a friend and if you both make a purchase you get 20% your next order. Word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool and your business should be taken advantage of it.
Lead nurturing cannot result in anything but positives for a business. It promotes your products to people who want to hear about them. It’s about offering a helping hand to customers who haven’t yet made a conversion, you help them along the way.
If you have any questions, you can ask us in the comment section below.
Why not check out our Digital Marketing Terms Glossary?
About the author:
Marie Harwood is a Digital Marketing Assistant at Different Gravy Digital, Hale, Cheshire.
Different Gravy Digital are a full service Digital Marketing Agency operating in the Hospitality & Leisure, Financial Services, Legal & Property sectors. Products and services range from; 3D & 360° Tours, Website Design & Build, Social Media, Video Production, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Content Creation, Email Marketing, Online Feedback / Review Systems and Paid Advertising (Google, Bing and Social Media).
Contact Details:
marie@differentgravydigital.co.uk
0161 706 0004
120a Ashley Road, Hale, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA14 2UN