Leads, Leads, Leads...Quality Over Quantity

One of the biggest "issues" I hear about from marketers is regarding lead generation. One of the biggest "issues" I hear about from fellow sales people is regarding lead generation.

Here are some great tips for helping both sales AND marketing increase lead quality. Yes, quality; not quantity. Read on to learn more and ways BPI Media Group's various solutions can help along the way of helping to find leads, reach out to them, lure them in and communicate with them 1:1.

1. Agree. When sales and marketing agree upon what is meant by a lead (and a qualified lead at that), then you're well on your way to a happier team and the potential for more revenue for your company. (For more reading on sales and marketing alignment, click here.) Once you identify the demographic(s) of who an "ideal" lead might be, then you're well on your way to this agreement. BPI's data mining solution can definitely help you in identifying the categories of folks who are your best buyers, potential buyers and rule out those who just plain aren't interested. Read more.

2. Dig Deeper. Once you've agreed upon and identified what constitutes a qualified lead or an ideal customer/prospect, you'll gain an understanding of the demographic profile of this group, subgroup, etc. This provides you with a benchmark by which you can score and measure other potential leads. Data mining can also be highly beneficial in this area as well. You can monitor your leads and new customers to see how trends in the demographics may change and restructure your marketing message accordingly.

3. Observe and Record. Once you've launched a campaign to your qualified prospects, you'll need to closely monitor the behavior of these leads to see exactly to what they're responding. Was it an email for this segment? Was it a coupon for this segment? Was it direct mail for this segment or maybe even a QR code? This will help you better market to these types of prospects on future or ongoing campaigns. For more details about executing these types of campaigns, drop me a note, and I'd love to discuss in depth to create a plan that's right for you, your sales team and your prospects.

4. Track. While you're nurturing your lead with campaigns, collateral and possibly even calls from your sales team, don't forget the importance of tracking the results. BPI's only dashboard is beyond perfect for this. If you do an integrated campaign (combine print and web), you'll have access to your own dashboard for every campaign where you have record of your prospects' activities and can pass on those warm leads to the appropriate sales region or rep automatically. To see more about how this works, click here. I can also share some case studies with you if you'd like...just ask!

5. Respond. When using the real-time dashboard, you will see how quickly you get an email notifying you of a prospect's activity. Strike while the iron is hot and reach out to that lead while the getting is good!

6. Follow Up. This is an extension of #1 above. Marketing needs to follow up with sales to make sure they're reaching out to those "hot" leads, and sales needs to follow up with marketing to let them know what's working. This can usually be done through a CRM (we love salesforce!) where leads and sales activity are recorded. BPI's integrated campaigns and dashboard sync seamlessly with salesforce to make this even easier for both departments.

For more reading on "6 Surefire Ways to Increase Your Lead Quality", click here. This is just the tip of the iceberg, and BPI Media Group would love to hear from you and explore how our solutions of marketing, printing, design, campaign execution, mail and data management can help you not only generate qualified leads but also convert them to repeat customers.

Until next time...Elizabeth

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