Is Your Lead Generation Strategy Back To Front?

Lead generation is a major driving force behind any online strategy to acquire new customers. The industry term has been shortened to 'lead-gen'.

Most businesses go about lead generation the wrong way. They start with the question: What do I sell and how can I get leads interested in it? When they should be asking: What is that my customers want and how can I give it to them?

Your Customers Know What Your Prospects Want

Use the knowledge of your existing customer base to give you lead generation tips. They were drawn to you for concrete reasons and they stay with you for concrete reasons. Ask them why. Ask them what else they would like. Provide easy access for them to talk to you (via blogs, forums, twitter, facebook, email feedback surveys).

You can also ask your loyal customers to be part of your lead generation. Give them content to publish on their own networking sites. Ask them to include you as part of their (relevant) existing social media structures. Where existing customers go, qualified leads will also be.

Get your keywords right

This is so crucial. Don't try and compete on keywords that are sewn up by massive business or government websites if you are not in that league. Don't try and mash irrelevant keywords into your site just because there is an opportunity to exploit them.

You might get high traffic but you will get just as high bounce rates and then those people are likely never to return.

Lead generation happens online when genuine people searching for genuine answers (results, products, information) find genuine sites that provide them. Your keywords must match what your prospects are searching for. And they must match the actual content of your site and strengths of your business.

Give People Something To Do

Lead generation is an interaction of offers and acceptances. Think of it as a tennis rally. Your prospect asks a question (via search engines). You answer it (via keywords and a landing page). Your prospect scans your page for information and relevance. You provide easy to read content and opportunities for immediate actions that promise more good things. Your prospect follows through with the action. You follow through with your promise. And so it goes.

The internet is a very active space. People are searching, they are on the move. Make your landing page an extension of their search action. They may not be ready to buy straight away but you need to give them a compelling reason to engage:

• Free, valuable information
• An offer of your product or service at a free or discounted rate
• Industry reports, statistics, trends
• DIY tips on screen, paper, audio or video (so they can try before they buy)

Your prospect has an itch. Lead generation is about scratching- and then soothing - that itch. Whatever you do, make sure the action you are asking your prospect to take is easy and safe.

Show That You Can Solve Their Problem

You have between 5 and 10 seconds, one a prospect lands on your page, to prove your worth. The good news is, they are in a positive frame of mind. They clicked your link or ad because it looked promising. Now they are there - deliver on the promise.

Provide bold, clear content that can be scanned for a first read, then delved into deeper once the prospect feels confident.

Be specific. If you really don't provide what they are looking for you don't want them there. They're not a qualified lead. Good keyword research should cut out a lot of this problem but your landing page content must nail it.

Speak in their language. Answer their questions. Solve their problem - or show that you have the mettle to do so. Get this step right and your lead generation will blossom and grow.

Focus on giving rather than taking

Don't expect big things on a first visit. Lead generation is about beginning a constructive and mutually beneficial relationship. Ultimately, you want a prospect to become a customer but you cannot expect this until they have got to know you a little bit and feel they can trust your:

• Credentials
• Authority
• Reputation
• Product

For more advice on how to give before you take, check out opt in strategies.