10 STEPS TO GENERATING MORE QUALIFIED LEADS

1. Sell the next step harder than you sell your product or service.

The whole objective of lead generation programs is to begin the sales process, not to complete it. Your initial direct mail or e-mail should push for action on the next step – sending for more information, a free sample, a free analysis. Once you have qualified prospects, you can concentrate on a full presentation of product benefits, features, and applications.

2. Once is not enough.

Give suspects more than a single time to qualify themselves. No matter how intrusive your direct mail package, email, print ad or online ad, your target may miss it the first time around. Give prospects multiple opportunities to say “Yes” to your offer – whether that means getting additional information, a price quote, or a call/visit from your sales representative. The more narrowly defined your market, the more time you have to spend on each prospect.

3. Don’t make it TOO easy to reply…

If you want more QUALIFIED leads, ask more questions. Simply asking prospects to hit “Reply” to your e-mail may not qualify them. Ask your prospects to fill in just a few lines of information and you’ll boost the quality of your response without damaging quantity.

4. Let your prospects tell you how serious they are.

Allow several options on your response form – ranging from “Have your representative call me immediately” to “No interest now. Call me in six months.” Even the “no interest now” respondents are prospects.

5. Plan separate creative strategies and offers for different levels of decision-makers.

Even if you’re prospecting within a specific industry, copy and offer – and sometimes graphics – must change by function and by the objective of your communication. The highly technical approach you make to the head of the IT department will not work in addressing the CEO. And the CEO’s possible interest in your product/service will differ from the CFO’s.

6. Understand the “hot button.”

Executives are much more often concerned about their time than about saving a few dollars. Direct mail/e-mail efforts that don’t demand a lot of time and that demonstrate how the product/service can pay back hours works well to management segments. If the savings are enormous, that’s a different story. And the best story is getting the recipient to believe responding is the first step in MAKING BIG MONEY. Middle managers may be more concerned about preservation (of their jobs) and about making a safe, unquestionable choice.

7. Use testimonials and case histories.

Aside from the credibility they imbue, they provide the prospect with applications and usage guidance. Large corporations should select testimonials or case histories that emphasize the company’s ability to provide fast, personal service. Smaller marketers should use endorsements reflecting on the company’s strength and stability. Include testimonials which underscore how customers were rewarded by finding out more when they were prospects.

8. Include a “keeper” in your mailings…

… particularly if you’re planning only one mailing. We all want response immediately, but in most cases (98%?) recipients have no need to respond at the moment. Give them something to remember you by after the “advertising” portion of your mailing has been discarded. It could be anything from a wallet-size calendar or tips for saving time or improving energy to a pad of post-it notes with your company’s name on them.

9. Use premiums judiciously.

The right premium increases response to your lead-generation efforts, and may even lower your cost per response. It also maintains conversions to appointments and sales. But overemphasizing the premium can bring you response from “freebie junkies.” Select premiums with obvious value, but not enough value to be a bribe.

10.Transform gatekeepers into advocates.

If you’re mailing to upper management types, be aware that most of their mail is still screened by administrative assistants. To get your message on top of the pile (instead of in the circular file), address a message to the screeners.