The Ultimate Guide to Generating B2B Leads

B2B sales leads are vital contacts that sales teams can actively pursue. Effectively generating these leads, which can convert into clients, is challenging but fundamental for outpacing competitors and achieving business growth. In fact, 85% of B2B marketers find lead generation their top challenge.

But generating leads is only half the battle. The quality of leads is equally important; simply increasing lead quantity without ensuring their relevance may lead to wasted marketing spend and effort. For optimal results, we recommend employing marketing automation strategies and explore tools like Beach Marketing’s Sonar platform to enhance your quality lead generation efforts.

Sales thrive on building relationships, therefore solely depending on your website, blog, or videos for lead generation is risky. For example, if a prospect emails to ask a question about a specific feature of your product or service, rather then just directing them to your FAQ’s, personally address their query and suggest a quick phone or video call to demonstrate the features. This approach fosters a more personal connection and can lead to better conversion rates.

Building a precise list of B2B leads is pivotal for generating new business contacts. Such lists enable targeting potential buyers effectively via cold emails. However, the quality of lead databases varies, often containing outdated or irrelevant information. Working with a B2B lead generation agency, like us, provides you with access to 90 million contacts in the B2B space. Combined with our marketing automation platform, Sonar, allows you to effectively target contact segments with features like email automation, smart filtering, multi-channel outreach, and tools for A/B testing marketing strategies.

Ensure any cold emails are customised by using merge tags. These tags substitute placeholders with specific details like the recipient’s first name or company name, making each email appear tailor-made for the individual. This level of personalisation significantly increases the likelihood of receiving a response. You can utilise this feature with Sonar.

We’ve all received a cold call, and although these are sometimes effective, calling prospects are much more effective when the lead is warm. Warm calling is when you call a lead that has visited your website, downloaded a lead magnet, or engaged with your content.

Marketing automation platforms, like Sonar is a great tool for nurturing leads through the buying cycle. It allows you to target segment customers with specific messages that strikes the heart of their challenges and pain points, gradually persuading them to trust your brand and make an action. These B2B leads are then converted to Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs) by the sales team.

Our outbound automation software will help you personalise emails at scale and nurture leads into SQLs automatically.

See how Sonar can transform your B2B lead gen and marketing automation strategy. Request a demo.

Did you know that 42% of website visitors prefer live chat for customer support questions?

Live chat tools are another feature you can use on Sonar to engage with your B2B customers immediately. You can set up these chats to capture email addresses, and nurture those leads to generate more B2B sales leads.

87% of B2B decision-makers review online feedback before making a purchase. Generating more sales leads is likely when your customers leave positive reviews. Use Sonar to set up an online review campaign and target customers after they’ve used your product or service.

LinkedIn offers lead generation ads where you can collect email addresses. But these are only as good as the content you promote.

Talk to us about Social Media Marketing for expert guidance on generating leads through LinkedIn.

Boosting traffic through paid ads is straightforward but can become complex and costly, depending on your sector and competition. To effectively target B2B sales leads, focus on keyword search volume and user intent.

Use remarketing tools like Sonar or set up on Google Ads to display ads to visitors who have previously been on your website. For instance, if a visitor viewed a specific page, you could show them a related case study. Additionally, you could promote an email subscription to provide more detailed information on the topic they are interested in.

More traffic means more leads. Use search engine optimisation (SEO) to get your website to the top of search results. Target keywords people enter to describe your service or product. But converting traffic into leads means you need to set up lead capturing on the landing page.

Search engines, like Google continuously update their algorithms to provide search users with the answers they’re looking for. We always recommend producing high-quality content that provides value to get to the top. But there’s more metrics you need to satisfy than producing content, so talk to our SEO experts for search engine success.

When someone clicks your link from a keyword search or Google Ad, direct them to a specific landing page tailored to their search intent. This landing page should provide the precise solution they’re searching for and include compelling calls to action (CTA) with a form for visitors to provide their contact details.

Blogs, articles, infographics, videos and more should provide rich and engaging content that your audience want to read. Content marketing is effective at building trust with your prospects and is designed to encourage them to make a positive action. For content rich with value, talk to us at Beach.

Webinars are a great way to attract visitors to a website or business. Creating a report or guide on a subject can generate interest from future customers and is an opportunity to obtain B2B leads.

White papers, e-books, and other downloadable documents make great lead magnets, because prospects exchange their contact details to gain access. You should use marketing automation platforms like Sonar, to nurture these leads through the buying cycle.

When customers enjoy a positive experience, they’re more likely to recommend your business to others, generating B2B sales leads. Set up referral programmes for your existing customers. For best results, offer an incentive to refer.

B2B lead generation is a game changer for increasing those all-important sales targets. Employing the strategies outlined, from enhancing personal connections to leveraging advanced digital tools, will ensure a steady pipeline of quality leads. Remember, the ultimate goal is not just to generate leads, but to foster meaningful relationships that convert into long-term business growth.