Four Proven Business to Business Lead Generation Tips

The best way to drive business to business lead generation is through gated offers for content relevant to your prospects looking to solve problems or take advantage of opportunities. Here are Four Proven Business to Business Lead Generation Tips.

The key is to have a process in place to make that happen. Here we lay out the steps to follow to put a lead generation program in place.

Before we jump in to the process let’s first define gated and un-gated content.

Gated Content: Content that is only available after a user takes and action, typically sharing some information through a form. It might also be that the user is required to share a link on a social network to gain access.
Un-Gated Content: Content available on your site that does not require the user to share information via a form or social sharing.

There are many reasons to gate or un-gate content and what pieces of content you choose for each will be dependent upon your strategy. A good marketing strategy will have a mix of both with a blog usually used to share un-gated content and more specific and detailed information in whitepapers and ebooks available as gated content.

Business to Business Lead Generation Tips

The components that we’ll cover include creating valuable gated content, a call-to-action, a landing page and a thank you page.

1. Create Valuable Gated Content

   We’ve already defined gated and un-gated content. The next step to consider is value. Your goal isn’t to get a visitor to simply download one piece of content, rather its to first get them to share some basic information with their initial download. Then continue to further develop the lead through subsequent downloads. Each subsequent download requires the visitor to supply additional information.

   If the first piece of content they download does not provide value, you will likely never get them to download a second, third or fourth piece of content. The visitor has to feel that they received good value for sharing their personal information.

2. Create Visible Call-to-Actions

   Once you’ve developed your content you need to provide a pathway for your website visitor to connect to and access the content. In essence this is an ad on your website or blog that makes the visitor aware that you are offering to share a valuable piece of content. (at the bottom of this post you can see an example).

   Here are some CTA Best Practices…

   • Headline that clearly explains offer and begins with an action verb. The action verb (“Download”, “Register”, “Sign Up”) begins to set the stage by explaining what will take place by completing the action.
   • Copy that explains why the visitor should take the action and the benefits of doing so. It must be compelling, easy to understand and honest in terms of what the visitor will get. This isn’t the place to sell, but rather begin educating.
   • Clearly identify the next step. Usually this is a button with copy directing your user to take the next step. The button should match your site branding but be presented in a contrasting color to stand out. Contrast is more important than the actual color of the button.

3. Create Landing Pages To Collect Contact Information

   After clicking on the CTA the next step is to take visitors to an offer specific landing page. This page will explain your offer and allow you to capture a lead if they complete the form to access your offer.

   Each offer on your site should have it’s own landing page that is targeted to the visitor using content and images that appeal to your visitor. Your landing page needs to immediately reinforce your CTA’s offer and further explain the offer and the value the visitor will receive by accessing it.

   Elements of a Great Landing Page…

   • Benefit Oriented Headline: Lets the visitor know exactly what they will get.
   • Clear and Concise Copy: Your copy should incentivize the visitor to complete the form by highlighting the offer with a brief paragraph or two and bullet points.
   • Relevant Image: If your offer is a ebook or whitepaper consider using a copy of the cover for your image.
   • The Form: The amount of fields on your form should match the value of your offer. For initial visitors you might consider asking for name, email and a qualifying question such as “their role in company”, “company size” or some other qualifying piece of content. For existing leads (they have already downloaded at least one offer), you might ask further clarifying questions.

   One item not on this list is your website navigation. Be sure to not include it on your landing page. It will only be a distraction and you want your visitor to either complete the offer or exit the landing page.

4. Create Thank You Pages That Deliver on Your Promise

   This is the end of this conversion process where you provide the offer to your new lead. You want to be clear on how you will deliver the offer. If the offer is available through a download link be sure to make it clear. If you will be emailing the offer, be sure to state when and how they will recieve the offer (time, date, method, etc.).

   This is also a great time to highlight additional content or offers that are relevant to your visitor. And don’t forget to provide options to share the offer to your new leads social media network.

These four lead generation tips will help get you started generating more leads for your business. If you have more lead generation tips you would like to share, submit them in our comments section below. And, if you enjoyed this post please throw us a bone by sharing it with others who might gain value from reading this post.