Are You Making These Lead Generation Mistakes?
Here are four big mistakes entrepreneurs often make, and how they can be solved.
Generating leads without a call to action is like having a romantic engagement dinner without popping the question.
In order to drive your sales up, you need more customers. In order to get more customers, you need to generate more leads. Okay, so far so good. The problem is, it’s very possible that, in your eagerness to generate more leads, you can fall prey to making certain mistakes that will have the opposite result.
Fortunately, there are a series of mistakes that are common enough that we can identify them and not only warn entrepreneurs against them, but also give some ideas on how to solve them. Here are four big ones.
Big Marketing To-Do, No Call To Action
Imagine, if you will, that a guy puts together an unforgettable date for his girl because he wants to propose to her. He buys himself some sharp new clothes and gets himself all duded up. He buys an amazing engagement ring. He makes reservations at the best restaurant in town. There are flowers, a limo, singing waiters, champagne, everything the romantically-minded could ever hope for. She is totally wowed. Then the date is over and hey, he forgot to actually pop the question!
You can pull out all the stops you want, but if you don’t include a call to action, then you’ve simply given people an entertaining little show, after which they simply wander off. If you’re pouring everything you have into a lead generating campaign, then you better conclude it with a clear call to action.
You Don’t Know Who Your Audience Is
The article "Common Online Lead Generation Mistakes That Are Draining Your Finances" points out that some marketers are so fixated on leads, leads, leads, that they forget that those leads are actual people, and they come in all shapes, sizes, and mindsets. If marketers don’t take into consideration the unique needs of different groups that may be targeted, then it will be a wasted effort. Millennials may be interested in different things than Baby Boomers, for instance.
That’s why, before you start, you need to decide who you’re going after and why. In other words, take aim and acquire a target before pulling the trigger.
Putting All Eggs In One Basket
Yes, lead generation is important, but you can’t simply rely on just one tactic to get them. Say you decide that cold calling is the best way to generate leads (spoiler alert: it isn’t). If your entire campaign revolves around a sustained campaign of cold calling, you are going to be severely disappointed.
When embarking on a lead generation campaign, mix it up. You don’t have to get rid of cold calling altogether, but supplement it with email blasts, text messaging, direct mail, or a booth at the conference/convention. Put a little variety into things!
Creating A Bad First Impression
Once upon a time, a mouthwash commercial warned us "You never get a second chance to make a first impression". Wise words from the world of oral hygiene. Even though some people out there jump all over anyone who dares correct the spelling and grammar of social network posters, those same people, upon reading a company’s ad copy that’s filled with errors and misspellings, will call them out for not being professional.
Despite the apparent double-standard, it’s a somewhat legitimate expectation. After all, a business should have its act together well enough that all of their copy is accurate and well-rendered, their links work, and their images are clear and set correctly.
So make sure that’s the case. Let a second set of eyes see your copy, and test all the links. Everything must work correctly and look good too. Otherwise, you come off as amateurish and unprofessional.
Keep these mistakes in mind and steer clear of them. You won’t be disappointed. If you want some more insights into lead generation, check out "Generating Leads? Before You Do Anything, Here Is Where You Need To Start".
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