Not all prospects are 'ready to buy'. However, these prospects have to be kept engaged, if you want them to ultimately buy your product. And keeping them engaged is all about conveying the right messages at the right time, to make them choose you. And this is what 'lead nurturing' is all about. From the time you identify a prospect, till the time they are convinced that your product is what they need, you have to keep their attention with a series of time-appropriate messages.
Often, in marketing, inappropriate or untimely communication may lead to a leaky sales funnel, which can increase your customer acquisition costs, and make your marketing efforts ineffective. And this is why mature marketing processes try to plug these gaps with suitable lead nurturing programs. While this is easier said than done, with marketing automation entering the arena, lead nurturing programs have become much simpler to design and launch. However, rolling out an effective lead nurturing program still rests in your hands, because you need to employ the right channels, send out the right messages at the right time.
So, here is a list of best practices to be followed at each stage of the sales cycle, which have proven to be highly effective in lead nurturing and sales conversion:
Stage 1: Creating the First Impression
Typically, you do not have much control over how you get introduced to your prospects. They may be introduced through friends, your website or other sources. However, you can to a large extent influence them by looking attractive to them. And here are the steps to follow to be successful at this stage:
- Identify your prospects and understand their needs.
- Help your prospects to build awareness. Provide the information they are looking for. You can do this by creating thought leadership, eBooks, and sharing them with prospects.
These steps help you create a deeper relationship with prospects who will surely remember you when they make a purchase decision.
Stage 2: Reinforcing Your Brand
Once your prospects are introduced to you, it is important to keep their attention with timely messages. Remember that you have to assist them in gaining knowledge about your market. So follow these steps for the best results:
- Share whitepapers
- Create and share videos/demos about your brand and value proposition- but keep them short
- Develop case studies and share your success stories
These steps allow you to create a better brand image among prospects, and set you apart from your competitors by demonstrating why they should choose you.
Stage 3: Upholding Your Brand Image
By the time you reach this stage, you have already created a good level of interest for your brand, among prospects. Your focus here should be on maintaining this interest till you steer them to the next stage. While too many messages at this stage can ruin the relationship, well-planned, controlled communication can come a long way in influencing prospects' purchase decision:
- Share third-party information
- Schedule webinars with prospects
- Personalize your messages
By following the above steps, you can strengthen your relationship and enhance your brand image.
Stage 4: Closing the Deal
By now you already have indications of whether your prospect is 'purchase ready'. If they are, then the time is ripe to propose a deal. You can send out a Request for Proposal (RFP) form, which the prospects can respond to. At this time the sales team can take over from you and start making outbound calls.
- Follow-up with personal email messages
- Use customer references
- Offer a free trial
These measures can assure you a high percentage of conversion. Any delay at this stage can cost you your prospects. So be prompt, and strike the deal!
In going through the above stages, marketing automation software can be of immense help. A marketing automation platform can simplify these stages by automating the time-consuming tasks carried out by the marketing team. It is highly scalable and performs several activities including campaign management, lead scoring and analytics functions. So, by leveraging marketing automation along with the above-mentioned best practices, you can achieve remarkable results as well as better ROI.
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