In our previous post we discussed Generating Leads through Marketing. Now, let’s talk about nurturing those leads. Nurturing leads is extremely important because it is the next step to securing actual customers from the leads you’ve generated. And it can work to continue a positive trajectory or stop and redirect a negative trajectory. More on that in a minute.
Essentially, lead nurturing is the process of cultivating leads that are not yet ready to buy. Successful lead nurturing anticipates the buyer’s needs based on who they are (using profile characteristics and behaviors which can include title, role, industry, etc.) and where they are in the actual buying process.
Great information! But now what? How do you utilize that information, once you have it?
There are many ways to nurture a lead towards becoming a customer. Here are some examples, in order of process:
Define Your Audience and Segment within that audience. If working with companies, remember they often have more than one type of customer.
Hold the sales pitch for later - offer something of value first (targeted information is priceless and much appreciated). This helps engage the potential customer.
Set Objectives and Goals for each email, mailing or social media post – what are you trying to achieve?
Set Up a Timeline for your lead communication (emails/social media posts/mailings, calls)
Evaluate Your Success and optimize or adjust strategies to reach your goal.
Using marketing for lead nurturing allows you to tell your story. If you need to grow beyond referrals, it is time to increase your customer base with targeted messaging, to streamline your efforts, and save valuable time and resources.
If you’re on a stalled or have declining sales and need to redirect, a marketing company such as a Dose of Insight can help with assessing your current business marketing model and refocus your strategy (aka ‘redirect the narrative’) in order to retain your existing and engage potential customers. During the recent pandemic, a lot of small businesses found their growth stalled or halted altogether; changes in their current marketing strategy were key to them sustaining or even growing their businesses during that challenging time.
As you can see, marketing is a valuable tool to grow your leads and turn them into customers. If you have questions on how to build your customer base, a Dose of Insight can help. Contact us – we’d love to hear from you and help you grow!