Mixing the world of romance with lead generation may sound mad, but they are surprisingly linked. Online dating is especially popular these days, and, just like lead generation, what you put in is what you get out. If you take to Tinder, sure, you’ll get a date for Valentine’s Day, but they’re probably won’t be a relationship that follows. However, if you’ve spent the last few weeks chatting with a specific someone on eHarmony, that Valentine’s Day first date may be the start of something special.
As with lead generation, if you put the time and effort into cultivating a relationship, the rewards will be so much greater than if you go for the one-off cold-calling approach, hoping for a quick win.
There are a few key factors that can maximise your opportunities, both in marketing and in matters of the heart – and by applying these five golden rules of successful lead generation, you might just be in with a chance of wooing your Valentine!
One of the most important first steps to a solid lead generation programme is understanding your target audience inside and out. You need to know when and why your prospects buy, where they make those purchases, and what type of language they respond to best. This knowledge will help you connect with them effectively and generate far more responses than if you took a generic ‘one size fits all’ approach.
The same goes for dating. If you want your Valentine to become a long-term partner, you’re going to have to put in some effort to find out what makes them tick. Online dating is actually brilliant for this. Instead of targeting the masses by walking into a pub and hoping for the best, try nurturing a relationship online or by phone – which gives you time to learn lots about the person before you take the plunge and meet them. Just as with lead generation, if you do your research and your wooing beforehand you’ll be strides ahead when you’re ready to move things forward.
Without this, we’re sad to say that there’s no hope of a successful relationship. After the first flutters of excitement have disappeared, you have to be able to communicate. That goes for lead generation and dating.
You could have the best product – a product that instantly excites people as soon as you tell them about it. However, if you can’t communicate effectively on a long-term basis with that audience, the relationship will break down. (This links strongly to the research you’ve done to gain understanding.)
A word of warning here though, whether in lead generation or dating: if you’re finding communication is just not working, then maybe your target market is all wrong. In this case, it’s back to the drawing board… or dating site!
Another must for any relationship – romantic or business! And the big no-no is going for the hard sell. Marketo suggests that approximately 96% of website visitors aren’t ready to purchase, so while you need to persuade them, what is also needed is the respect to give them the time and space they need to decide for themselves.
Checking in occasionally is fine, just so they know you’re still there and interested, but nobody wants to be bombarded with texts, phone calls or emails trying to convince them to buy the latest new and improved solar panels… or to go on the next date. This is a sure-fire way to get radio silence. The fine line of knowing when to gently and respectfully pursue or to move on is crucial.
In lead generation, you need to have clear long-term aspirations for the relationship between yourself and your prospect from the start. There’s no point in building a relationship with a prospect if it won’t have any positive long-term effects for either party. Sometimes this can involve admitting some hard truths when things aren’t quite going the way you’d hoped, especially when you’ve invested a lot of time already.
And, unless you’re a Tinder junkie, the same applies to relationships. Yes, you’ve got a better chance of having mutual long-term aspirations if you’ve put in the time and effort to get to know someone, but sometimes it just doesn’t go where you think it will – that’s when it’s time to cut your losses.
When you strike gold and get the lead you want or that special relationship you’ve been looking for, don’t let the love die. It can be easy to get lazy and start to take things for granted, but in the end, all this will lead to is an unhappy relationship – or no relationship at all.
Once your lead generation programme has provided the fruits of your labour, you need to continue to nurture each and every one of your leads or customers. This includes superb customer service and after-sales service, plus the odd little surprise or two that they won’t be expecting!
Take the same approach with your relationship (albeit with a slightly more romantic tilt to it!) and the love will last forever – hopefully!
Aren’t we a romantic bunch here at Shortlist?! We hope that by following these five golden rules of lead generation, you’ll soon be quids in with your Valentine. Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!
While these nuggets of helpful relationship advice are a bit of a one-off for us, we do run highly successful lead generation campaigns, check out some of our other blogs and take a look at some of our case studies to get more of an understanding of what we do! Fill out your details here, Or give us a call to chat on 0115 882 0116 to get in touch.