One question I get asked an awful lot is what’s the best way of generating leads? and my answer is usually the same. It depends on your product/service, market, company etc. etc.
The variable above can change, but I always say “Integrate to succeed”.
All companies that are successful in lead generation will admit that they utilise different facets of the marketing mix to achieve their results. This may be advertising, internet marketing and telesales, or a combination of any other forms of marketing.
Getting through to high level decision makers is challenging. Getting a positive response from them is even more challenging. Carefully timed multi touched campaigns are much more effective than single isolated campaigns. There are many illusive contacts that may not respond by mail or telephone, but require email or contact through the web site. Other prospects will only respond to personal telephone calls from knowledgeable and skilled sales people. Why limit the response you can get from your marketing effort and budget? It makes sense to use a multi-faceted approach and integrate your most successful methods.
The rule of thumb is that the more forms of marketing that are used effectively within a campaign, the better the results. For many companies it may not be realistic to use all forms of marketing, they don’t have an unlimited budget. Getting the balance between expenditure and results right is key.
Next time you are planning a lead generation campaign, think about using different communication methods and include online and social media into the mix.
