3 Mistakes to Avoid in B2B Marketing Lead Generation

Marketing Tools & Tips

The business-to-business (B2B) landscape can be a difficult one to navigate — especially in the digital age. Social media has made it easier for just about anyone to become an opinion leader, making the information out there vast, conflicting and confusing.  Making your content stand out amid all this noise is a huge challenge, especially when it comes to B2B marketing lead generation and lead nurturing. 10dRSP.SlMa_.91

Understanding your B2B marketing lead generation landscape

To maximize sales opportunities, it is important to understand your market landscape.  Before you even start developing content or communicating with your prospects, you need to make sure you:

Once you have done these three things, the lead generation and nurturing process can begin.  Sounds easy right? But many marketers get caught making common mistakes during this process.

3 most common mistakes marketers make with lead nurturing

Mistake #1: Come Find Me

Acquiring customers is like finding your life partner. You have to put yourself out there, identify prospects, get them to love you, and then continuously work on nurturing the relationship. Too many B2B companies expect customers to find them. The truth is, they won’t.

Best Practice #1:  Pursue Your Customers

Show them the value you provide by establishing two-way communication. If you wait for customers, you will end up waiting forever. Thanks to the Internet, customers now have access to ample amounts of conflicting information when deciding on a purchase, so use this to your advantage.

Social Media Lead Nurturing

Mistake #2: You Are All the Same!

Too many companies implement a one-size-fits all technique. STOP! Let’s step back and think about this. Are the needs of a fashion company the same as those of a financial firm? While both are probably located in New York City, the answer is no. So, don’t treat everyone the same. The old adage that you can’t be everything to everyone is absolutely true here.

Best Practice #2:  Segment, Segment, Segment

When developing online marketing campaigns, be sure to segment. Segment by not only industry, but also by each company’s stage in the marketing funnel.

By defining a clear audience, your chances of running a successful campaign increase. Content that engages your prospect and resonates with them will yield promising results. B2B Marketing Landscape

Mistake #3: Old is Gold

Old might be gold, and there could very well be proven marketing channels that still work with your target audience.  But too often, marketers rely on the same old content and channels and then wonder why they aren’t getting higher quality or quantity of leads.  Is email marketing not working? Then stop using it.  Or maybe you are still depending on that same old list company in spite of a .0001% conversion rate.  Are banner ads just not getting the click throughs anymore?  Re-evaluate every marketing channel and put some clear metrics around each, so you know which ones are performing and which ones need to be turned off.

Best Practice #3: New is Platinum

New marketing channels are constantly entering the mix. Once you’ve segmented your target audience, identify which platforms they are on, and go for it. It’s also a good idea to research where your competitors are, as chances are they are going after the same type of people. Social media has become the most influential source of customer research and even purchasing decisions. If you are still asking whether or not you need to be on social media, the answer is YES! Your customers are there, and you must be. Thinking_Guy1 A couple things to keep in mind in choosing new channels:

B2B is really H2H

Just remember: At the end of the day, even B2B is H2H (human to human) .  No matter what your channel or your message, your marketing must focus on building relationships.

Manpreet Kalra

Manpreet Kalra is a Digital Marketing Superhero at Rival IQ. Her superpowers span the digital universe - she can often be seen doing 50 things at once while posting a 140-character Tweet about it. Originally from Silicon Valley, her startup journey began in 2008 while working for Togetherville, which was later acquired by the Walt Disney Company. She went on to work as a portfolio Marketing Advisor at Stockford Limited, a UK-based VC firm. Manpreet is also the Co-Founder and Editor-In-Chief of Kaurista, a niche online lifestyle magazine for South Asian women. While she does love superhero capes, Manpreet is more typically seen wearing her raincoat, hiking boots or fleece, all appropriate hero attire for her new home of Seattle.

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