How To(s) relating to Sales Lead Generation

Summary: The right webinar promotion strategy can be the difference between a lackluster event and a lead generation bonanza.

We spoke with a team that's covering all the bases with a templated webinar communication plan that's driving live-event attendance and contributing to long-term lead generation. See how they combine outbound and automated email, a clever "refer-a-friend" campaign and an on-demand viewing option that's capturing contact info from 55% of viewers. continue...

Summary: Launching new products and designing marketing campaigns that stand out would be much easier if you knew your competitors’ plans. While they are unlikely to send you a blueprint, there are ways you can gain insight.

Check out these five tactics we gleaned from a competitive intelligence expert with more than 15 years of experience. We include tactics for interviewing customers, listening at industry conferences, and monitoring public information. We also explain why you should keep your strategy honest. continue...

Summary: Marketers frequently cite LinkedIn as one of the most valuable social networks to incorporate in a marketing strategy. But even marketers who have LinkedIn on their radar screens still wonder how to participate. What works, what doesn’t, and what should you expect?

We asked a marketer who is using LinkedIn for lead generation, to share his lessons on joining groups, sharing marketing collateral, and qualifying the leads that come through the channel. continue...

Summary: For the second consecutive year, we’ve gotten an exclusive look at new data that highlights how B2B marketers use telemarketing in their lead generation strategies.

This article underlines five insights from this year’s survey that show how marketers are adapting their strategies for the recession -- and which factors are critical to the success of telemarketing programs. continue...

Summary: Promotional products can enhance campaign results by getting people to act. Discover 6 strategies Xerox uses to incorporate promotional products effectively into direct-marketing campaigns. This how-to includes tips for choosing the right promotional consultant. continue...

Summary: Lead scoring helps marketers rank and identify the best prospects. But assigning scores requires the sales team's input.

Here is how one marketer worked closely with the sales team to set up and refine a lead- scoring system. Six strategies, including:
o Defining a sales-ready lead
o Establishing scores for different activities
o Testing your methodology
o Refining a system through ongoing collaboration continue...

Summary: Creating high-conversion content for lead generation drew almost 200 marketers to a MarketingSherpa webinar last week. Time constraints prevented presenters from getting to every question asked, including five on creating specific types of content.

We answer those questions on content here. Includes advice for strategies on creation and distribution, pertaining to:
o Targeting white papers to stages of the buying cycle
o Role of ebooks
o Sharing links to news articles and other third-party content continue...

Summary: Lead nurturing and scoring are among a marketer’s best tools during an economic downturn. Even marketers who already manage a quality nurturing and scoring program need to adapt for economic conditions.

We spoke with several experts to come up with seven tactics that can help you continue to find qualified prospects in tough times. They gave advice on:
o Measuring lead quality
o Developing analytics to target your strongest prospects
o Adapting content to attract highly qualified prospects
o Researching conditions in target industries. continue...

Summary: The release of our first Video Marketing Benchmark Guide got us thinking about the role marketers see video playing down the road. So, we turned to the past to find tactics with proven results.

TV and online channels are common tactics, but there are other options for incorporating video into your marketing mix. Here are six video tactics that can complement lead generation, email campaigns, and product launches. continue...

Summary: If you haven’t ever conducted a webinar, stop putting it off. They’re one of the top two lead-generation tactics for B-to-B technology marketing, according to MarketingSherpa data.

We’ve put together a toolkit with everything you need to get your webinar program up and running smoothly: from a tutorial explaining the process to a checklist, timeline, cost calculator, best practices and templated emails and registration pages. continue...