1 00:00:00,720 --> 00:00:02,150 There are two different strategies for 2 00:00:02,150 --> 00:00:06,510 coming up with a list of leads, lead generation and prospecting. 3 00:00:06,510 --> 00:00:09,520 With both prospecting and lead generation you are searching for 4 00:00:09,520 --> 00:00:11,310 a prospective customer. 5 00:00:11,310 --> 00:00:13,980 Your differences lie in the approach. 6 00:00:13,980 --> 00:00:19,050 With lead generation, you're focusing more on customer cultivation and nurturing. 7 00:00:19,050 --> 00:00:20,150 Whereas with prospecting, 8 00:00:20,150 --> 00:00:22,890 you're trying to fill up your sales funnel as soon as possible. 9 00:00:23,920 --> 00:00:26,170 Let's start with lead generation. 10 00:00:26,170 --> 00:00:30,120 Your goal with lead generation should be to generate awareness about your 11 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:34,960 product or service, and to generate qualified leads slowly over time. 12 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:36,620 Let's take a step back, though. 13 00:00:36,620 --> 00:00:38,170 What are leads? 14 00:00:38,170 --> 00:00:42,310 A lead is a person who has indicated, in some way, interest in your 15 00:00:42,310 --> 00:00:47,930 company's product or service, most often by providing you with contact information. 16 00:00:47,930 --> 00:00:51,890 With lead generation, you're primarily going to engage in activities that 17 00:00:51,890 --> 00:00:56,260 inform the customer, increase brand awareness, and position your offering at 18 00:00:56,260 --> 00:00:59,310 the top of their minds when they're ready to engage in the sales funnel. 19 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:03,530 A lot of the activities we talked about in the marketing section, 20 00:01:03,530 --> 00:01:06,380 things like inbound marketing, social media engagement, and 21 00:01:06,380 --> 00:01:09,659 others, are all activities that help you build leads. 22 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:12,510 With prospecting on the other hand, 23 00:01:12,510 --> 00:01:15,860 there is a more urgent need to fill up the sales funnel. 24 00:01:15,860 --> 00:01:17,560 The end goal is the same. 25 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:22,330 Ending up with a list of qualified leads, but the activities are totally different. 26 00:01:22,330 --> 00:01:25,320 You engage in activities that provide quicker results. 27 00:01:25,320 --> 00:01:27,450 Things like purchasing mailing lists or 28 00:01:27,450 --> 00:01:31,390 business directories, attending networking events and conferences, and so on. 29 00:01:32,490 --> 00:01:35,520 As we mentioned earlier, your objectives are the same. 30 00:01:35,520 --> 00:01:38,160 With lead generation, you're essentially playing the long game. 31 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:41,560 And with prospecting, you want quick results. 32 00:01:41,560 --> 00:01:44,320 Depending on the situation, you use one or 33 00:01:44,320 --> 00:01:47,580 both strategies to optimize your sales goals. 34 00:01:47,580 --> 00:01:52,310 Lead generation works better when, you want to build awareness of your product or 35 00:01:52,310 --> 00:01:56,670 service among your potential customer base before you reach out to them directly. 36 00:01:58,090 --> 00:02:00,900 You're not in a rush to build leads and can invest time into 37 00:02:00,900 --> 00:02:04,770 activities that establish you as a thought leader and increase your brand awareness. 38 00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:10,460 You want to invest in a strategy that builds a constant flow of leads. 39 00:02:10,460 --> 00:02:13,370 You want to engage with qualified leads that are warmer. 40 00:02:13,370 --> 00:02:18,280 Now, a qualified lead is someone who is both indicated that they're interested in 41 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:22,200 your product or service and who has the ability to make a purchasing decision. 42 00:02:23,660 --> 00:02:26,690 On the other hand, prospecting works better when, 43 00:02:26,690 --> 00:02:30,710 you need to fill up your sales pipeline to hit your quarterly goals. 44 00:02:30,710 --> 00:02:32,380 You need a more aggressive strategy. 45 00:02:33,520 --> 00:02:38,810 You want to focus your efforts on small identified niches of customers. 46 00:02:38,810 --> 00:02:42,550 You aren't concerned with brand awareness prior to engagement. 47 00:02:42,550 --> 00:02:45,850 And you are comfortable engaging directly with customers and 48 00:02:45,850 --> 00:02:48,980 convincing them directly on your value proposition. 49 00:02:48,980 --> 00:02:52,340 It does not matter if you have qualified or warm leads to begin with. 50 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:58,580 The strategy you use depends on your business, time frame and goals. 51 00:02:58,580 --> 00:03:02,330 You can use either strategy, or a combination of both. 52 00:03:02,330 --> 00:03:06,860 Regardless of the strategy that you use, one of your initial objectives is to 53 00:03:06,860 --> 00:03:10,760 whittle down your list of leads, to obtain qualified ones. 54 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:12,665 What are qualified leads again? 55 00:03:12,665 --> 00:03:14,500 Now we said that a lead was a person, 56 00:03:14,500 --> 00:03:19,030 was has indicated in some way, interest in your company's product or service. 57 00:03:19,030 --> 00:03:22,960 A qualified lead, then, is someone who is not only interested but 58 00:03:22,960 --> 00:03:25,550 has provided further information that allows us to 59 00:03:25,550 --> 00:03:28,990 convert them to paying customers much easier. 60 00:03:28,990 --> 00:03:31,320 Do they have a budget to make a purchase? 61 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:34,280 Are they a decision maker in the purchasing process? 62 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:37,160 Do they have a need for your product or service? 63 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:40,920 And have they specified a time frame during which they can make that purchase? 64 00:03:42,020 --> 00:03:43,560 Unlike certain industries, 65 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:47,880 prospecting doesn't do too well when it comes to web products and services. 66 00:03:47,880 --> 00:03:52,240 Lead generation, through inbound marketing, generates better results but 67 00:03:52,240 --> 00:03:53,800 takes more effort. 68 00:03:53,800 --> 00:03:57,030 So, why bother with qualifying our leads? 69 00:03:57,030 --> 00:04:00,120 Now on a per-lead basis, basic leads, 70 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:05,490 even though they cost less than qualified leads, lead to a very low conversion rate. 71 00:04:05,490 --> 00:04:09,250 Therefore a greater investment is required on our part to convert these 72 00:04:09,250 --> 00:04:11,120 leads to customers. 73 00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:14,910 With qualified leads however, since the conversion rates are much better, 74 00:04:14,910 --> 00:04:17,770 we have a much better return on investment. 75 00:04:17,770 --> 00:04:21,600 When you engage with a lead, you need to take them from being a lead, 76 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,510 to a qualified lead, to a paying customer. 77 00:04:24,510 --> 00:04:26,810 This isn't a one-step process and 78 00:04:26,810 --> 00:04:29,310 is what separates the skilled sales people from the pack. 79 00:04:29,310 --> 00:04:32,210 And that's what we're going to get into next when we 80 00:04:32,210 --> 00:04:33,780 talk about sales presentations