Effective ways to generate leads

We all want to get the most out of our marketing efforts. With all the different types of marketing strategies, it is difficult to decide which lead generation effort to invest the most time and money into. Lead generation being one of them has been proven to be highly effective.

Now that we know this, let’s get back to the basics.

What is a Lead?

A lead is a person or company that has presented some interest in your product, or service. In the staffing world, your lead is your candidate or client.

This commonly happens when a staffing firm begins to have communication with a client, either from a subscription, a proof of gratitude, or an offer. This is done to reach consumers who have previously made purchases or shown interest in the brand without having to use conventional phone calls to ask them for information.

Leads are part of the consumer lifecycle when they go from being just a prospect to an active client. In fact, an important thing to remember is that not all ways to generate leads are the same or obtained in the same way.

Many types of lead generators help you focus on your objectives and work with them so that you leverage the business of their potential. Moreover, the differentiation in the ways to generate lead strategy is divided into two subcategories:

Inbound lead generation strategies

The inbound strategy is based on finding channels where you promote your brand and where your potential clients are consuming more, the types of content normally are articles, blogs, videos, and podcasts, meaning that the leads find you.

Staffing firms appeal to candidates and clients by writing blogs or hosting a podcast that appeals to those audiences. They may discuss the hiring process or how to perfect your resume. These activities show the audience that you understand their needs and are ready to be an asset to them.

Outbound lead generation strategies

The outbound strategy focuses on leads that have not yet taken an interest in your brand directly, this strategy is where paid promotion is used, and doing your targeting in the correct manner converts them into leads, this strategy, on the contrary, helps you find leads.

Recruiters may use LinkedIn’s paid advertising features to appeal to candidates and fill a particular job . They promote various content like salary guides or hiring process improvement. That are considered high value content and are worthy of giving contact information. Whether you use LinkedIn Inmails or other LinkedIn advertising features, you are able to define your target audience and set a budget to drive the exact audience you want back to you.

Types of Leads

Marketing Qualified Leads (MQL)

According to Gartner’s glossary, MQL is a prospective client who has been evaluated by the marketing team and meets the requirements to be forwarded to the sales team; however, they do require further qualification. To say it in other words, they are the contacts who aren’t ready to receive a sales call just yet.
These are clients and candidates that have never used your staffing firm for a job placement.

Product Qualified Leads (PQL)

PQLs are contacts who have used your product or service before and indicated interest. In particular, PQLs exist for companies who provide a free trial or a free, restricted version of their product with the opportunity to upgrade. Therefore, a consumer who uses a free version of your product yet interacts with or inquires about features that are only accessible through purchase is an example of PQLs.

Sales Qualified Leads (SQL)

SQLs are potential clients who have progressed through the sales funnel and have expressed a clear interest in becoming a paying client. A good example is a contact who fills out a form to inquire about your product or service and has provided the information necessary for the sales team to know that they are reaching out to a qualified contact.

The Importance of Generating Leads

The transition from a stranger to a consumer is far more natural when they approach you and express a genuine interest in your staffing services. But attracting people is not it, you must target and attract the right people.

By focusing on different ways to generate leads, you are able to build brand awareness. Credibility,  trust, and interest from the right candidates and clients. Moreover, get valuable data, reach your objectives, and consequently grow your clients/talent pool.

Lead generation techniques

Our pro tips to you on lead generation:

Use a tempting CTA

These signposts are telling users what they need to do next. Sometimes, humans need that extra push when they are in tentative situations. Where they feel safe as someone shows the right road for them.

Email marketing

Email marketing enables you to communicate regularly with your customers and webpage visitors. Proven studies of Hubspot suggest that 86% of consumers would like to get promotional emails from companies they do business with at least once a month.

Create a referral program

Referral programs drive conversations almost immediately. Marketers rate referrals as the 2nd-highest source of quality leads.

Combine lead generation strategies

For creating a lead generation plan, one of the best ways to succeed is to combine various strategies. This way you are not leaving any opportunity to get the valuable leads you need behind.

There you have it, folks. Now, if you got problems with your lead generation strategy, we got you! Don’t hesitate to contact us anytime.

About S.J.Hemley Marketing

S.J.Hemley Marketing is a marketing and sales consulting firm focused on driving tangible results for professional services firms. Brand matters, but not without ROI. With over 20 years of sales and marketing experience within staffing and recruiting, we have helped to drive successful branding, sales training, lead generation activities as well as defining marketing strategy for top organizations. www.sjhemleymarketing.com