Put Your Sales on Autopilot

In the fiercely contested realm of small business, where each step is laden with challenges and opportunities, small and medium-sized enterprises strive for strategies that will give them a competitive edge and pave the way for consistent sales growth and growing profit. 

In this blog post, I outline a lead-generation strategy for you that provides a clear competitive advantage for consistent sales growth and profit.  And it works consistently all day long, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. And once setup, does NOT require much maintenance or cost.

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Why This Strategy Is Essential

First, let’s start with the facts about your website traffic. 

It’s a fact that the MAJORITY of your website visitors do NOT convert to paying customers on a first visit regardless of how they got to your website (i.e. Google search, link in an email, social media, etc). This is not your fault, it’s just consumer behavior. 

People don’t convert on a first visit to your website for various reasons - they were interrupted, they need to do more research, consult with a significant other, and dozens of other reasons. And the timeframe from a prospect’s first interaction with you to the time they purchase is called the sales cycle. Each industry is unique from this standpoint. Some sales cycles last a day, others are months long. 

So, what do we do? Let these site visitors leave, never to be seen again?

No! 

That’s where this strategy comes into play. Our goal is to convert as many as possible of your website visitors who left without buying, calling you, or submitting a form. 

And here’s how we do it…

Examples of Successful Lead Magnets in Various Industries

The ideas for lead magnets are almost endless. 

Here’s an example of a lead magnet on my own site:

On the right-hand side, I provide a “Download Now” button to receive this free Workbook. When someone clicks the button, the below popup shows. 

After someone enters their first name and email, we automatically send them the pdf guide. 

And at this point, we’ve got something in their hands that they wanted and is valuable. We’ve built trust and started a relationship with them. So now we need to continue to deliver value to them over time and work on converting them to a paying customer. 

What Is An Ideal Lead Magnet for My Customers?

To determine the best format for your lead magnet, consider your objective, target audience, and niche focus. Here are a few popular formats:

Step-by-Step Process to Creating an Effective Lead Magnet

Now you could stop right here with your lead magnet. We’re certainly better off now than we were without any lead magnets or lead generation tactics. And certainly, you will close more sales now. 

But to seal the deal over the entire sales cycle timeframe and skyrocket leads and sales, you must move to lead nurturing. 

Stay with me here…

It's crucial because it helps you maintain engagement with leads who aren't yet ready to make a purchase, preventing them from slipping away or turning to your competitors.

And a lack of lead nurturing can result in lost opportunities and wasted marketing efforts, as valuable leads may not convert into customers if they don't receive the right information and support at the right time.

What Are the Key Components of an Effective Lead Nurturing Sequence?

Lead nurturing typically takes the form of emails and/or text messages that deliver more valuable content over time. Some of these sequences can go on for weeks. Here are a couple of examples for you. 

Lead Nurturing Example #1

A 16-day email lead nurturing sequence. This sequence was for a giveaway that people entered via a form on the website. After they provided their information in a form on the website, we delivered a series of valuable emails. What the chart below shows is alternating time delays (green circles), followed by an email (green squares). In this lead nurturing sequences we delivered 6 emails over 16 days. 

So at this point, we have significantly increased the likelihood that we’ll convert some of these website visitors to paying customers. 

Lead Nurturing Example #2

Here’s another example of a lead nurture sequence that is 120 days (17 weeks) long! A continuous feed of helpful content that addresses the prospect’s pain points and needs. 

This sequence is for a mortgage broker who captures leads from a downloadable PDF guide on his landing page - all the leads are funneled into this sequence of emails dripped over time. 

Each email delivers valuable information for mortgage buyers and helps them with a pain point or need. At the same time, in each email, there are options to convert these leads into paying customers. So while we’re delivering valuable content that the prospect needs, we also make sure to include appointment links, links back to the website, click-to-call phone numbers, and more. 

What to avoid in lead nurturing sequences: What you don't want to do is pitch your services constantly. Nobody wants to be sold. Strive first to provide value, then the selling and closing becomes easier. 

Without these lead nurturing sequences, chances are high that we’d never hear from most of these prospects again. But now we have them. Now, we need to build rapport, trust and deliver value to them with lead nurturing. 

And it is this area where most businesses bleed lost sales. They focus on traffic strategies with Google Ads, Social Media, and other traffic-generating strategies, but do nothing to capture leads from this traffic and build relationships. 

Apps and Technology You Will Need

Opt-ins for Capturing Contact Information:

If your website is on WordPress, there are many optin plugins. Two that come to mind are Optin Monster and Thrive Leads. I have used both and both are tools I highly recommend. 

Lead Nurturing - Marketing Automation Solutions

Here's a list of marketing automation platforms that are well-suited for small and medium-sized businesses, ranging from simple email platforms to more advanced and robust solutions. I have used a couple of these and the rest I’ve known about for some time.

Advanced and Robust Platforms:

More Simple, Less Robust Platforms:

Summary

In conclusion, implementing these unstoppable lead-generation techniques and utilizing lead nurturing, you can significantly boost your growth and success.

By carefully selecting the right tools and strategies, you'll be able to engage your target audience, nurture leads, and convert them into loyal customers.

Your Next Steps