Lead nurturing strategy

So you've probably heard that you need to have a lead nurturing strategy in order to increase your sales, and you're wondering what that actually means. Lead nurturing is all about creating a relationship with potential customers over time so that when they are finally ready to buy, they think of you first. It can be done through targeted content marketing strategies which includes email marketing, social media campaigns, or even good old-fashioned snail mail (though we don't recommend waiting that long). By providing valuable content that interests your customer base, you can keep them engaged and top of mind until they are ready to buy.

But how do you implement nurturing marketing that actually works? It's not as hard as you might think. You just need a lead nurturing strategy in place. In this article, we're going to discuss what a lead nurturing strategy is. We'll also provide some tips for getting started. Are you ready? Let's go!

What does the process of lead nurturing involve?

Lead nurturing is an essential element of any successful inbound marketing strategy. By implementing a lead nurturing process, you can move leads closer to a purchase decision, resulting in more sales and higher ROI.

There are three essential elements to a lead nurturing process:

1. Identification of leads who are not ready to purchase or who have not yet been contacted.
2. Creation and implementation of a lead nurturing campaign designed specifically for those identified leads.
3. Evaluation of the results of the lead nurturing campaign in order to determine its effectiveness and make necessary changes for future campaigns.

The first step in identifying leads who are not ready to purchase is to define what "ready" means for your business. Some factors that may affect this definition include the product or service being offered, the price point, the customer's need state, and the timeline for purchasing. Once you have a clear definition of what "ready" means for your business, you can begin to identify leads who fall into that category.

The second step is to create and implement a lead nurturing campaign. This campaign will be specifically designed to move leads closer to a purchase decision. It may include content such as blog posts, e-books, infographics, webinars, or white papers. The campaign should also include calls-to-action (CTAs) that encourage the lead to take specific actions, such as subscribing to a newsletter or downloading a white paper.

The final step in the lead nurturing process is to evaluate the results of your lead nurturing campaign strategy in order to determine its effectiveness. This evaluation should include metrics such as conversion rates, revenue generated, and customer lifetime value. If necessary, make changes to the campaign for future iterations.

What is a lead nurturing strategy?

A lead nurturing strategy is the plan you design to move potential customers through the buying cycle. It's important to have a clear understanding of your customer's needs and how your product or service can meet those needs in order to create an effective nurturing strategy.

Your lead nurturing strategy should include the following:

• A shared vision
• Lead evaluation
• Lead nurturing campaign
• Tool selection
• Content strategy

A shared vision

Aligning your sales and marketing teams is essential when it comes to lead nurturing. Both teams should have a clear understanding of the goals of the lead nurturing process and how their individual roles fit into that process. Sales who generate the leads and marketing who convert the leads need to be on the same page. By working together, they can effectively direct potential customers through the sales funnel.

Lead evaluation

Once leads have been identified as not being ready to purchase, it's important to track their progress through the lead nurturing campaign. This evaluation can be done in a variety of ways, such as using conversion rates or customer lifetime value. This information can help you determine whether or not the lead nurturing campaign was successful in moving them closer to a purchase decision.

Another useful lead nurturing tool is lead scoring. It enables you to know when this lead is ready for you to sell to. Lead scoring is the process of assigning a value to each lead based on their likelihood of converting into a customer. This value can be based on a variety of factors, such as demographic information, interests, or purchase history. It helps you to know which leads to prioritize.

Lead nurturing campaign

The heart of your lead nurturing strategy is your lead nurturing campaign. You need to identify leads who are not ready to purchase or who have not yet been contacted, and then design the campaign for them.

Your lead nurturing campaign should include the content and call-to-action (CTA) strategy you put in place to move potential customers through the buying cycle. It usually involves a series of emails or content pieces that you send to your leads over a period of time. The goal is to provide them with helpful information that will interest them and keep them engaged.

It's important that your content is relevant to your leads and that the CTAs are compelling enough to get them to take action.

Tool selection

Your lead nurturing strategy should involve selecting the tools that will best help you reach your goals. This may include a CRM system, email marketing software, or a marketing automation platform. It's important to select the tools that will be the most effective for your campaign and that your team is comfortable using. Read more about lead nurturing tools and software.

Content strategy

Your content is one of the most important elements of your lead nurturing strategy. Your content strategy should include a variety of content types, such as blog posts, e-books, infographics, webinars, or white papers. It's important to produce enough content to keep leads engaged throughout the buying cycle. And, most importantly, the content must be relevant to your leads and helpful in answering their questions. Your content should also include calls-to-action that encourage the lead to take specific actions, such as subscribing to a newsletter, downloading a white paper or attending a webinar.

Your content strategy should include the following:

• A content audit to help you identify content gaps
• A content map related to each stage of the marketing funnel
• A content calendar
• A user persona for targeting the ideal customer

By following these steps, you can create an effective lead nurturing strategy that will help you move potential customers through the buying cycle.

Tips for creating a lead nurturing strategy

Now that you understand what a lead nurturing strategy is, it's time to create your own. Use the following tips to get started:

1. Define your goals

What are you trying to achieve with your lead nurturing campaign? Are you looking to increase conversion rates? Generate more leads? Increase customer lifetime value? Define your goals before you start creating content or selecting tools.

2. Identify your target audience

Who are you targeting with your lead nurturing campaign? Knowing this will help you determine the type of content you should produce and the call-to-actions you should include in your campaign.

3. Produce relevant content

When creating lead nurturing content, it's important to keep in mind the interests of your target audience. Your content must be relevant to your leads in order to be effective. You need to produce enough content to keep leads engaged throughout the buying cycle. And, most importantly, the content must be helpful in answering their questions. Try to think about the types of questions they might have about your product or service, and provide content that answers those questions. You should also make sure that your content is engaging and easy to read. Break it up into short, easily-digestible paragraphs, and use images and videos to help illustrate your points. And lastly, be sure to test and optimize your content for maximum results.

4. Evaluate results

Evaluating the results of your lead nurturing campaign is an important part of your overall strategy. Evaluate the results of your lead nurturing campaign regularly to determine if you are meeting your goals. This evaluation should include metrics such as conversion rates, revenue generated, and customer lifetime value.

5. Refine your strategy

As you gain experience with lead nurturing, you may find that you need to refine your strategy. This is normal and should be expected. Make changes to your strategy for future iterations to continue achieving your goals.

What are the best practices for lead nurturing?

There are a number of best practices you should keep in mind when implementing lead nurturing tactics. Here are a few to get started:

1. Use a variety of content types

Your content should be varied in order to keep leads engaged. This may include blog posts, e-books, infographics, webinars, or white papers.

2. Produce relevant content

Content must be relevant to your target audience in order to be effective. You need to produce enough content to keep leads engaged throughout the buying cycle. And, most importantly, the content must be helpful in answering their questions.

3. Personalize content

When possible, personalize content for each lead. This can be done by using their name, company name, or other relevant information.

4. Use a variety of channels

Use a mix of channels to deliver your content, such as email, social media, and paid advertising.

5. Follow up promptly

Follow up with leads promptly after they show interest in your product or service. This can be done with a phone call, email, or even a personalized letter.

6. Retarget leads

Retarget leads who have expressed interest in your product or service but haven't yet made a purchase. This can be done with targeted ads on social media or other websites.

By following these best practices, you will ace your lead nurturing strategy.

Conclusion

So, what do you think? Are you inspired to put a lead nurturing strategy in place? At the very least, make sure that you are tracking how long it takes for leads to convert into customers, and use that data to tweak and improve your lead nurturing process.

Learn more about what we do at OnceHub here.