By Susan Walsh
Business Owner, Sales, and Lead Generation Mentor
Through the years, I have developed a network of colleagues from small, medium, and large businesses, many of whom have become trusted friends, and are willing to share their experiences – successes, as well as challenges. In my multitude of conversations with them throughout the twenty years of owning my own business, I have learned a lot.
One of the most important lessons learned is that successful larger businesses don’t just wait for things to happen…they make things happen. Since they have deeper pockets, they don’t hesitate to invest in lead generation, marketing, sales activities, and other proactive tools to grow their businesses, giving them huge advantages compared to smaller companies.
I’m sharing this information because I want small businesses to realize that they, too, have the ability to gain the upper hand. If you have a small business, and you are throwing money at Facebook and LinkedIn ads, and sitting back waiting for results, only to be disappointed time and time again, it’s time to change your game. You don’t have to wait and hope that customers come to you. You have the power and the ability to actively participate in hunting down business for yourself with the right tools and mindset.
Here’s How:
1. First, take a good look at your banking, and figure out how to set aside funds for proactive lead generation. Yes, you have it. Where? Look at your day to day activities. Where is your money going on the small stuff that is not helping you bring in new customers? And take a look at how you spend your time. Because not only will you need a small financial budget, you will also need to invest some time. So, buck up starting with about $750.00 a month and roll up your sleeves for some daily grind. You started your business because you believe in something – an idea, a product, or a service that you want to sell to others. So, don’t give up; get started with a new approach!
If you started a business, you must have had some inkling that you are going to need to sell. Ok, so maybe at first you thought you could sell to friends and family but by now you most likely realize that “friends and family” are not going to ensure the success of your business. That responsibility is all yours.
2. Next, think hard about the kind of people you want to attract. Who needs what you are offering? Whose problems can you solve with the service or product that you are selling? Identify the customers you want by their type: Small, medium, or large businesses? What activity are they presently doing, and at what level? Where are they geographically located? Are your customers in management, entry-level positions, or Human Resources? Are they most likely to be female, male, or both? You must visualize and pinpoint your ideal customer. Do the work here, because identifying your potential buyer clearly is important and is needed when creating the first mailing list that you will keep growing.
The best business owners are problem solvers. They know what problem their potential customers are experiencing, and they have the solution to make it better for them. Thinking in these terms will help you identify your specific customer-type. If you don’t narrow down who you want to do business with - who is most likely to benefit from your service or product - you will be wasting time.
3. Let’s focus next on growing that contact list. Here is where the hunt really begins. I believe one of the most important methodologies for lead generation is summed up by the phrase, “It’s a numbers’ game”. The numbers this phrase is referring to is the large pool of data you will need to be effective in creating the pipeline for your business. The more good contacts you have, the better your chances of landing a sale. As a new business owner, you may very well have culled a list from somewhere, but it is likely that many people on your list are not the proper contacts who have the authority to make purchase decisions. Also, many in your list may have moved on to other companies and the contact info you have is likely out of date. To avoid frustration and wasting time, it is prudent to consider working with a company that specializes in hunting. They must have the data that not only fits the criteria of your potential buyer but is also clean and up-to-date.
For the first time in two decades, Sales-Link’s lead generation program is offering an entry point for small businesses to pay a reasonable fee for access to the lead generation system called Pharma BDI.
Most lead generation companies will not share their data. If they do, I guarantee that the contact list they offer up will not be specifically honed to the unique needs of your business, and the bulk of it will be outdated. There are many reasons for this. Some lead-generation companies do not really know your business industry that well; most do not keep their data clean. Still, others list only CEOs in their database; names that anyone can pick off websites. This kind of contact list will not advance you to a good network of potential customers. Buyer Beware!
4. So now that you have generated a list of targets, you must decide what message is most likely to resonate with them. Know what you are selling and why. What is the pain your target customer is feeling as a result of his or her problem, and exactly how are you going to solve it? Put your plan down on paper and run it by as many people as you can to test your message. Can your test readers relate to your message? Do they nod their head as they are reading? Look at their faces and observe their reactions. (you can do this remotely-Zoom, SKYPE, Go To Meeting). Does your message prompt them to action? Do they dialogue back with you and get into a deep discussion about the problem you are mentioning?
When I first started Sales-Link, Inc. and headed out into the market selling a system that would help my target customers track their leads, I knew there was a pain point for them - they were not getting enough new business into their pipelines. I had the perfect tool for them to track their new leads, but I missed a major point—their problem. After a few one-on-one talks with my target audience (CEOs), they told me, “Susan, I am happy to use your system, but the problem is that I first need leads to put into your system. If you find me those, I’m happy to use your system”. I had a solution that was not addressing their pain at that time. So, I returned to my computer to re-designed my approach and become a lead hunter who already had a system (the one I was trying to sell) to help find new leads. I share this story because I don’t want you to be afraid to test out a new approach, and more importantly, to embrace failure and try again. What may appear as a failure, could be the exact catalyst for the change that’s needed - maybe with just a month of rework. You will get there, trust me.
5. So now the final step is figuring out how to deliver your message. Using Facebook and LinkedIn ads to lead people to your website is a valid way to gain customers, but while ads may work for the tool man who has a replacement tool that everyone needs, they are not effective for all businesses. They also help generate attendees to webinars but when it comes to getting customers NOW, you need to be more proactive. That means putting on your hunting hat to get your customers. Hunting requires having a strategy, a message, contacts, and a tool to push the message out, to track and to watch metrics. Repeat Again: Strategy, Message, Contacts, Tool. This will be your mantra every day of your work life. So, what exactly is the best tool for delivering your message directly and effectively? Email campaigns, phone calls, and LinkedIn messages. Together, in the order or backwards. It doesn’t matter because the reality is that you need to connect multiple times. Yes you will find some low hanging fruits immediately but it takes doing the grunt work. It needs to be done daily and watched a few times a day. You play with your lists, changing things up; you try new letters, change a few sentences. It is a profession, marketing, and yes it has tools to go along with it
I could never own a restaurant. I am too anxious and a real hunter at heart. Waiting for customers to come to my restaurant would drive me crazy. I would be the one out on the street escorting them into my establishment. And that is how you must think about your business. Find your customers and then guide them to the best solutions for them. It may not be everything you offer, but some of this and some of that will allow them to get to know you. You can then start to be a confidant to them and someone they trust. In return, you build a group of trust clients who will teach you everyday what the rest of their industry is needing. They become your inside board of advisors.
Twenty years ago, after I adjusted my own strategy, I learned that contact data was essential to do lead generation. Ever since, my profits have gone back into my business investing in tools and processes that keep our data clean and ready for others to use; as well as, we stay current with best outreach methods. Unlike other companies like Salesforce, we were always interested and focused on contacts from day one, not necessary the full enterprise contract tool. We are the tool used for hunting down business.
I have been helping companies with lead generation for over two decades being ready to promote services, webinars, and conferences. There have been some great wins and relationships and as anyone in business would tell you, we have had our share of challenges. Feeling pain in growing a business is a unique perspective not everyone experiences. That is why I want to introduce my company and our services that help small emerging companies because I have been where you are and I understand the balance of promoting on a budget. I survived because I always did lead generation. I can tell you it works, so try to get close up and personal with the concept. I wish you all the best and don’t be a stranger!