Whatever industry your business is in, you’re in to make a profit right? However, you can only make a profit if you can deliver a product or service consumers want. If you can meet that consumer demand, then you generate revenue and eventually—growth.
The question then becomes, “How do you connect with those consumers?” Better yet, “How can those consumers connect with you?”
This is where lead generation comes into play, especially in the digital age and post COVID marketplace. So many consumers are working from home and spending more time on the internet than ever. Before the internet, companies relied on mass media such as billboards or direct mail to reach out to consumers. As we know now—that blanket approach to advertising can have underwhelming results.
With the advent of the internet and data sharing, consumers now have a digital footprint that follows them around the web. They visit a site, and it delivers critical data, what pages are they looking at, where do they spend the most time, etc.
The data that consumers share via internet traffic also allows you to effectively target specific demographics with far more precision than ever. That is why lead generation in the digital age is critical. However, it’s also important that it is done properly and that your expectations are realistic.
One of the most often asked questions by our clients is regarding lead fluctuation. For example, in one month a client will have 220 leads to work with. Then the following month half that amount.
Why do leads fluctuate at times? It can be a result of several factors.
But let’s come back to that question—let’s first look at what lead generation entails. Once you understand the basics of lead generation, lead fluctuation will make more sense.
When you build a website, the main goal for doing so is to generate leads—period. It is the internet’s version of a brochure or other print marketing collateral. Take the internet out of the equation for a moment.
When you get ads in the mail or telemarketing calls—they’re not just giving you a “courtesy” reminder or call. They’re selling you, trying to make you respond to their pitch and contact the business. The messaging is very clear:
***CALL US NOW!***
***50% OFF ENDS TOMORROW!***
—and of course, the one everyone hates to get—
***YOUR VEHICLE’S WARRANTY IS EXPIRING SOON!***
Those messages are referred to as a call to action (CTA)—the response the company is trying to elicit from you. If you respond to that CTA—congratulations you’ve just converted from a contact to a lead.
Now, let’s bring the internet back into the mix.
When it comes to your website, you should employ the same basic strategy but tailored to your audience. Your site should have a clear message of what you bring to the marketplace and a call to action. A CTA can be a click to call button, a contact form, or an old fashioned “call us at 713-820-6925.”
However, lead generation also involves email marketing, social media marketing, newsletters, and other digital strategies. Therefore, you will need to adjust your approach based on how you are reaching customers. A Facebook ad campaign, for example, is going to have a different approach than your website will. The common denominator, however, is the CTA, without that call to action it’s wasted.
When a visitor follows your CTA, they convert to a lead—a unique visitor that has provided contact info or initiated direct contact. From there, it’s your job to cultivate and close that lead. That’s the general idea of lead generation and leads will fluctuate.
For example, let’s say you’re getting 1-2 leads per day from your lead generation efforts for a solid three weeks. Suddenly, the lead activity comes screeching to a halt—you get nothing. You might think something is wrong with your website. You might wonder if something is wrong with your SEO, or your social media pages.
However, more often than not leads fluctuate for reasons that are not technical at all. It usually is the result of the following four culprits.
Let’s expound on the example Hector gives in the video regarding how the seasons affect leads. Hector mentions the example of the home improvement sector—landscaping companies and remodelers for example. Typically, the first week of spring is when businesses in this industry see a big uptick in leads coming in.
In 2020 with the COVID lockdowns, home improvement businesses saw a huge surge of business early. Not only did they get their spring bump in leads and revenue, but it remained steady even to this day. Was it due to their crafty SEO, huge promotions, or clever social media ads?
No, it was because the “home improvement season” was induced early with most people beginning to work from home. With that unexpected idle time, many consumers had the time to make some headway on their to-do lists.
That drives home Hector’s point that seasons play a huge part in consumer behavior. Every sector has its season as well, such as these examples:
Consumers are easily influenced by economic happenings or uncertainties that affect the stock market. The consumer confidence index measures how optimistic or pessimistic consumers are regarding the economy. It is expressed through saving and spending the difference between the two. The index is 40% comprised of opinions on current conditions and 60% of future conditions.
That index is a leading indicator of the overall state of the economy because consumers make up two-thirds of the GDP. External factors can also affect the index such as election cycles, natural disasters, as well as labor forecasts.
During times of economic uncertainty or downturn, consumers are less likely to be responsive to your marketing efforts. Industries that are considered luxury goods and services fare even worse as people cut back to essentials.
Competition is inevitable it is what drives the success of a free market. If you do something well or have a product that people want—someone will try to do it better. The reason why competition affects lead generation is a simple matter of mathematics.
Let’s roll with Hector’s example of roofing companies. Let’s say 50 consumers in Houston are seeking a roofer today and there’s over 150 roofing companies in Houston. There’s an abundance of roofers and a shortage of buyers. So, how can you make a successful grab for as many of those consumers as possible?
Well, the answer leads into the other reason why leads fluctuate—your marketing budget.
Advertising is a business—Google doesn’t let you advertise for free, nor does any social media platform worth the coin. With all the competition out there you have to be willing to spend a realistic amount of capital in marketing efforts. Also, you have to set your expectations realistically.
Think about it—if you are wanting to spend $300.00 a month on marketing in a field where your competition is spending $2000.00 you will lose every time. This is where we see businesses get discouraged the most, this concept.
It’s understandable to get excited about your business and believe in your product but your budget has to show it as well. You have to watch your competition because if you don’t spend to reach your audience—your competition will.
ead generation is by nature a very volatile and tedious but necessary task to make your business a success. However, it can be exhausting when you’re trying to juggle that along with your day-to-day operations.
At BrandNation, digital marketing and lead generation is all we do, so we have it down to a science. We have a dedicated team of specialists in social media, content creation, marketing, and analytics. Together, we create lead generation strategies that evolve daily and are customized for each of our clients.
Why not let us take the burden of lead generation and digital marketing off your shoulders? Contact us today and let us handle your leads while you handle the growth.
1210 W Clay St, Suite 26
Houston, TX 77019
713-999-4661
Anillo Perif. 3720, Jardines del Pedregal, Álvaro Obregón, 01900 Ciudad de México, CDMX
55 7450 0148
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