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Lead Generation

The strategy marketers use to identify and target the right potential customers. This article will provide an overview of everything marketers need to know to get started with marketing lead generation.

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What is marketing lead generation?

Marketing lead generation is the strategic process of identifying, attracting and nurturing relationships with prospective customers to acquire new business. It's a part of both marketing and sales processes - marketers focus on inbound lead gen/qualifying leads, while sales teams work on outbound lead gen/closing the sale.

B2B marketers create campaigns to generate leads - such as paid advertising (with LinkedIn Ads), account-based marketing, content marketing and email marketing. Through top-of-funnel marketing strategies they capture potential customers' contact info for the sales team.

Marketing leads typically come from webinars (requesting demos), downloading gated assets (ebooks, videos etc), entering details on website forms or visiting landing pages for more info.

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What is a marketing lead?

A marketing lead is a person or company actively seeking solutions to business problems and expressing interest in an organization's content, products, or services. A complete lead must include name, contact info, company info and other necessary details.

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Types of marketing leads

There are five main B2B marketing lead types, and how marketers advertise to them is based on their position in the funnel. Identifying these leads helps marketers create relevant content, capture data, and nurture them effectively.

Here’s a closer look at each type of marketing lead plus examples of assets for nurturing each:

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Types of B2B marketing leads

Information Qualified Lead (IQL)

A company that has shown interest in an organization’s content.

Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL)

A company that has shown interest in an organization’s products or services by submitting contact details.

Sales Qualified Lead (SQL)

A company that has shown interest in an organization’s products or services and is ready to make a purchasing decision.

Sales Ready Lead (SRL)

A company that’s ready to buy from the particular business they’ve been researching.

Product Qualified Lead (PQL)

A company that has used a business’s products or services

Benefits of lead generation

The main benefit of lead generation is it helps organizations with customer acquisition, cross-sell opportunities, and upsell opportunities, which boosts a company’s revenue and drives growth. Here are some additional benefits companies experience with a focus lead generation strategy.

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1. Targeted marketing

Marketing lead generation takes cold outreach out of the marketing equation and makes it possible for businesses to nurture leads who are genuinely interested in a company’s specific content, products, or services.


Rather than throwing marketing dollars into the wind, a strategic lead generation strategy makes marketing more effective, helps save on marketing costs, and improves the quality of leads marketing teams pass to sales teams.

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2. Improved customer relationships

Focused lead generation helps establish trusting and ongoing relationships with potential clients. Through excellent marketing, businesses can become a leading industry thought leader that potential clients look to for advice, a go-to problem solver, and a trusted solution to common business problems.


Providing valuable resources boosts customer acquisition, encourages repeat business, promotes positive word-of-mouth, and ends in long-term customer loyalty..

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3. Cost-effective investment

Marketing is expensive for any B2B business, so it’s essential to find ways to identify and target the right leads, maximize ROI, and keep costs down.


Smart lead generation strategies help businesses target the right customers, create effective and personalized ad campaigns, and generate leads that are more likely to convert.

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Lead Generation Process

The marketing lead generation process is the series of inbound marketing steps that a business takes to identify and cultivate potential customers.



The lead generation process includes:

 

  • Identifying the target audience. Identify the demographics and customer segments the business wants to target, such as age, location, income level, and interests.

 

  • Attracting interested leads. Create content that will capture the attention of the target audience and get them to opt in.

 

  • Capturing leads. Use a strong call-to-action (CTA) on forms, landing pages, and gated content to capture the name, email, and phone number of the interested lead.

 

  • Qualifying leads. Not all leads are created equal. Marketing teams must develop a lead scoring system to determine which leads are most likely to convert into paying customers.

 

  • Nurturing leads. B2B buyers rarely buy during their first interaction with a brand. The sales process is long for businesses. Marketing teams should continue to provide personalized resources to build trust and show how a product or service solves problems.

 

  • Converting leads. The sales team is responsible for closing the deal. But, marketing teams can continue to send resources that encourage upsells and cross-sell opportunities.

 

  • Analyzing the lead generation process. Measure the effectiveness of lead generation campaigns to identify what went well and how to improve.

 

  • Optimizing future campaigns. Make data-driven decisions on how to improve future campaigns and maximize marketing and ad spend
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Strategies for effective lead generation

There are several inbound strategies B2B marketing teams use to capture the attention of B2B buyers and turn them into leads.


While these strategies are not always linear, they typically follow a consistent customer journey with the ultimate goal of turning strangers into brand advocates.

Let’s look at some of the most effective lead-generation strategies for B2B marketers.

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1. Create irresistible website content

A B2B website is an incredibly powerful inbound marketing tool. B2B brands can create any of the following assets to educate audiences and establish their brand as a thought-leader:

 

  • Blog posts

 

  • Glossary

 

  • Webinars

 

  • Case studies

 

  • Training center

 

  • Knowledge base

 

  • Podcast recordings
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2. Create opt-in forms to complement content

Website content goes a long way in providing answers to businesses that are looking for solutions, but the goal of lead generation is to capture information to pass to the sales team.


Not only should B2B brands build robust website content, but they should also include clear opt-in forms to capture leads.

B2B brands can do this with:

 

  • Newsletter subscriptions. B2B websites should include newsletter opt-in forms to capture leads for email marketing.

 

  • Lead magnets. A lead magnet is a piece of valuable long-from content a B2B brand gives for free in exchange for lead information.

 

  • Webinars. Hosting a webinar is a great way for B2B brands to show off industry and product knowledge and build relationships with other business owners.
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3. Make strong landing pages

Once someone has reached a landing page, they’ll either click out and forget about the offer, or request more information by entering their name, email, and phone number.


Marketers should create landing pages that are short, sweet, clear, and make it easy for customers to request information.

When creating landing pages, B2B marketers should consider:

 

  • Copy. Use crisp and concise copy to explain the offer

 

  • Topic. Provide information around one topic

 

  • Incentive. Offer a free resource in exchange for information

 

  • CTA. Highlight a clear call to action

 

  • Social proof. Add testimonials when appropriate
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4. Invest in advertising and retargeting

The B2B buying process is long and involved. It’s rare a marketing team will be able to capture a lead on the first try—especially a highly qualified lead.


A smart way for marketers to capture leads is to invest in B2B advertising on platforms where businesses spend a lot of time.

For example, businesses can use LinkedIn Ads to personalize their marketing efforts and keep their brand top of mind, and their target audience engaged as they continue to research business solutions.

Another way marketers capture leads is through a smart retargeting campaign. The more a prospective buyer comes in contact with your brand, the more likely they are to submit their information.

B2B brands who are advertising on LinkedIn can use the LinkedIn retargeting pixel, also known as the LinkedIn Insight Tag.

This tag tracks visitor data and uses that data for retargeting or to enhance other paid ad campaigns.

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5. Market and advertise across all relevant platforms

The buying journey never starts and stops on one platform, especially for B2B businesses. B2B buyers research products and services across various platforms. The buying journey is also long and requires approval from several decision-makers.

As such, it’s essential for marketers to invest in lead-generation initiatives that support buyers across every customer touchpoint, no matter where they go to look for solutions or when they are searching.

B2B businesses looking to capture qualified leads should invest in omnichannel marketing and cross-platform advertising.

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Lead generation with LinkedIn

Getting lead generation right is essential to helping marketers capture new customers and maximize ad spend. LinkedIn Ads is the number one platform marketers use to capture qualified leads. LinkedIn lead gen forms can help collect even more quality leads from ads on LinkedIn with seamless pre-filled forms.

Learn more about lead generation on LinkedIn with our expert guide including buyer persona targeting, creating valuable content and a distribution plan to meet and measure revenue goals.

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Grow your business by driving quality leads on LinkedIn
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