A Guide to Successful Lead Generation Campaigns

Lead generation is an essential aspect of digital marketing, and as a digital marketing professional, you may find yourself responsible for generating leads at some point.

Lead generation is a specialized digital marketing field requiring expertise and a deep understanding of its complexities.

In the video version of this content, I provide you with an example of a lead generation campaign and walk you through the process. Here, I'll summarize that and add screenshots so you can see how to pull off a lead gen campaign. 

Watch the video here, BTW:

Lead Gen Basics: Start With Audience

To begin with, get specific about your target audience in a lead generation campaign. Understanding your audience is crucial, and you need to know four key things about them.

First, identify the roles and positions within the industry that your audience occupies.

Define the types of companies they work for and establish the basic parameters for creating a marketing persona.

Choose an industry or industries to focus on, ensuring that you have qualifying criteria that allow you to find the right people.

It's essential to consider the available data and utilize platforms like LinkedIn to narrow down your audience based on industry. By doing so, you can shape your content to be hyper-specific, which is vital for effective lead generation campaigns.

In a successful lead generation campaign, you must also understand your target audience's pain points and value drivers. This knowledge will shape your messaging and content, ensuring that it resonates with your prospects.

Remember, in a lead generation campaign, your content should be concise, meaningful, and devoid of fluff. People have limited patience, so you must deliver value quickly and address their concerns and interests directly. By crafting targeted and impactful messaging, you stand a better chance of capturing their attention and generating qualified leads.

Set Lead Generation Campaign Goals

Setting clear goals is an integral part of any campaign. When it comes to lead generation, the ultimate goal is often to schedule meetings. As a marketer, your objective is not to sell directly but to facilitate sales by generating qualified leads.

To measure the success of your lead generation campaign, track the number of meetings scheduled as a key performance indicator (KPI). This transparency enables you to assess your progress and make necessary adjustments to meet your goals.

Other KPIs to consider include converting marketing-qualified leads (MQLs) into leads and capturing email addresses.

Tools for a Lead Gen Campaign

To execute a lead generation campaign effectively, you need the right tools and digital properties in place. Ensure that you have a CRM system to manage contacts and email marketing platforms to send personalized emails.

Additionally, you'll need a platform to create and host landing pages. These foundational tools are essential for capturing leads and managing your campaign efficiently.

Lead Generation Campaign Structure: The Offers

Lastly, let's discuss the structure of a lead generation campaign. I recommend a two-offer + bonus approach, which allows you to build goodwill with your prospects.

The first offer should be something valuable and free, showcasing your expertise and providing immediate benefits to your audience.

For example, you could provide a useful tool or resource related to your industry. The key is to offer something that is simple, relevant, and demonstrates your understanding of their needs.

If you get a positive response to the initial offer, you can send an invite for a premium offer, which is a more substantial, gated piece of content. An eBook, webinar series, etc.

Related: Read How to Write Lead Magnets

Once you have their email address, you are well on your way to moving them from an MQL to an SQL. I recommend leveraging the psychological power of a "BONUS" offer to book the meeting or take the more serious step. 

This is a way of positioning a discovery call as a consultation. It needs to be conducted with someone higher up in the company (not just a sales rep). It can be super short but is essentially meant to tack on to the already mega valuable resources you provided and convey: we are experts and we can help.

Lead Nurture and Flow

At this point, you have three possible outcomes. The prospect may respond negatively or not at all, so you should remove them from your contact list. Negative leads should not be pursued further, as lead generation is a numbers game, and your focus should be on those who show genuine interest.

Some prospects may not respond immediately but can still be engaged with additional messages. Prepare a series of follow-up messages, ensuring they are ambitious but not annoying. Persistence can pay off, and even if they don't respond immediately, they might in the future.

Building a Lead Gen Campaign (Want Help?)

Hire a Writer has a team of expert marketing strategists and wordsmiths. If you need help building a lead generation campaign, reach out anytime.