5 Lead Generation Trends for 2019 That We're Excited About

It’s no secret that lead generation is something that we excel in. Because we want to continue to help our clients grow and succeed in their own businesses, we strive to stay in-the-know on cutting edge ways to bring in more leads for them.

We interviewed several members on our InceptGrows team to talk about trending lead generation tactics that we’re either currently employing or excited to test in the coming year. See what they said below:

Email Marketing

“There are countless numbers of people who say they just delete "those types" of emails, but we have found that email marketing is an amazing tool for B2B lead generation. So many people look at a digital screen throughout the day and don't always have time to take a call or even have the desire to call someone back. However, a short response via email when doing B2B marketing can connect companies who would otherwise not know about each other.

While also being able to monitor email open and click rates with applications, we can then connect with those who have shown interest right away and not wonder if they opened the email or even took a second to skim over it. Email Marketing has also proven to show a high ROI over simply making phone calls and it has increased the number and quality of leads that we are able to send to our clients.” – Victoria Chernikovich, Account Growth Specialist

Targeted Social Media Marketing

“I think that targeted social media ads/marketing have so much potential to generate B2B leads. We’re all constantly monitoring our social media on a daily basis and I think this could be a fantastic source of leads if mined correctly for our clients!” – Lauren Gill, InceptGrows Senior Account Executive

Related Post: 3 Ways to Create a Hyper-Targeted LinkedIn Campaign

Influencer Partnerships

“I’m intrigued by influencer partnerships for B2B lead generation in this coming year. B2C companies have been partnering with influencers for quite some time now, introducing their products to millions of new prospects with one Instagram story. Online users place a lot of significance on messages shared by their peers whether that be through reviews, blogging, or social media so this is a natural extension.

It looks like the trend is finally making its way into the B2B space. When done authentically, this trend has the power to extend brand reach to hyper targeted communities and generate qualified leads for B2B organizations.” – Sarah Nelson, Marketing Manager

Chatbots

“I really like the idea of incorporating Facebook chatbots for lead generation and qualifying leads. It allows your target audience to engage with your business on the platform they already spend their time and you can easily create an automated download or survey to qualify a lead within Messenger.” – Amanda Blakeman, Digital Growth Strategist 

Content Upgrades

“We’re currently testing downloadable B2B lead generation content on our blog and using this information to generate our own leads/pipeline for the division. I think this has opportunity to be introduced as a lead generation option for clients to grow their organization’s sales funnel” – Lauren Gill, InceptGrows Senior Account Executive 

Personalized Connections

“I get so many LinkedIn requests daily and once we connect, they are typically followed up with a message or email trying to sell me something. I’ve found that personalized connections, even if not a ‘new trend,’ will still be a hot topic in 2019.

While personal connections take longer than sending a pitch email, they tend to pay off tenfold for both parties. When you create a personal connection and take the time to learn what the other business is struggling with, you have better insight on how you can best help and serve them.” – Darren Hudach, Chief Growth Officer

Do you know the best lead generation tactics to grow your association? Download our Lead Generation Best Practices Guide Now!

Using our experience in lead generation, we’ve compiled a list of the top 5 lead generation best practices you need to implement this year.

Simply fill out the form to the right to download your guide!

4 Important Things to Include in a New-Member Welcome Email

One of the most important steps to take when onboarding new association members is to send a welcome email. Creating an engaging association means engaging your members as soon as they sign up.

No one likes walking into a party and the host walks past them without a warm welcome and inviting them to check out all that’s going on. So, think of your association as a party (because that’s what it should be treated as!) and welcome your members like they just arrived at the best party of their life!

When should you send a welcome email to new members?

Immediately!

When 74% of people already expect a welcome email immediately, it’s nearly a required step in your member on-boarding process. Plus, members that receive a welcome email engage with your association 33% more than if they hadn’t received one. Sending a new-member welcome email will then only help get your new member off on the right foot with your association!

Key things to include in a new-member welcome email

1. A personalized welcome

This member handed you their money because they saw the value in the association. Demonstrate that you also see the value in them with a warm welcome to your association party.

Tip: Include the welcome message in both the email subject and in the first paragraph of the email. Also including a call-to-action, such as “here’s what to do next,” moves your new member along and entices them to get more engaged.

Example Subject: “Hi [MEMBER NAME]! Welcome to [ASSOCIATION]. Open for important membership information.”

2. Introduction to your association

While your association’s new members have probably already done enough research about the organization to see the value in signing up, they might not be aware of the history or everything it does for its members or the community. Offer a couple sentences with a background on the association, such as when it was founded, how many members/businesses you’ve helped, etc.

3. Information on membership benefits

People didn’t sign up to be an association member just to hand over their money and not get anything in return. While they might already know about some of the bigger benefits, restating them will only help your new member get involved more quickly. If you have various membership levels, make sure you send level-specific emails detailing the relevant benefits to that member.

Linking to the page where they can find more information about all membership benefits will also help them make sure they get the most use out of their membership.

4. Direction on where to go/what to do next

Don’t leave your new member hanging! There should always be a clear purpose and call-to-action in your emails, so use this opportunity to encourage them to take whatever next steps will help them the most.

Some examples of CTAs include:

• Invite them to join your association’s Facebook group

• Inform them on when they should expect the next email

• Invite them to RSVP to your next event

• Directing them to reply to the email or another email that will be able to answer any questions they have

Download our guide to sending the best emails that delight your members!

When people sign up for your association, you need to have a plan in place to welcome and on-board them.

Using our expertise in lead generation, we’ve created this guide to help you cultivate a more engaged association.

In this download, you’ll receive:

• The ultimate email sequence to welcome new members into your association

• Information on WHEN to send and WHAT to include

4 Ways Social Media Helps to Recruit Association Members

Whether your association has a small marketing budget or simply trying to be more cost-effective, social media can make the biggest impact. While we know that social media plays an important role in educating members about benefits, there are also ways to use social media to recruit association members too.

Because there are close to 3.4 billion people in the world with at least one social media account, it’s a great method to reach your target audience. We tout how social media allows you to engage with people online, but there are several other ways that social media assists in your association recruitment efforts.

1. Meet your target audience where they spend their time

When thinking about which method you want to use to reach your target audience, you should always consider the path of least resistance. You want to make it as easy as possible for people to find out about your association and become members.

In order to make signing up as simple as possible you need to use social platforms that your target members are already on.

2. Increase brand awareness

Once you figure out where most of your target audience is spending the most time, you can easily create valuable content for them on that platform. Dividing your social media efforts across all social platforms likely won’t yield the greatest result. Being more active on a few is going to go farther than being semi-active on all of them.

Social media is a great place to recruit new association members because according to Facebook, 60% of people on Instagram say they discover new products on the platform. Therefore, even if in your opinion, you don’t have a large number of followers, social platforms allow you to grow your association’s reach to gain the interest of potential new members.

3. Increase website traffic

Along with engaging current and potential association members, social media allows you to promote your website content. Enticing someone to follow you on social media is easier than asking them to hand over their email address. So, consistently sharing your helpful content across your social channels, allows followers to easily click to your website.

Facebook Ad Retargeting

With this increase in traffic to your website, you can then run a retargeting campaign on Facebook to those who have already visited your site. In order to gather this information, you’ll need to install the Facebook pixel on your website. If you have access to your website’s code, you can easily add the pixel code. Otherwise, your developer will know how to add it!

This is a great strategy because it adds another touch-point to someone who has already shown interest in your association, making them a warmer lead to convert to a member.

4. Lead Generation

Lastly, social media allows you to generate leads for your association. You can do this in a variety of methods from the Facebook retargeting method discussed above, targeting people with interests similar to your association, or even simply to current followers.

Are you employing the best lead generation tactics to grow your association? Download our Lead Generation Best Practices Guide Now!

Using our experience in lead generation, we’ve compiled a list of the top 5 lead generation best practices you need to implement this year.

Simply fill out the form to the right to download your guide!

4 Ways to Use Facebook to Educate Members on Association Benefits

Facebook is one of the best ways to educate members on association benefits because with over 2 billion people on Facebook, you’re easily able to meet your members where they’re already at. When you post on the platform that most (if not all) of your members are regularly on, you can increase your ROI and ultimately get your members more engaged.

Because we believe in the immense value that Facebook provides associations, we’re sharing 4 ways to use Facebook to educate members on association benefits to help you engage more members.

1. Facebook Groups

Facebook groups for any association are a great way to bring all of your members together, regardless of their location. This is a great space to cultivate a community and allow members to engage with each other, even outside of conferences.

The key to making a Facebook group work for your organization is to always understand that it’s about your members and less about the association. While you can (and should) share member benefits through articles, pictures, and video, you should also focus on sharing outside information that would still be beneficial for members.

2. Facebook Live

We are in an age where video and audio are key to any marketing strategy. People crave that extra connection with you and the association, so when you can create a piece of content that’s both educational and engaging, the entire association benefits. Members get to understand more about how they fit into the organization and you cultivate an engaged community.

Streaming live video on Facebook is a great method of interacting with your association members. First, there’s a low barrier of entry to reach your members since they are already using it for personal use. Second, all you need to create a live video is your phone or a simple webcam—no editing required!

Third, unlike simply posting a status or video on your business page, when you go live in your Facebook group or on your business page, group members or followers get a notification that you are live. This not only gets members to view your video but also entices them to watch and engage live. The increased engagement on your video increases engagement on Facebook and ultimately within your association.

Live video ideas that can be used to educate members on association benefits include how-to videos, webinars, interviews with members or businesses, behind the scenes, Q&A or FAQ videos.

3. Facebook Messenger

Facebook Messenger is a great way to build a connection 1:1 with your members. However, what do you do when you begin to get more messages than your team can manage? Enter chatbots.

With over 1 billion active users and a click-through-rate 4 to 10 times higher than email, chatbots are becoming increasingly popular to interact with people. Messenger marketing is great for quickly responding to Facebook messages without being spammy and overloading members.

Manychat, a chatbot provider, confirms that you can use chatbots for conversational growth and building relationships, which are key for any successful association. Along with welcoming new members, you can also send them information about upcoming events, latest blog posts from an RSS feed, keyworded auto-responses for FAQs, and even other beneficial timely content.

4. Deliver an Ad Campaign to a Custom Audience

Facebook ad campaigns, in our opinion, are the best way to reach members of your association. With custom audiences, you’re able to target your members specifically so they can see membership benefits whether they like your Facebook page or not.

Not only can you use Facebook ads to educate members on association benefits, you can also target that same audience to drive attendance to events. As we discussed in this case study, you can easily increase your event attendance with a custom audience as well as an attribution audience to reach potential new members.

If you haven’t started to use Facebook to educate members on association benefits, now is the perfect time to start implementing one (or all!) of these tips will ultimately help your membership engagement when you perform them consistently.

Let’s Talk

If you have any questions about how to better engage your association members, don’t hesitate to reach out to us and we’ll be happy to help you!

3 Simple Ways To Show the Value of Your Association's Membership

 Networking and professional development are the core purpose of any association. The drivers for each of those things relies upon a high level of membership engagement. We’re all competing for each other’s time and in today’s busy world it’s easy to take a backseat if you aren’t actively marketing and keeping yourself in front of your members. I’ve had the opportunity to partner with many associations throughout my career and here are a few things I’ve learned along the way about showing the value of your membership.

1. Secondary contacts are just as important as the primary contact

Especially with corporate accounts, it’s common practice to have an account manager communicating with only one contact within the organization. In this case you’re relying on that one person to transfer all your information and value to the rest of their team which is a bold assumption. Always interact with all roles who can benefit from the resources that are associated with their membership. It may require additional resources to combat data decay and keep everything up to date but the best way to do this is by adding all applicable parties to your email distribution as well as any promotional calling campaigns.

2. Ask for feedback, then implement it

In other words, listen to your members. A project I recently worked on was an end of the year wrap up for a client of ours. I reached out to each of their members to say thank you for being with us and inform them on some of the newer events on the horizon for the coming year. This provided the opportunity for back and forth open dialogue, so we could receive feedback on some of the different things they liked the best, and vice versa. In addition, you can’t go wrong by checking in occasionally just to gauge everyone’s temperature.

3. Spotlight your members

This is your opportunity to be matchmaker and help facilitate engagement among your members. A lot like dating, businesses join associations because they’re trying to “get out there” so to speak. As stated in the first sentence, “networking and professional development” are number one. I’m sure you have a blog or newsletter that you can feature a new member each week, month, etc. Highlight their date joined, company history, value propositions so they can be seen by the rest of the organization. If a business relationship can stem from one of these posts it’ll be a constant reminder of the value of your association.

Far too often do I see associations take a passive role when it comes to engagement. I’d argue that retaining your current member base is more important than new member recruitment when it comes to long-term growth potential. This goes for any business; it’s much easier and cost effective to keep a current customer than it is to acquire a new one so it’s important to continually show your members the value of your association.

How do you show the value of your association’s membership?