5 Lead Generation Predictions for 2018
Lead generation has been the fuel for revenue-generating activities for a long time. What used to be exclusively known as cold calling has transformed into a multi-channel, multi-touch, and hyper-personalized approach to generate high-quality leads for companies around the world.
So what industry transformations are going to take place in the coming year? It's time to look forward to a new year and what better way to kick off 2018 than to make a few predictions (and maybe even a few wild guesses) about what to expect in the next year. Below you'll find 5 predictions from our team about what to expect in lead generation in 2018.
Lead generation has been the fuel for revenue-generating activities for a long time. What used to be exclusively known as cold calling has transformed into a multi-channel, multi-touch, and hyper-personalized approach to generate high-quality leads for companies around the world.
So what industry transformations are going to take place in the coming year? It's time to look forward to a new year and what better way to kick off 2018 than to make a few predictions (and maybe even a few wild guesses) about what to expect in the next year. Below you'll find 5 predictions from our team about what to expect in lead generation in 2018.
1) Email Will Continue to Be a Top ROI Lead Generation Tool
According to the 2018 B2B Lead Gen Outlook report by Chief Marketer, email marketing dominates when it comes to the channel producing the largest volume of leads and highest ROI on leads.
Lead generation and sales development representatives that aren't using this channel in combination with their other approaches will be missing an easy target. We believe that email will continue to be a top channel for prospecting in the new year.
2) New Prospecting Channels Will Emerge
B2B lead generators will take a cue from their B2C counterparts and start utilizing live chat and messaging applications to communicate with prospects.
According to the demand generation firm Market One, live chat has lowered the cost per marketing qualified lead (MQL), lowered the cost per acquisition and increased sales acceptance rates versus tele-generated MQLs.
By being available to chat precisely when the prospect has a question, the sales development representative is able to capture their attention and engage them before they have a chance to move on to another businesses website. This takes the 5-minute follow-up to a new level.
3) Prospects Will Require An Exceptional Sales Experience
According to the customer intelligence firm Walker Information, customer experience will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator very soon - and yes, we're talking about B2B products and services.
Access to information and buyer expectations are both on the rise so organizations that place utmost importance on creating a superior experience for any prospect engaging with their company will reap the benefits in the new year. Strata Beat theorizes that marketing and sales professionals must place extra focus on mapping the customer journey and defining personas in order to deliver the most impactful and hyper-targeted experiences throughout the sales process.
4) Transition to Account-Based Selling
As defined by RingDNA, account-based selling (ABS is primarily a B2B sales model that targets companies rather than specific leads. Instead of one sales development representative targeting a single contact within a company, an entire team is dedicated to targeting multiple stakeholders at the prospective customer’s company.
Instead of prioritizing volume-based KPIs like number of phone calls, voicemails, emails, etc., ABS requires that the sales development representative quit smiling + dialing and plan out a more methodical and personalized outreach approach across a prospect organization. This hyper-personalized approach allows sales development representatives to get prospects within target organizations talking to each other about their pain point, while then being top-of-mind when they decide on a solution for it.
5) Lead Generation Role Will Get More Development Attention
The lead generation role has traditionally been a stepping stone for recent college graduates looking for a resume builder before ultimately finding a sales role and because of that, the role has lacked the attention to development that others have gotten.
According to marketing automation giant Hubspot, "the SDR role is undergoing a shift." As the sales development role becomes a position that requires more creativity and accountability due to the shift in prospect expectations, employers are going to realize the need for development within that career path. In 2018, organizations will offer more sales training, mentorship opportunities, and more distinct career trajectory plans for their lead generators.
What are your predictions for 2018?
3 Tools Every Inside Sales Rep Should Be Using
In one of our most recent posts, Sarah stated that we simply have too many tools & information at our disposal to be making cold calls (5 Ways to Never Make Another Cold Call). She couldn’t be any more correct. The days are long gone of just purchasing a list & grinding through prospects in hopes of finding a needle in a haystack. As an Account Growth Specialist myself, here are three tools I use every day to make my life easier & enhance my approach.
In one of our most recent posts, Sarah stated that we simply have too many tools & information at our disposal to be making cold calls (5 Ways to Never Make Another Cold Call). She couldn’t be any more correct. The days are long gone of just purchasing a list & grinding through prospects in hopes of finding a needle in a haystack. As an Account Growth Specialist myself, here are three tools I use every day to make my life easier & enhance my approach.
LinkedIn X-Ray Tool
You don’t necessarily need to pay up for Sales Navigator to utilize LinkedIn as a selling tool. The bells and whistles can be nice, but there are free tools out there to help with your prospecting. Recruitment Geek offers an x-ray search that allows you to bypass LinkedIn’s native barriers to find people within your target market.
I worked on a project awhile back for a non-profit where we were looking to invite call center executives out to their annual convention with complimentary registration. Easy pitch, right? The hard part is figuring out where to start. With this tool, I was able to experiment with a variety of different keywords to find the right people I needed to fill the seats at the convention.
An example search would be <Job Title> <Location> or “Call Center Director Cleveland Ohio”. I instantly had access to the names I needed to begin my search. Not to mention, it creates the perfect transition, “Hello my name is _____ & I’m represented by _____. I stumbled across your profile on LinkedIn & wanted to invite you to our convention with a complimentary registration…..”
Email Format
If you’ve done any sort of inside sales work, I guarantee these scenarios have happened to you at least once. You spoke with an interested prospect & acquired an email address. Heck, you even read it back to them. When the email was sent, it bounced back to sender. Maybe there is a prospect who would be a perfect fit for what you do but can’t seem to get past their voicemail. You left a couple messages, but who knows if they even check them in the first place? If you only had their email address, then maybe you could touch base.
With websites such as Email Format & Hunter, all you need to know is the domain of the company to identify what format of email they’re using on their server. The only thing you need to know is your prospects first & last name. I wouldn’t recommend going over the top & spamming your prospects with cold emails, but if utilized correctly it can be a great compliment to your current inside sales strategy.
YouTube
What?! YouTube? How could that possibly make your inside sales strategy more effective? Look, I guarantee the person you’re calling has been cold called before. In order to set yourself apart from the competition attention to detail is important. For the love of all that is holy, make sure you’re pronouncing your prospects name correctly. Not only will butchering a name raise red flags with the gatekeeper, but there is no better way to build instant rapport with the potential customer than to nail the pronunciation when they’re used to it being butchered.
This is where the best search engine in the world comes into play. YouTube has a plethora of videos out there for almost any name combination you can think of that will use audio to read it back to you. It takes 30 seconds to type “<name> pronunciation>” & watch a 15 second video.
Tips and Tricks For Building A FREE Prospecting List
So you've found yourself in need of a prospecting list and are hoping to find a way to start your sales or marketing campaign without breaking the bank. I'm here to let you know that it's not only possible, it's also a very effective way to launch your next sales initiative.
Here are some of the most common list generation questions I get asked by new InceptGrows clients looking to launch their next sales campaign:
So you've found yourself in need of a prospecting list and are hoping to find a way to start your sales or marketing campaign without breaking the bank. I'm here to let you know that it's not only possible, it's also a very effective way to launch your next sales initiative.
Here are some of the most common list generation questions I get asked by new InceptGrows clients looking to launch their next sales campaign:
Can I get a prospecting list for free?
Yes, you can get a prospecting list for free, as long as you're willing to do a little legwork.
We like to use a tool called Reference USA. As long as you have a local library card and create an online account, Reference USA allows you to generate all the same lists that a marketing list provider can offer you, except without the hefty price tag.
What kind of extra work will it require from me?
Once logged in, Reference USA allows you to populate a list by selecting demographic criteria. Know the job title, region, and SIC code of your target market? Add it to the tool and take a look at the list.
Reference USA provides you with almost everything about a business with one caveat - if you want the email address of each contact, you will be required to pay. If you don't need email, this prospecting list approach works great for those who are looking to do cold calling or even door-to-door sales.
There is one drawback to getting this list for free - the time it takes to download the list. The tool only allows you to download 10 pages at a time, a total of 250 contacts. This can get time-consuming, but if you're willing to spend the time, it's worth it in the end.
How up-to-date is something like that?
Reference USA is an affiliate of Info USA, one of the most reputable list generation companies around. They invest over $20 million every year and dedicate over 350 full-time researchers to ensure that business and consumer records are continuously updated.
While no company can provide 100% accurate contact and list generation data, we've found this resource to be one of the most dependable.
How do I get the most value out of a prospecting list like this?
Control of search criteria
One of the biggest problems for most people is when they start setting up search criteria, they reach too far outside of the target market. There are millions, and I mean millions, of ways to break down your search. The fewer details you use, the less likely you are to get high-quality records. But the more details you use in your search criteria, the fewer prospects you have to target, potentially limiting your chances of closing new business.
With the use of Reference USA, you are in control of your list search criteria. You can test several searches and see how more or less detail effects the size and quality of your list. I recommend that you use that freedom to your benefit.
Know your target market
Knowing your target market will allow you to be more effective and efficient in the step above. Which companies/prospects have been your best success client stories? If you have always had success with clients who have an annual revenue of 200k to 500k, do not try to search companies with annual revenues between 100k and 1 million. Stick to what has worked, exhaust those records first before widening that parameter.
Test different segments
Do not be afraid to omit certain criteria out of the search. Smaller, more precise lists, can be attacked quickly and help you tweak the next search if it proves to be unsuccessful. We like to treat different list segments as small individual call campaigns. We'll usually run a test with each segment we think could be our ideal prospect segment by asking the prospect a few survey questions to gauge pain points, authority on decisions related to the product/service, and whether or not they are in the market for that type of purchase. The outcomes of these surveys help us determine which segments to invest in and which ones not to.
So if you're looking for a cost-effective way to launch your next sales initiative using a prospecting list, I recommend you check out Reference USA.
If you have any questions about the tool, building your prospecting list, or launching your next sales campaign, don't hesitate to reach out!
8 Leadership Quotes To Accelerate Your Sales Career
The transition from sales representative to sales leader is a step that most young sales professionals aspire to take. It's a progression that our own Operations Manager, Caleb Welch, advanced through quite quickly.
Caleb started at Incept as an Account Growth Specialist in 2016, but brought with him more than 11 years of sales experience. He quickly gained success on several different client programs and jumped to the head of the pack in terms of delivering results and client satisfaction. In early 2017, Caleb began transitioning to a client support role where he helped strategize with clients and improve program results. His success led to a third promotion - Operations Manager - within a year and a half of joining Incept.
Caleb credits this quick advancement to a commitment to results and continuous improvement, themes that are very apparent in Caleb's favorite leadership quotes.
The transition from sales representative to sales leader is a step that most young sales professionals aspire to take. It's a progression that our own Operations Manager, Caleb Welch, advanced through quite quickly.
Caleb started at Incept as an Account Growth Specialist in 2016, but brought with him more than 11 years of sales experience. He quickly gained success on several different client programs and jumped to the head of the pack in terms of delivering results and client satisfaction. In early 2017, Caleb began transitioning to a client support role where he helped strategize with clients and improve program results. His success led to a third promotion - Operations Manager - within a year and a half of joining Incept.
Caleb credits this quick advancement to a commitment to results and continuous improvement, themes that are very apparent in Caleb's favorite leadership quotes.
Keep reading to see his 8 favorite leadership quotes that helped accelerate his sales career:
“There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when it’s convenient. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses - only results.”
“Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily; even if you had no title or position. ”
“A good leader takes a little more than his share of the blame, a little less than his share of the credit. ”
“No matter how good you think you are as a leader, my goodness, the people around you will have all kinds of ideas for how you can get better. So for me, the most fundamental thing about leadership is to have the humility to continue to get feedback and to try to get better - because your job is to try to help everybody else get better.”
“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
“Motivation will almost always beat mere talent.”
“It’s not about having the right opportunities. It’s about handling the opportunities right.”
“Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.”
5 Ways To Never Make Another Cold Call
There is no shortage of content out there proclaiming that COLD CALLING IS DEAD. They're all right. We have too many tools at our disposal for that not to be true. Instead, sales professionals must drop the cold call mentality and instead turn to warm calls.
A warm call is when there is some previous connection established between the salesperson or company and the prospect being called. The stronger the connection between yourself and the prospect, the warmer the call is.
There is no shortage of content out there proclaiming that COLD CALLING IS DEAD. They're all right. We have too many tools at our disposal for that not to be true. Instead, sales professionals must drop the cold call mentality and instead turn to warm calls.
A warm call is when there is some previous connection established between the salesperson or company and the prospect being called. The stronger the connection between yourself and the prospect, the warmer the call is.
Sick of making cold calls? Here are 5 ways to never make another cold call again:
Company Website
One of the most obvious things a salesperson can do to warm up a cold call is to arm themselves with as much knowledge about the prospect and their company as possible. You can do this by visiting the company website, social media pages, and checking the Google news section. Here are a few things you can look at on the prospect's website to gather the necessary information to warm up your cold call:
- Get a solid understanding of what the company does
- Check the news section
- Check the blog
- Sign up for the company newsletter
We've had a bunch of success in getting into warm prospect conversations by referencing a recent news article or blog post by the company, especially if it closely relates to the topic you are calling about.
Industry Survey
Many of our clients will opt to do a round of calls (yes, cold calls) to collect industry information from their target market. We try to keep these as short as possible for the prospect but gather the most detail we can for the client.
This type of approach allows us to do two very important things:
1) Warm up the conversation for the follow-up call
While the initial survey call will likely be a cold call, it's an easy way to get your company's name in front of the prospect so it's more recognizable the second time around.
2) Gather information to guide the follow-up conversation
The aggregated data from the survey helps to paint a picture of the target market's pain points. That information allows the salesperson to be very knowledgeable about what the prospect is facing and speak very specifically about how to solve it.
In our experience, this is one of the best ways to increase your sales call connect rate. By emailing your prospect ahead of calling them, you've instantly added one more touch point that can help familiarize the prospect with your name and company ahead of the call.
An even better outcome follows when the prospect has read your pre-call email, familiarizing themselves with the actual offer. Many times prospects will not allow a salesperson to even get to a description of their offer on a sales call, but when the prospect is pre-exposed to some of the details of the offer ahead of the call, they will often times allow the salesperson to get to the point of the call much faster, leading to higher efficiency and effectiveness.
One extra tip regarding sales emails - if you've recently left a voicemail for a prospect and are following up with an email, use a subject line that alludes to that. When we've used the subject line 'Voicemail from [INSERT SALES PERSON'S NAME],' following a voicemail versus something less directly referencing that previous touchpoint, we've seen significantly higher open rates.
LinkedIn is one of the best tools for sales professionals trying to warm up their cold calling, a favorite for our Business Development Manager, Timothy Serafino. There are several different kinds of engagement actions you can take, but the most effective are the ones that create some kind of notification for the prospect:
- View their profile (make sure you aren't doing this anonymously)
- Add as a connection
- Like their activity
- Endorse one of their skills (this one can get a little creepy in my opinion)
A few months ago I got a call from a salesperson that had just looked at my LinkedIn profile and sent me an email. With a notification on my browser, a new email in my inbox, and a phone call in quick succession, I was convinced to pick up and talk to the salesperson when I otherwise would've ignored the ring.
Inbound Marketing
What about just cutting out cold and warm calling all together? Fully committing to the inbound marketing methodology might get you there, depending on the type of product or service you're selling.
If you're selling a B2B product or service that requires consultative selling, inbound marketing may not be enough to free you from all sales calls. In our experience, inbound marketing is the best long-term approach for growing your business but, and this is a big but, it works best when paired with warm calling.
Did your prospect just download a piece of content from your website? Why not follow up with a call asking if you can answer any questions for them? Has one of your prospects visited your website 56 times in the last two days? It might be worth reaching out with a quick call. Skipping these kinds of opportunities in the name of inbound marketing is leading to lost opportunities for many organizations.
What other ways are you effectively warming up sales calls?