Do you have a specific definition for leads? What do you think an ideal lead is?

In my opinion, a lead is a qualified potential buyer of your product/service who shows some level of interest in the buying process.

In the similar manner, lead generation is a process of stimulating and apprehending the interest in the offerings (product or service) for the sake of enhancing the sales figure.

There has been some drastic transformation in the way leads used to be generated and how are they acquired now.

A number of lead generation companies in USA, India, China, and Malaysia have emerged as a result of the digital burst of the internet.

Now, if you want to generate some leads, you are going to cover the digital platforms that are present.

With the internet, bountiful of information is available for the buyers and owing to this, the era of ‘self-directed’ buyer has come.

There are a number of ways in which lead generation process has changed completely from what was done in the traditional times.

Let’s take a peep at how lead generation process has been transformed and what is it now:

The tables have turned

Gone are the days when business used to seek and qualify the prospects.

The game has changed entirely!

Previously, businesses used to reach out to the potential customers after finding them. The traditional lead generation team used to find the right leads and just used to pass them to the sales team.

The sales team also knew that it is going to interact with a potential buyer who is uneducated.

Today, on an average, a buyer is 60 to 90 percent familiar with the business before even interacting with the sales team. How?

It’s because of the internet and the information that is available in abundance. Today, instead of finding the customers, companies are trying to get found by them.

The internet is the place where people search for the required service or product and a lot of companies exist here too.

So, as a business owner, it becomes imperative to get yourself heard (in terms of brand) on the internet. Buyers are able to find the relatable information to the product/service they are looking for.

Therefore, a lot of lead generation companies in USA, UK, India, and China are offering superior services to the businesses where the former is providing different tactics to make the latter grow.

Thus, today lead generation is all about crafting a firm strategy that helps your business to win trust and interest of the potential buyers before they even come in contact with your sales team.

Historically, businesses used to focus on the top of the funnel (marketing) i.e. the entire focus was on identifying and acquiring the leads.

It means once the leads were identified, the entire focus was on the sales team. This approach had some setbacks as it is quite possible that during that time the lead is not able to make a purchase.

Once the lead shows no-interest in making a purchase anytime soon, it was considered a ‘bad lead’ and left alone.

Today, even if the leads are not showing interest in making a purchase currently, lead generation agents ensure to nurture the leads. In simpler words, more focus is on bringing the lead to the middle of the marketing funnel.

Also Read: How to Boost your B2B Lead Generation Processes for Better Sales

How are leads generated today?

The time of cold calling, trade shows, and advertisements have vanished. Owing to the fact that buyer is in control in today’s scenario, businesses are more focused on generating interest and awareness for the prospects by creating some user compelling and informative content.

This approach is done with a sole vision to build a solid relationship with your target audience.

Hence, there are quite a few tactics that are being implemented by the lead generation companies in USA and other nations. They are:

• Inbound marketing: The process of aiding the prospects to find your business before even they decide to make a purchase. Agents ensure to transform this awareness into brand preference and finally into revenue.
• Content: The process of crafting compelling content that can generate buyer’s interest and build a strong relationship with them.
• Website and blog: Encouraging the user to provide information by signing up for a newsletter or a form. This is the place where real conversion happens.
• Social media: Information abundance is the result of the burst of so many social media networks. There are influencers and peers present on these social media platforms that make sure to provide useful information about the businesses and their product/service.

There are other tactics also such as outbound market, email, display ads, content syndication, direct mail, pay-per-click ads, and events that are preferred to generate leads.

For more updates, stay tuned.