B2B demand generation strategies should go far beyond lead generation to be effective.
Lead generation can bring in new sales leads, but it can’t guarantee that they’ll close and that they’ll be high quality enough to drive your business to the next level.
Business-to-business (B2B) marketing can be complex enough without worrying about demand generation strategies, especially when you have other vital B2B marketing tasks.
The good news is that proven demand-generation strategies work with B2B companies of all sizes, so you can start generating more leads immediately.
What Is B2B Lead Generation?
B2B lead generation produces new prospects by targeting other businesses with products or services they might need.
B2B demand generation strategies that work include developing a compelling value proposition, making relevant offers, and building relationships.
Generating B2B leads is a crucial step in the lead generation process. Marketing is hard, and generating high-quality, qualified B2B leads is even harder.
But generating qualified, interested B2B leads is not impossible.
Business owners who invest time and money into this stage of the marketing process will have an easier time once they enter other stages of lead nurturing or sales.
Below is a comprehensive guide to demand generation strategies that will produce significant results for any business.
Social Media
Social media is one of the best ways to create demand for your product or service.
Unfortunately, many business owners don’t spend enough time on social media sites, so their posts go unnoticed.
One way to get started is by using a tool like Hootsuite to organize all your Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn updates.
For example, you can create a publishing schedule that automatically sends out new tweets when you prefer they go live on Twitter.
Customer Onboarding
As much as we’d like to believe otherwise, customer acquisition is challenging. This is where your customer onboarding strategy steps in.
Rather than just throwing up a few social media posts and waiting for the customers to come, you can give them tools to attract more leads and spend more money with you.
These B2B demand generation strategies work when it comes to lead generation.
Business owners sometimes find it challenging to break through the noise and get prospective clients’ attention.
Fortunately, the following four B2B demand generation strategies will help you engage with your potential clients and develop new leads.
A perfect strategy will be a referral program where employees or customers can earn points by referring business owners they know to do business with them.
Follow Emails With Direct Mail
Don’t make the mistake of just following up with an email. You might just be saying hi, but to your prospects, it’s interrupting their day, and they’ll think twice before responding.
Remember, you’re trying to build a long-term relationship – so a direct mail piece might work better than an email.
Execute At Scale
No one wants to think about B2B marketing until they need it. To generate demand for your product or service, you need a sustainable and consistent strategy that provides value.
One of the best ways to do this is through content marketing: having blog posts, webinars, case studies, and more that can be used as an educational resources for potential customers.
These resources help establish credibility and authority in your field, making them more likely to consider buying from you.
If a customer has never heard of your company, why would they want to buy from you?
Content marketing will help educate prospects so that when they purchase something, they know who to turn to when it comes.
Qualify Leads
Firms today are increasingly experimenting with B2B demand generation strategies.
A survey by Dale Carnegie Training of 500 executives found that 71% have succeeded in their first foray into this area.
However, many firms also find it difficult to get ahead of the competition because they’re in the same boat.
The trick is to make your strategy uniquely successful by targeting what works for you as an organization, determining your goals and objectives, segmenting your audience, and creating outreach.
One thing is clear: even if you don’t yet know where to start or which tactics will work best for your company, starting with research and taking small steps can help any business achieve more than they thought possible.
Live Chat
If you use live chat, try to get the chatbot system through your domain. This will help with trust in the authenticity of the chatbot.
The only downside is it can be hard for people to find if they don’t know about it, but after someone has spoken with it a few times, they will know where to go next time and not be suspicious when they see your bot asking them a question.
Final Thought
When you’re selling to businesses or B2B as it’s called, there are two essential tools to lead your campaign: content marketing and digital PR.
Content marketing provides the valuable information prospects need to make an informed purchase decision.
Digital PR, on the other hand, highlights all of the amazing benefits of your product through social media and search engine optimization.
Together, these two strategies can provide a high-quality offer to any company and help you generate more leads that eventually become clients!