Companies who nurture leads generate a better ROI. In fact, research shows that 20% more opportunities are created by companies that nurture their leads, vs. companies that don’t. Every organization should have an active lead nurturing program, but if you are only communicating via email, you’re missing a big opportunity.
Here are some Facts:
- Only 25% of leads are considered Sales Ready.
- 50% of leads are qualified and handed over to sales, but are not ready to buy.
- Lead Nurturing or drip marketing programs get anywhere from 4-10 times the response rate of unstructured standalone email blasts
- Up to 50% of sales go to the vendor that responds first.
So, What is Lead Nurturing?
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“Lead Nurturing is a system that allows you to send an automated series of emails, also known as Drip Marketing, to early stage leads to pre-qualify them.”
The first step in setting up a lead nurturing program is to understand your buyer persona and buyer profiles, their timing and needs.
If your average sale cycle is 3 months then make sure you are spreading out your communications to keep them engaged throughout the entire cycle. This approach educates and qualifies the lead over time. It can shorten the sales cycle.
Top of Mind
By staying on top of mind you build thought leadership. People engage with and buy from people and businesses they know and trust. The first interaction via website or email is just an introduction. There is very little likelihood that they really know who you are and why they should do business with you.
Lead Nurturing is an opportunity to show that you are an expert in your field.
Consistent Communication
Lead Nurturing allows you to maintain consistent communication with leads, which is a key influence in choosing a solution provider.
Behavior Analysis
Tracking and analyzing Lead nurturing emails allows you to learn about your leads – their aspirations, their afflictions and challenges. The more you know about them, the better you will be able to educate and nurture them.
Precise Targeting with Marketing Automation Tools
As mentioned above analyzing leads allows you to offer more precise targeting. Targeted and segmented emails perform even better. Lead Nurturing campaigns tied to various branches of drip campaigns segmented by behavior can be fully automated using good Marketing Automation software tools.
