Lead nurturing is a critical part of any inbound marketing strategy. It’s how you build relationships with potential buyers at every stage of the marketing flywheel and convert them into happy customers.
Nurturing your leads can make a big difference in how your business grows. In fact, according to research from MarketingSherpa, 79% of marketing leads never convert into sales. Lack of lead nurturing is the most common cause of this poor performance.
In this post, I’m going to cover the basics of lead nurturing, including what it is, why it’s important, and how you can use it to build relationships with your potential buyers and customers.
What is lead nurturing?
Lead nurturing is the process of building relationships with your prospects at every stage of the buyer’s journey. It involves listening to the needs of your leads and providing the right information at the right time.
A well-designed lead nurturing process seamlessly integrates with your eCommerce workflow, ensuring that your prospects receive timely and relevant content as they move through the sales funnel. The goal of lead nurturing is to help your prospects get to know, like, and trust your brand so that when they are ready to make a purchase, they choose you over your competitors.
The goal of lead nurturing is to help your prospects get to know, like, and trust your brand so that when they are ready to make a purchase, they choose you over your competitors.
Lead nurturing can be done in a variety of ways, including email marketing, content marketing, social media marketing, and more. The key is to provide value to your leads and help them move through the sales funnel.
What are the benefits of lead nurturing?
The benefits of lead nurturing are endless. Here are some of the top benefits:
• Saves time: By automating your lead nurturing process, you can save a lot of time. You won’t have to manually follow up with leads, and you can focus on other important tasks.
• Saves money: When you have a lead nurturing process in place, you can save money on your marketing efforts. You won’t have to spend as much money on new leads, and you can focus on nurturing the leads you already have.
• Increases sales: One of the biggest benefits of lead nurturing is that it can help you increase sales. By building relationships with your leads and providing them with valuable information, you can increase the likelihood that they will convert.
• Improves customer retention: Lead nurturing isn’t just for new leads. It can also be used to improve customer retention. By staying in touch with your customers and providing them with valuable information, you can increase the likelihood that they will continue to do business with you.
How do you create a lead nurturing strategy?
1. Define your target audience
You need to know your target audience and understand what they are looking for. This will help you create content that speaks to their needs and pain points. The more you know about your target audience, the more effectively you can nurture your leads.
2. Create a content plan
Once you know who your target audience is, you can create a content plan that will help you nurture your leads. Your content plan should include blog posts, white papers, e-books, videos, infographics, and other types of content that will be valuable to your leads.
3. Segment your leads
Not all leads are created equal. Some may be ready to make a purchase, while others may need more time to decide. That’s why it’s important to segment your leads so you can deliver the right content at the right time.
4. Choose the right channels
There are many different ways to nurture your leads, including email, social media, and your website. You need to choose the right channels for your business and make sure you are delivering your content where your leads are most likely to see it.
5. Set goals
It’s important to set goals for your lead nurturing campaign. This will help you measure your success and make adjustments as needed. Your goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
6. Measure your results
Finally, you need to measure your results so you can see how well your lead nurturing campaign is working. You can use tools like Google Analytics to track your website traffic and other key metrics.
What are the best practices for lead nurturing?
The best practices for lead nurturing are as follows:
• Divide your audience: Not all leads are created equal. Some are ready to buy, while others are just starting to do their research. By segmenting your audience, you can create targeted content that speaks directly to their specific needs.
• Personalize your content: People are more likely to engage with your brand if they feel like you understand them. That’s why it’s so important to personalize your content. Use data to create targeted messages that speak directly to your audience.
• Use multiple channels: Don’t rely on just one channel to reach your audience. Instead, use a mix of channels, such as email, social media, and content marketing, to connect with your leads.
• Check your results: Lead nurturing is an ongoing process, and it’s important to measure your results. This will help you identify what’s working and what’s not, so you can make adjustments as needed.
What are some lead nurturing examples?
Here are some examples of how to nurture leads.
Email marketing
Email marketing is one of the most common lead nurturing strategies. You can use email to send helpful content to your leads and build a relationship with them. You can also use email to send personalized offers and promotions to your leads.
Social media marketing
Social media marketing is another common lead nurturing strategy. You can use social media to engage with your leads and build a relationship with them. You can also use social media to share helpful content and promotions with your leads.
Content marketing
Content marketing is a great way to nurture leads. You can create helpful content that your leads will find valuable, and then share that content with them. You can also use content marketing to build a relationship with your leads and position your brand as a thought leader in your industry.
What are some lead nurturing tools?
There are a variety of tools that can be used to streamline the lead nurturing process. Here are some of the most popular:
• Customer relationship management (CRM) software: A sales CRM system is a tool that businesses use to manage their relationships with customers and potential customers. It helps to keep track of contact information, interactions, and other important data.
• Email marketing software: Email marketing tools allow you to create and send emails to your leads. You can use these tools to send targeted, personalized emails to your leads based on their behavior and other data.
• Marketing automation software: Marketing automation tools allow you to automate repetitive marketing tasks, such as sending emails, posting to social media, and more. You can use these tools to create lead nurturing campaigns that run on autopilot.
• Content management system (CMS): A CMS is a software application that allows you to create and manage digital content. You can use a CMS to create and publish blog posts, articles, videos, and other types of content that your leads will find valuable.
• Social media management software: Social media management tools allow you to manage your social media accounts from one dashboard. You can use these tools to schedule posts, monitor conversations, and more.
Conclusion
The sales funnel is a dynamic process. It’s not as simple as generating a lead and closing a deal. You need to have a system in place to maintain and grow the relationships you have with your leads. That’s where lead nurturing comes in. It’s a way to move your leads through your sales funnel and increase the likelihood that they’ll become paying customers.
It’s important to remember that lead nurturing is a lot of work, but it’s worth it. You need to put in the time and effort to build relationships with your leads. This will help you to stand out from your competitors, increase your conversions, and grow your business.
