Lead nurturing is
"a set of digital marketing techniques that allow you to build relationships with users".
The term 'lead’ is used to describe those who have interacted with the brand and could be potential customers in the future.
The primary objective of lead nurturing is to create meaningful connections throughout the buyer's journey. This involves building their awareness of a particular brand or product while developing a relationship of trust. In fact, this is the fundamental value that underlies every purchase.
Lead nurturing aims to generate conversions from acquired contacts. However, it should not simply be interpreted as a sales technique. On the contrary, it is based on the user phase along the customer's journey or marketing funnel. Lead nurturing guides the user through the purchase, then to the retention and finally to the referral.
How Lead Nurturing works in practical terms
We have explained that lead nurturing consists of following users throughout the buying process.
This process is the result of a combination of different operations that must be integrated into a multi-channel strategy. This involves using various tools and platforms made available through distinct types of marketing activities. Each journey step aims to connect the brand with its potential consumers. The purpose is to stimulate their curiosity and earn their trust by delivering useful and relevant content.
Keep in mind that at the top of the funnel every lead will be different and will have different problems. They are also most likely to be on a different customer journey stage. Therefore, communication with the leads will have to be curated in a customised manner to appeal to individual wants and needs.
Marketers will therefore need to divide the audience to carry out targeted actions on different users. To do so, technologies such as marketing automation tools prove to be valuable. Such technology is particularly useful when handling exceptionally large databases.
Automation allows the programming of a series of actions that would be impossible to manage manually. The most important include:
Inbound marketing: With the creation of specific sales and marketing funnels.
Email marketing: Automating the sending of customised messages at the right time to the right contacts.
Social media marketing: Programming engaging and specific conversation calendars.
Social media Advertising: Designing and programming advertising campaigns on various social network sites.
Google Ads campaigns: Delivery of ads on Google which are tailored to specific audience groups.
Content Marketing: The creation of valuable content, such as blog posts or white papers. Content can be delivered using different media or with various tools.
The aim is to attract, interest, and retain users. Building this connection with the user is at the heart of the lead nurturing process.
The Benefits of Lead Nurturing
Structuring a calibrated lead nurturing strategy involves commitment and resources. Yet, it also generates a series of advantages that help build stronger relationships with leads.
Lead nurturing allows the company to cultivate relationships with its potential customers. In doing so, companies can learn more about their target audience's desires, expectations, and challenges. In addition, it can also increase brand reputation and the influence the organisation exerts through informative and interesting content and insights.
Moreover, lead nurturing campaigns have a better conversion rate (than traditional campaigns) because they can improve the relationship between the company and the customer. This results in an increase in customer loyalty after making their first purchase.
When designed correctly, an efficient lead nurturing campaign makes it possible to plan regular intervals of content in advance. Companies can also identify the channels through which the content should be delivered, according to the different user targets. Planning is a key step that can save time and resources for any company.
In the long term, lead nurturing produces free advertising for the company. This is achieved as loyal customers can take on the role of ambassadors. These existing customers will act as the brand's advocate as they communicate with potential leads, by handing out virtual business cards.
Some tips for an effective lead nurturing strategy:
Behind every effective lead nurturing strategy, there is a marketer who produces content with two main goals. On the one hand, the content must generate interest in the user. On the other hand, it must encourage the user to communicate with the brand.
The content is created by analysing the leads and their diverse levels of involvement with the brand. Marketing actions designed to generate brand awareness are different from strategies aimed at users already in the consideration, conversion, or post-purchase phase.
Below is a range of general tips and tricks on how to nurture your contacts with valuable content. Consulting a digital marketing specialist can help define an efficient nurturing plan, which caters to both company and their audience.
Study and define your buyer persona: Your content will work better if it is aimed at users who are interested in your product or service. Carefully studying your potential customers will enable you to build useful and engaging content.
Use a marketing automation platform: This will help you identify, divide, and target different buyer personas. Your lead nurturing strategy should be adapted to suit the needs of your business and its digital sales and marketing plan.
Use multi-channel techniques: A successful lead nurturing strategy will consider different asset marketing techniques. These techniques should appeal to different audiences, at various times and with different short-term objectives. Therefore, it is necessary to go beyond simple email nurturing. Instead, companies should focus on the many options currently available in the digital environment.
Be timely in your follow-ups: When follow-ups are done promptly, the benefits are clear. The reason for this is simple. The lead is 'warm' and is immediately engaged after being contacted by the company. This subsequently increases the chances of purchase.
Unfortunately, many companies tend to overlook this step, which is fundamental for the purposes of conversion. A late follow-up makes the results obtained with lead nurturing invalid.
Aim for personalisation: In new digital marketing, personal messaging is at the heart of every strategy. The lead should be treated as a unique individual, rather than a number on a database. In doing so, the lead is more likely to make a purchase or recommend the brand to others. The added value of today's business is not only in what you offer but how you offer it.
Use lead scoring tactics: This methodology rank leads on a scale that represents their value as perceived by the business. Lead scoring is implemented with marketing automation technology through almost any platform on the market. This allows you to assign numerical values to certain user behaviours, conversion events or social network interactions. Depending on the score obtained, it is possible to nurture with specific actions, calibrated specifically to those behaviours.
Would you like to find out more about lead nurturing and integrate it into your digital marketing strategy? Contact us at Xplore Digital.
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