50 Great Lead Generation Ideas for Your Online Marketing Campaign

The purpose of lead generation is simple: interact with an audience, catch their interest in a product/service and convert them into a promising lead. Sounds simple enough in theory but often leaves marketers struggling or unhappy with their results. These marketers are missing out on simple tricks to improving their campaign.

Here are 50 great lead generation ideas to improve lead generation.

1. It is an absolute must that your website is easy to navigate and customer-focused. If they can’t find what they need quickly, they will leave the site.

2. You need highly targeted content that is appropriate for the type of customer you wish to connect to. This includes information you provide and tone.

3. Calls-to-action should be throughout your website in the form of asking potential leads to subscribe, download something or contact you in any way. Put these in sidebars.

4. Products and services available on your website need to be clearly organized on correctly labeled pages.

5. Pricing for all products and services must be clearly marked, so customers know exactly how much they have to spend and whether it aligns with their budget.

6. Product or service descriptions are an absolute must. Customers are more likely to convert to a lead (through purchase or sign-up form) when product/service information is clear and explains its value.

7. Your homepage should immediately anticipate what problem the potential lead has and how you can solve it.

8. Whenever someone first visits your website you should have an inviting landing page immediately pop up and ask for their email to learn more.

9. Ranking = visibility to customers. SEO should be a primary focus when it comes to lead generation. Get your website on the first page of search engines.

10. “I’ll Google that” is exactly what customers think when they are looking for a product or service. Google results are a priority.

11. Use SEO keywords throughout your website: titles page description, image descriptions, URLs, etc. Ensure that your website description as it displays on search engines is inviting and include prominent keywords.

12. Make and maintain active profiles on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube. Talk with your audience and share information that would interest them.

13. Promote products and service but don’t cross the line of over-promotion. Social media is about connecting people with your business, not just selling. Interact and talk!

14. Facebook and Twitter should be primary focuses when it comes to word-of-mouth marketing. Over 50% of Facebook users and nearly 70% of those on Twitter will buy a product when recommended by friends.

15. 83% of consumers will spend more and purchase more often when given info through email

16. Create a blog. Blogging works with lead generation by increasing the chances of your website being found. It is the ultimate means of improving your website’s SEO when done right.

17. Promote your blog posts on bookmarking and article directory websites to increase exposure.

18. Include backlinks in blog posts to other posts and products/services on your website.

19. Invite guest authors of non-competing but complimenting businesses to write guest post. This will help them and help you by bringing more people to your website.

20. Host webinars regularly that revolve around educating potential leads about some issue in their life that needs to be solved. Webinars can also include guest speakers to draw a larger crowd.

21. Businesses, particularly B2B and the like, can really benefit from offering white papers on targeted topics pertaining to their niche. Providing white papers shows expertise and leadership.

22. eBooks are quickly becoming more popular in the online marketing world. It is a wonderful passive addition to lead generation since they are likely to be shared and promote your business as an authority.

23. One other type of e-document that can be great for lead generation are industry reports. If you are looking for leads to non-competing business or associations.

24. Whenever providing an e-document like an eBook, provide a mandatory form for people to enter their emails in order to access the information. This is a simple way to build your email list simultaneously.

25. Ask clients, particularly those who have a large following on social media, to post video testimonials or reviews either on their social media profile or YouTube. This is an incredibly powerful word-of-mouth marketing method. Share these videos on your website.

26. Provide a video on the homepage or in the About Us section of your website that introduces you and your team. Putting a face to the people behind the name really helps more connection with potential leads.

27. Videos outlining your services or products are another amazing tool for lead generation. People love videos and seeing your services or products in action simplifies things. Leads are also sometimes more likely to share a really awesome video over web content.

28. Online newsletters should not be understated. This is another great way to deliver content, highlight products and communicate with customers in one simple format.

29. Include special offers within your online newsletter such as a discount code or small gift (e.g. an eBook) to prompt potential leads to give you their email.

30. When using PPC advertising take direct control on keywords that can be used to discover your website. Remember, be as specific as possible to reach your targeted audience.

31. Google and Bing might be the kings of PPC advertising but don’t forget about social media. Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are 3 powerful sources for PPC ads.

32. If you’re struggling to get more leads despite having an amazing email marketing campaign, consider how much value you give. Always give more value to the client than what you ask for in return (i.e. a purchase of a new eBook).

33. Ever notice how often you see quizzes and little surveys floating around on social media and in magazines? People tend to love filling out tests and quizzes. Including a small quiz to help people solve a problem, like what service or course they need, is too tempting for most people to pass up.

34. A nice trick to use on test or quiz results is offering an easy way for people to share their results. Often friends will see this and want to take the quiz as well so make sure you ask for their email before the quiz or afterwards in return for their results.

35. To encourage people to sign-up for emails offer a gift after sign-up. This could be a company logo sticker, a free white paper or a product sample.

36. Affiliate programs are a great way to help out leads while they help you. Word-of-mouth marketing comes into play here as well. Your lead often will recommend products to people she/he know personally that would be interested.

37. Similarly to an affiliate program, referral programs are also very effective for lead generation. Referral can happen via a special link, a banner or ad they place on their website or an individual referral code. Leads who share can be rewarded with points or a free product.

38. Social media is a wonderful place to set-up contests for followers. You can kill three birds with one stone: reach a wider audience, get more followers and get their email (by making it mandatory to enter content).

39. Contests are extremely versatile on a website as well. If you have a good foundation of leads already, a contest for a popular product in which the person with the most referrals wins can go viral.

40. A direct way of attaining leads is offering a free 30 minute consultation for every new person to sign-up for email or newsletters. This works particularly well for businesses that offer services and leads require assistance in which is right for them.

41. One internet platform too often ignored when it comes to lead generation are forums and message boards. Posting regularly can really help you connect with potential leads and give your business a reputable, pleasant name. Be sure all business information is included in your signature.

42. Ever hear the saying that people want what they can’t have? Flashes sales or premium products only available for a month urge people to sign-up and buy now rather than later.

43. In this digital age it’s often a shock to receive anything handwritten from a company. One trick to making your company memorable and convince that lead to make further purchases is include a quick thank you card in their order.

44. Follow up all purchases with an email a week or so after delivering inquiring on whether the customer way happy with their purchase and has any feedback. This can also be a good time to recommend another complimenting product you feel would also be useful.

45. Always publish a press release when you have a new product or service available. Make this known on all social media accounts and on your website. You can also include an “act now” offer for people who purchase or pre-order the new product/service.

46. Include a call-to-action in ever social media post by directly asking for a “like”, share, visit your website, etc. Make what you want the audience to do as clear as possible.

47. Consistently test your website and landing pages to see if there is any room for improvement. With land pages for examples, simply tweaking the words or offering a certain type of incentive can increase the number of people who sign-up.

48. Create a buyer persona for your business. Buyer personas are an avatar of the average lead you wish to acquire as a customer. Stick to this persona whenever offering content or changing your marketing campaign technique.

49. New businesses may consider buying leads while they wait for SEO and other marketing efforts to take full effect. Some marketers frown on this but for those in need, it can be successful. Be sure to choose a provider that is reputable and has excellent reviews.

50. Lead nurturing is just as important as lead generation. Once you’ve acquired leads, help them, communicate with them and see how you can help them. Nurturing a lead is what makes them a customer. If you’ve noticed tons of email signups, but no purchases, consider how you can fix your lead nurturing technique.