Essential Lead Generation Tips for This Fall
American columnist and author Jim Bishop perhaps said it best when he wrote that “Autumn carries more gold in its pocket than all other seasons.” Indeed, there are few times of year that bring with them such splendor and contemplation as the fall.
And as 2018 turns the corner from Q3 to Q4, businesses look ahead to the end of the year and consider what they can do carry more gold in their pockets. For many of those looking to increase revenue, that can mean trying to generate more leads. And while it may seem impossible to generate new leads out of the crisp autumn air, there are plenty of steps you can take to drum up more business this fall so that you can move confidently into those lean winter months.
1. Set S.M.A.R.T. Goals
Yes, it is important to set goals, but are you familiar with SMART goals as written about by Professor Robert S. Rubin? It’s an acronym for the creation of goals that are clear and reachable, leaving vague objectives like “improve performance” in the dust.
SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
By applying these standards to your goals and forcing a level of detail and accountability to them, you have a better chance of actually reaching them. If you’ve already got professional goals for 2018, challenge each one with the SMART goal method. If you’re finding your goals are too ambiguous or impractical, take the time to refine them for the fall.
2. Perform a Website Audit
Any time you are taking stock of your business it is worth it to perform a thorough audit of your website to find anything that may be amiss. Make sure all your pages are operational and that you don’t have any broken links among your content. Read through all your content and double check it for accuracy and relevance. Check all images—do they load when clicked on?—and submit test messages through your contact portals.
Also, open up your website on as many devices and browsers as possible. Does everything look the same on an Android phone as it does on a MacBook? How is everything running in Internet Explorer? Runs some speed tests as well to confirm that everything is loading quickly and smoothly. By really kicking the tires on your website, you can feel confident that it won’t bounce any new leads.
3. Research Your Competitors
As long as you are making time to examine your website, set aside a good portion of time (more than fifteen minutes) to poke around the websites of your competitors. See what they might be offering that you aren’t. Look at all their social channels and perform a web search to see how far and wide they reach. If you spot them doing something differently, don’t just copy it. Brainstorm ways to improve upon them or go farther so that you stand out, rather than following their trends.
4. Seek Out and Fix “Leaky Buckets”
Sometimes you can be getting plenty of traffic on your site but not get a respectable rate of conversions. This could mean you have a “leaky bucket”—a sales funnel with room for improvement. Fixing a leaky bucket can be difficult, but it will go much farther in the long run. If your sales funnel is operating at peak efficiency, then you’ll reap even bigger rewards from any traffic increases.
The best place to start for faults in your sales funnel is to examine your landing page and forms. Check if there is something in your form that is giving a percentage of your site visitors pause. Try some A/B testing on forms and see what little changes might have an impact. Even if you fix just one leak, you’ll have made a major impact.
5. Get Real with Your Lead Generation
We don’t mean “get real” in terms of wising up—we mean that you shouldn’t forget to seek out leads and industry insights in real life. Fall is a very popular time for conventions and industry conferences. These events offer great opportunities to find new partners, learn about emerging technologies, and generally increase your knowledge base and public profile.
Take advantage of the crisp, spice-scented air on the east coast or the perfectly sunny and 72 weather of the west and plan a work trip or two. You’ll almost certainly get to see some fall colors, and you might even end up with a little extra “gold” in your pocket when all is said and done.
Speaking of events, you can keep up with where Zero Parallel will be this fall on our events page. And if you haven’t already, join our vast network of Affiliates by registering with us today.
