In most modern marketing campaigns, successfully nurturing leads is not just a strategy, it is a necessity.
In fact, it’s well known that 96% of website visitors are not yet ready to buy. As it turns out, lead generation, on its own, is not enough.
If you ask Forrester Research, companies that invest in lead nurturing generate 50% more sales leads at a 33% lower cost per lead.
Are you ready to find out more about a lead nurturing campaign that can bring more sales? Let’s not waste any more time, then.
What Is Lead Nurturing?
Briefly put, lead nurturing is the process of developing and maintaining relationships with potential customers at every stage of the sales funnel.
This involves everything from the first point of contact with the prospect to personalized communication that guide them towards making a purchase decision.
What makes nurturing leads so important is that it helps you to convert them into loyal customers. However, hosting a lead nurturing campaign has a number of challenges and potential mistakes can be made.
Those of which may very well limit your chances of developing these loyal relationships.
What Are the Biggest Challenges in Lead Nurturing Campaigns?
- Identifying Quality Leads
- Keeping the Engagement
- Analyzing Data
- Scaling Personalization
- Being Consistent
1. Identifying Quality Leads
Sometimes, it can be very difficult to differentiate between high-qualified leads and ones that may not be quite as effective. This can lead to spending a lot of time and effort only to find out that the results aren’t what you expected them to be.
As lead generation specialist, Emily White, said: “A significant challenge is ensuring that your efforts are directed towards leads that have genuine potential.”
To solve this problem, you should set up a lead scoring system that prioritizes leads based on their chance of conversion.
For example, assign points for every action they perform, such as: visiting your blog (+1 point), opening your email (+5 points), viewing your pricing page (+10 points), and so on.
2. Keeping the Engagement
You might be successful in engaging with a lead once, but can you keep the connection over time, and not be intrusive?
Yeah, B2B lead nurturing is not as simple as you might think. You have to balance informational content with promotional ones. Being overly promotional can irritate people, and cause the opposite effect of what you want to achieve.
Luckily, the world of artificial intelligence is here to help. In fact, the latest lead nurturing trends are to use AI-driven content recommendations.
Artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms collect data on the preferences, behavior, and interactions of users, so you can create personalized content, based on these suggestions. This allows you to maintain engagement via timely, effective and relevant messages.
3. Analyzing Data
Oftentimes, marketers find it hard to track and analyze data from different sources. Sometimes this is because the data is inconsistent, other times, the culprit is the sheer volume of data from multiple sources, which makes it overwhelming to handle.
It’s no wonder that the use of predictive analytics to anticipate lead behavior is on the rise. Real-time data processing might require a stable infrastructure and working with advanced tools, but it can give a huge boost to real-time decision-making.
4. Scaling Personalization
It is easy to personalize your messages for a few prospects, yet as the number grows, it gets harder to manage. Personalization at a scale is a challenge for every marketer, unless they’re using the right automation tools.
However, you need to be cautious of overly relying on automation tools. Using them too often can make your interactions feel impersonal and robotic, which can make you seem untrustworthy.
Ultimately, you need to find the right balance between automation and adding that personal touch only a real human connection can provide.
5. Being Consistent
Consistency is key. No one says it’s easy to achieve, but it’s essential to your b2b lead nurturing efforts. Being inconsistent when communicating with prospects can result in confusion and a loss of interest on their side.
As Brian Halligan, co-founder of HubSpot, puts it: “Consistency is key. If you’re not following up in a timely manner, you’re missing opportunities.”
Put into practice, if your company takes too long to follow up on your conversation with a lead, they’ll most probably engage with a competitor that is more responsive.
Again, we need to clarify that you need a balance between being consistent and not being annoying. Email cadence does matter. Figure out the optimal time and frequency for your communication. The same principle applies, whether your conversations are done by email, over the phone or in person.
Common Mistakes in Lead Nurturing Campaigns: Top 4
- Focusing on Sales Too Much
- Overloading Leads with Information
- Failing to Provide Clarity
- Struggling to Align Sales and Marketing Teams
1. Focusing on Sales Too Much
Sometimes, sales reps and marketers forget about the nature of normal human interactions.
How would you react to a salesman that is just desperately trying to sell you something, and doesn’t really care about anything else? Most likely, you would feel pressured or uncomfortable, and try to avoid that salesman, right?
Similarly, using aggressive sales tactics can turn off leads pretty quickly. A much more effective approach would be to develop relationships over time and slowly build trust during the lead nurturing process.
2. Overloading Leads with Information
Information overload (a.k.a., information anxiety, infobesity or intoxication) makes it difficult for a person to understand what is being said and therefore to make a decision.
You might instinctively want to share everything in an article or email, or even in a 5-minute conversation, but that will most likely do more harm than good.
It’s a very common mistake, not only in lead nurturing campaigns, but in sales, marketing and in communication.
A much more effective way to present information would be to break it down into smaller, more consumable pieces that are easier to understand.
3. Failing to Provide Clarity
Continuing our previous line of thought, it is equally important to be relevant and concise when communicating. You may say a lot and still be unclear, or you could say a few sentences, but capture the attention of your audience by being direct and interesting.
Another aspect you should carefully consider is guiding prospects to take the next step. More often than not, leads are left confused and not knowing where to join the sales funnel.
They are simply unsure of what action to take. That is why it’s important to add clear call-to-actions, making sure that there are also actionable steps for them to follow.
“Always guide your leads to the next step. Make it easy for them to move forward.” – Jay Baer, Founder of Convince & Convert
4. Struggling to Align Sales and Marketing Teams
It’s a big mistake when your marketing and sales teams fail to communicate properly. This can lead to inconsistent messaging, and a negative experience for everyone, leads included.
On top of that, the lack of proper alignment between the teams might result in each not sharing crucial data and insights about leads, meaning missed opportunities for personalized nurturing and timely follow-ups.
Alternatively, if both your sales and marketing work in tandem, they can create a great experience for your prospects, and increase your chances of keeping them as clients in the long run.
Wrapping Up
Creating and executing a lead nurturing campaign is not a piece of cake. You have to know your audience, maintain consistent messaging, provide clarity and align your sales and marketing teams.
That said, investing in lead nurturing can also most certainly increase your sales, while lowering your cost per lead.
You are not sure you can handle everything on your own, and you are now wondering what to do?
Whether it’s creating engaging content, implementing automation tools, or aligning your teams, we’ve got you covered.
Team DevriX
This article is crafted by DevriX's seasoned marketing team, boasting over four decades of collective expertise in crafting sophisticated marketing funnels, devising comprehensive content frameworks and pillars, implementing engaging email campaigns, and creating impactful social media content designed for scalability.
Our marketing experts specialize in the complete spectrum of inbound marketing strategies. As an accredited HubSpot Agency Partner and a Semrush Partner, we engage in meticulous research, blending our extensive experience with the unique insights of our highly skilled team.
We set benchmarks in content creation by incorporating cutting-edge marketing trends, leveraging in-depth industry research, and utilizing state-of-the-art AI tools for data segmentation and captivating content hooks. Our proficiency extends across a diverse range of sectors, including working with SMEs, Fortune 1000 companies, global B2B brands, major publishing entities, WooCommerce platforms, business directories, and affiliate networks.
