I received an email this week from someone who had bought my new Blogging Means Business lead-generating package and wanted to know how best to use the various elements it contains.
As I remember only too well buying products when I started out online and then wondering what on earth to do with them, I thought I would share my thoughts on this for those of you in a similar boat.
First off, a lead-gen package such as this is designed to save you the hours, and probably days, it would take to research, write and produce the kind of high quality content that convinces people to invest in your services, give you their email and follow your Calls to Action because it positions you as an expert.
Blogging Means Business, like my other lead-gen packages, is centred on a report/white paper that disseminates valuable, relevant information without overtly selling to prospects. Instead, it follows the fundamentals of good content marketing by establishing in the reader’s mind the desire to learn or get more.
White papers like this are a top lead-gen tactic and for a very good reason: they work. To understand just how valuable they are in B2B content marketing, take a look at the latest study by clicking on the link below:
http://marketingland.com/white-papers-are-top-b2b-content-marketing-lead-gen-tactic-study-57499
So what do you do with your white paper/report once you’ve got it?
A common mistake many people make is to simply provide a white paper or report immediately as a download in return for an email address. This robs you of the chance to build anticipation and to leverage that anticipation for increased response.
Instead of sending that report or white paper out straight away, try the following:
1. Send your new subscriber to a thank you page immediately after they have signed up. Gently offer your products and services on that page so that your subscriber has a chance to see what value you can bring to them and/or their business. Make sure to put the email address from which they will be receiving their white paper/report so they can whitelist it.
2. Send out a confirmation email so you have another chance to introduce yourself, your products and services while the subscriber is waiting to receive their free content. You can include links to your blogs, sales pages etc.
3. Finally send out their free content an hour or so after they have signed up (you can easily set this up in your autoresponder) and, again, include links to your sites etc.
4. Don’t stop there! Follow up with a newsletter or eCourse if you have one – Blogging Means Business contains an eCourse for this express purpose so you then have a 7 step sequence in which to further impress and seduce your prospects with the value of your information and your clear expertise. To understand how well this works, click here.
5. In addition, you can use multimedia material to extend and expand upon the content you have already disseminated. This is especially useful as people have varying preferences for the way they take in information. Blogging Means Business contains various PowerPoints for this purpose (and videos in the upgrade version) so you can embed these on your site, use them to drive more traffic or as the basis for webinars, thereby cementing your expert status.
For an excellent demonstration of how well these methods work, go here:
http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2013/11232/the-most-effective-b2b-lead-generation-methods
Other components such as the social media Memes and Infographic I included in this package can be deployed in numerous ways, whether that’s on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to pique interest and drive prospects to your site or simply to reinforce your own brand and status as an expert source or provider.
Of course, all of this works as well for online marketers as offline consultants. Offline consultants have the additional option of printing out the material and/or burning it to DVDs to create physical versions they can leave with or send to prospects as well as using them to provide the basis for seminars and talks.
Ultimately, the real value of a package like this lies in the instant solution it provides for you. Rather than spending years acquiring the expertise required to put something like Blogging Means Business together, you can simply spend a few dollars on it and put it to immediate, profitable use.
The same applies to any high quality lead-gen package you acquire but, without wishing to blow my own trumpet, please do be careful where you acquire material. I have been a professional writer for many years, working in commercial sectors that demanded world class content. You cannot churn out any old dross for a Blue Chip company and I hold to the same high professional standards for the packages I produce.
I want them to give you the gloss and depth you need to be taken seriously in your marketplace. And you do need both – the first to attract and the second to convince. Use material like this in the way I have suggested and you can shortcut that learning curve we all have to go through to capture and then retain leads. They are not just the lifeblood of your business but the heart, muscle and bones so long as you convert them to loyal customers.
If you still do not have Blogging Means Business and would like to check it out then Click Here
