The days of simply placing a newspaper ad or sending out a mail flyer and waiting for leads are gone. Instead, builders must build lead management programs from scratch. The creation process alone is overwhelming. Take it one step a time. Maximize your resources and time management through the following steps.
1) Define Specific Goals
What goals do you have for your building company with your lead management program? The more details you can give, the more effective your program will be.
2) Consider Your Assets to Establish a Baseline
Be honest about where your building company is right now with your leads and sales. Designate a strong member of your building company to oversee this program and supply them with the proper tools.
3) What Are Your Customers’ Preferences and Needs?
Learn your building customers preferred channels, posting frequency, and buying triggers. If customers prefer to engage in a social dialogue on Twitter about a new product vs. watch a commercial about it on TV, go with it.
4) Create and Implement a Lead Management System
The management system is just as important as the initial creation. Use your sales cycle data to determine the appropriate implementation schedule and modify it as needed.
5) Determine Successful Content Criteria
If your lead management content is not strong, none of your other efforts will matter. The content should always grab their attention, engage them, and then get them to act (i.e. buy a product, download a facts sheet).
6) Apply Your Content to the Sales Cycle
Consider the various sales cycle stages and then develop appropriate content for each stage, a process known as content mapping. Consider everything from e-mails to rewards programs to ebooks.
7) Editorial Strategy and Calendar: Map It Out
Plan your content in advance and schedule publishing dates and times. Each content plan should include a tentative title, brief outline, and resources.
8) Streamline Your Process: Refine, Develop, and Repeat
Continue to brainstorm new content, formatting, publishing times, etc. on a regular basis. Develop the content and study its effectiveness before starting the process over again.
9) Is It Working? Measure Your Results
The metrics that you need to consider include the following:
- Average Time to Conversion: How fast do your customers get from a lead to a sale?
- Percentage of Sales Lead Follow-up: What percentage of your leads get a follow up from your sales staff?
- Cost per Opportunity, Lead, Customer: In addition to standard costs (PPC, blogging, etc.), consider cost per opportunity and per acquisition.
Blog Post Written by Jimmy Donnellon
Jimmy is an inbound marketing professional with a background in public relations and marketing. Jimmy helps his clients found on the web, convert visitors into leads and helps them track their results.