There are 3.5 billion social media users worldwide, which is roughly half of the world’s population. Businesses can connect with customers anywhere in the world with the click of a button at low to no cost using social media lead generation. It shouldn’t be a surprise that social media marketing is the most popular method of lead generation among marketers around the globe.
While your company may be using various social media platforms to create brand awareness and increase social engagement, if you’re not using them to generate leads, you’re missing out.
In this article, you’ll learn social media lead generation tips to help you capitalize on the time and effort you spend using the various social media platforms.
Leads vs Sales
First, remember that a lead is not a sale. A lead is information you have about people, such as an email address, that you can use to stay in contact with them. Leads have the potential to become paying customers.
A good-quality lead is a person or business who intends to do business with you. Social media is a free, easy way to learn about your target audience, their interests, and their pain points.
Succeeding at Social Media Lead Generation
Now is a great time to intensify the focus on your social media leads, especially since advertising costs are lower and usage is higher.
1. Organic vs Paid Leads
Decide how your company is going to focus its lead generation. Organic leads are free, utilizing SEO to help customers find you on their own via keyword searches. When they find you organically, customers tend to trust the information more.
Paid leads, such as ads, enable you to reach an audience you might otherwise not reach organically.
2. Call-To-Action
At the end of every post, even if it’s a video, tell the customers what you want them to do. If you don’t, you’re missing an opportunity to generate leads.
The call-to-action (CTA) can include things like signing up for your newsletter, taking a survey, entering a contest, or signing up for a webinar.
A CTA is your way of continuing the relationship with the customer by getting their contact information. Make sure your links are visible and that any form they have to fill out is quick and straightforward.
3. Incentives
With so much spam flooding their inboxes, customers may be reluctant to give you their contact information unless they gain something valuable from it.
One of the most common incentives is an ebook, but other incentives could include winning a prize by entering your contest, getting a coupon for your product or service, or tickets to a free webinar.
If you’ve used social media to learn more about your audience, you’ll know what opt-in features will appeal to them the most.
4. Platform Selection
Each platform has its own culture and draws people of certain demographics. For B2B companies, LinkedIn ranks highest and has a formal, professional tone.
Instagram works well for many B2C companies and conveys information through crisp, high-resolution photos, images, and videos. For this reason, yoga studios and restaurants have a strong presence on this platform.
Of all the social media channels, Facebook is still one of the best lead-generating sites. If you decide to invest in some paid leads, Facebook offers low-cost options.
Regardless of what the stats reveal about which platforms are “best” for generating leads, the right channels are the ones your clients use.
Be sure to create a solid profile, including a way to contact you, a link to your website, and a CTA, such as a link to your newsletter.
5. Content Integration
Producing consistent, high-quality content is one of the best ways to increase your SEO rankings, allowing customers to find you organically.
After posting a blog on your website, maximize its mileage by sharing it via your social media platforms in an engaging way with the appropriate hashtags. Be sure to also drive traffic back to your website.
Familiarize yourself with each platform’s nuances regarding content sharing. Instagram, for example, won’t allow links in your posts, so one of your post’s CTAs needs to direct people to the link in your .
LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook make it easy for you to include your link in your post. LinkedIn even has a publishing platform for articles, allowing you to establish yourself as an industry expert.
Make sure your website has an opt-in feature that captures your customer’s contact information. As mentioned above, customers are much more likely to do this if there’s an incentive versus just receiving your newsletter.
6. Videos
Videos are great for demonstrating a product, but you can also use them to give people a taste of a class or service you are promoting.
Certain platforms, like Instagram, are ideal for photos and videos, but quality is a must. Otherwise, users will scroll to the next video.
Consider adding subtitles so that people who don’t have their volume on can immediately see what the video is about and decide to watch it.
Be sure to include a CTA (Call-to-Action) at the end of the video. YouTube Ads have paid options for effectively incorporating the CTA into your video.
7. Analytics
The one thing you can count on is that the digital world is always changing. Those changes can have a huge impact, such as Google’s 2019 algorithm update known as “Fred.”
Refine your social media marketing plan based on how your platforms are performing by tracking and evaluating your analytics.
Your Call-to-Action
Choose one of the social media lead generation tips above and decide how your company will implement it. Feeling overwhelmed? That’s understandable.
Social media marketing is both an art and a science, requiring creativity, consistency, data analysis, and more. This is why many companies hire full-time staff for this job alone.
We can assist you with anything from creating a social media marketing plan and handle all aspects of your social media advertising. Click here to learn more about how we can ensure your company’s voice is heard.
