Lead gen is necessary to turn a potential customer into a loyal customer. Every CMO knows that!
A good lead gen strategy will reap long-term profit immensely. You know failing at your lead gen strategy will never let the world know how unique your brand is and will never bring new customers.
And probably the pain of not converting even after putting tons of money into your marketing and sales efforts. But thanks to the digital transformation uprisings, things are changing gradually!
For years, lead generation strategy was all about maximizing content marketing efforts to convert. Why? Because people feared that one day eventually, AI technologies as an intruder would rule every business operation. Just like how AI has cast its magic spell and wooed the C-suite community by bringing in automation and transformation across every process, it has now started ruling lead generation too! The good thing about these ‘intruders’? It can save tons of money and make your marketing efforts even more effective. Well, not just that, AI products and solutions can actually generate more leads than your current marketing approaches. Don’t trust us? Check for yourself!
As per the Harvard Business Review study, AI-powered systems may double lead generation while cutting qualification call time by as much as 70% and reducing costs by more than half.
Lead Nurturing
Most marketers are aware of the fact that prospects hover around their choice of products multiple times before they begin the purchase. That’s the reason why you should keep them hooked with additional information, promos, emails, SMS, offers, and follow-ups and at the same time collect the right information regarding their interest or choice.
But if you go by the traditional route, you might get many bogus and unqualified leads with irrelevant contact details. And if you spend on them without knowing their intent, your spending will be of no use. With AI chatbots, you can automate everything, from sending timely reminders, responding to queries 24×7, and carrying out contextual and personalized promotions within a short period of time, without thinking about errors that you are prone to when you do these things manually.
And one more thing to add! “ 62% Of US Consumers love using AI Chatbots to interact and converse with brands. Doesn’t it corroborate the fact that consumers are more willing to receive offers from chatbots?
Lead Qualification
Every sales head expects some ‘BlueBird’ to land and makes lead qualification effective. But the reality is not that simple; to qualify a decent lead and close sales, you need to invest a lot of time, effort, and money. It includes many follow-ups to determine if a current lead is of high value or worth pursuing. It is slow with dead ends! And, above that, most of the marketing leads never convert to sales.
This where AI leads the way.
In summary, AI-technologies with advanced algorithm separates good leads from bad leads by
a) Assessing the position of the Buyers
Analyzes the prospect’s position in the buying funnel by evaluating keywords used in the query or cost inquiry and assessing the frequency of contact and communication with the brand.
b) Evaluating the requirements of the prospect
AI technologies consider the customer’s demographics to identify which product will suit the customer and which one will not. Based on the analysis, the marketing team can take a step ahead to pitch products that match the prospect’s profile. This small step can enhance the chances of getting quality leads.
c) Analyze the effectiveness of marketing campaigns
The impressions, click rates, and opening rates are the key metrics to determine whether a marketing campaign has resonated well with the customers or buyers. AI-technologies with Machine Learning capabilities analyze each key performance metric of campaigns and collate actionable insights to improve decision making.
Needless to say, AI is faster and sharper, and time and again, it has proved to be the most effective technique when it comes to marketing automation. So, yes, AI is the bluebird for sales and marketing teams!
d) Goldmine of insightful data
The world of marketing and sales is not complete without data. Sounds pretty cinematic, right? But we can’t really help it! That’s how data is for this two functions-inseparable! Without data-driven insights, the marketing team will be lost in crosswords, not knowing what to do and how! Remember, every piece of interaction and conversation you have with your prospect brings data and (later insights). So, hold on to that goldmine of data and discover some vital stats that you can use to pitch your new offerings.
And, yes, this data is only going to snowball in the years to come. So, keep your hopes high and your eyes set on customers!
e) Brand visibility and engagement
Your job as a marketer doesn’t get over with just lead gen and qualification; you’ve to make your customers obsessed with your brand. How? You see, people do a lot of things these days to lure customers, ranging from quirky emails, exclusive promos, discounts to sending them personalized goodies. But all these are tried and tested, and you have already figured out what percentage of people are actually going to like such stuff.
The new-age customer expects more! In addition to personalized engagement and CX, they want their much-loved brands to provide support 24×7 and resolve queries without any delay. A big ask but a fair ask too! As per a report published by Harvard Business Review, a five-minute delay can result in your chances to attract leads. The delayed answer will lower your chances to get an effective lead up to 400% in ten minutes. With AI-powered chatbots and voice bots, you can assist your customers 24×7 and offer first-level contextual and empathetic support without keeping them waiting for long. And in return, you get all the love and support from your customers, even during tough times!
Pairing Human Intelligence with AI
Well, skeptics might argue that AI will trigger obsolescence and throw people out of jobs. But that’s not the case. AI complements Human Intellect, and it is here to save us from doing repetitive work while freeing up our time for something more productive. Nothing can beat the human intellect, not even machines. So, why be scared? Instead, maybe relish it. With growing features and capabilities, conversational AI technologies will bring in more opportunities and open up new avenues to increase ROI with maximum cost savings in the coming years.
Remember, we are the ones who make the machines intelligent! So, ready to nail your lead gen strategy this year with AI?
For customized AI solutions for lead generation, talk to us now!