Perhaps you’ve been doing “okay” with your lead generation efforts, but you really want to know how to tap into those valuable resources. You could generate so much more leads within your business niche if you just knew how. Consider the following helpful advice as you think about how your plans should change.

Use social media as a lead generation tool. In social media, you need to not only build a presence, you also need to build a community. It’s an opportunity to build trust which will lead to more and more leads coming your way. Don’t just look at the obvious social media channels. Consider them all.

Look into pay per click campaigns to generate leads. The first place most people go to seek business opportunity is Google. If you aren’t on page 1 organically for the typical search terms they use, then you need to pay to be there. You only are charged if people click the ads, so it’s an excellent way to simply build brand awareness as well.

Set time every week to follow up with potential leads. It usually takes more than one touch point to turn a potential qualified lead into a real hot lead. SO after you’ve made first contact, set time a week or two later to touch base again. It’s about frequency here to make this person into a customer.

Find some way to rate your potential leads. Not all leads are created equal, so before you start generating them know how you’ll grade them. Otherwise you can find yourself overloaded with potential leads with no way to decipher which ones are worth your time. It’s a critical step to help you be efficient.

Make sure that any leads you get are original ones. It is common to buy leads quickly without checking for duplicates. You’d be surprised at how many duplicate leads can pop up. The most effective campaigns do not continually target customers that have not shown an interest in your products or services.

One thing you must do is to start and grow your “opt in” process for generating leads. You need a marketing newsletter or email marketing or mobile marketing plan for this. You can ask them to opt in on your website, through forums you’ve joined, blogs and in other places.

Search engine optimization can take awhile to get going, as can other lead generation techniques. While they are the best, and while some experts saying purchasing leads is a bad idea, it’s not always the case. Buying leads from a trusted source within your niche can actually be extremely beneficial.

Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone. A lot of people get scared of making a call to generate a lead. They think it’s akin to annoying telemarketing. But if you’ve got a solution to a problem a company is having, you’ll definitely get phone time with someone. Even if it’s not a long call, pitch it and get a meeting to continue the conversation.

Well, what do you think you’re going to do different now after reading this advice? Surely, you’re going to make some changes, and it’s now time to put those changes into effect. If you want your business to survive, it takes generating new leads, and you’re about to surprise yourself by following what you read.…