B2B lead generation: what’s working right now?

We share the latest research, benchmarks and advice that will help you reassess your lead generation channels and identify those approaches proven to deliver results.

Word of mouth may be King but who’s the Queen?

It’s no surprise that word of mouth and referrals reign supreme when it comes to B2B lead generation. It has always been a powerful way to generate leads, particularly when done strategically however it is limited by scale.

B2B Lead Generation - Conversion Rate Table — Source: Average Conversion Rate from Lead to Opportunity – Marketo Data Tells Us: What Is the Top Conversion Rate by Channel?

When broader outreach is needed, inbound content marketing comes into its own. The channel, used by 91% of B2B marketers, provides a strong ROI and delivers warmer inquiries compared to cold outreach campaigns. However, it doesn’t come without its own challenges.

What content marketing isn’t

Organisations that are unsuccessful with content marketing are likely to be doing one or more of the following:

1. Publishing content that’s not tuned in to potential buyers, doesn’t recognise their challenges and lacks proof.
2. Sharing self-serving or self-focused stories (the “Read all about us!” approach, you’ve read this stuff before and probably switched off).
3. Poorly timed distribution that misses prime engagement times.
4. Using dull formats which don’t engage with their audience.
5. Lack of content and keyword strategy.

These mistakes mean the opportunity to engage with prospects, and nurture them, are missed.

In contrast, those that that see success through content marketing have a clear and documented strategy (only around 37% of organisations), invest in their content marketing efforts (40% of marketing budget vs 14% of those who are the least successful) and work within an organisation that has a strongly aligned sales and marketing team.

B2B Lead Generation - Leads vs Alignment Chart — Source: State of Inbound Global Report 2018

What does successful content marketing look like?

B2B Lead Generation - Content Marketing Graph — Source: 2018 B2B Lead Gen Outlook

Blog articles, whitepapers and research reports remain among the most fruitful forms of content marketing.

Key is to ensure they are well-researched, long-form pieces of content and provide real value to your prospects.

What’s more, video is becoming harder and harder to ignore, even in the B2B space.

However, successful content marketing doesn’t happen in isolation. For the best results, it will be integrated with your SEO, social media and email marketing strategies.

Account based marketing for your hottest prospects

Account Based Marketing (ABM) is a more focused approach than content marketing but still not as personal as referral marketing.

ABM works because it focuses heavily on building quality relationships (something we’re naturally advocates of). With 84% of marketers reporting that ABM has significant benefits to retaining and expanding existing client relationships, it’s one to seriously consider for your marketing mix.

These are just some of the proven approaches that will help you build impactful B2B lead generation marketing. Get the balance right and you’ll shape a strategy that works short-term, longer term, and which supports wider outreach and focused efforts for those truly hot prospects.

Do your B2B lead generation strategies need a shake up?” Feel like your marketing mix isn’t filling your lead funnel as you’d like it to? We help businesses review their channel mix and find one that works. To find out more, drop us a line.