One of the most exciting aspects of marketing is that it’s constantly evolving around innovation. Today, digital lead generation is the name of the game. This concept has taken the marketing world by storm to the point that 50% of marketing firms see digital lead generation as their top priority when conducting a campaign.

However, many businesses fail to see the value of adopting digital lead generation techniques despite them being a proven and effective solution for converting quality leads into sales. To help demonstrate this value, we’ve prepared a guide explaining what digital lead generation is and how it drives business growth, and share our top lead generation strategies for generating results.

What is Digital Lead Generation?

Generally speaking, digital lead generation is an assortment of online marketing tactics designed to attract audiences interested in your products and services and nurture them into a sale. Your marketing teams can implement digital lead generation strategies into each online campaign by nurturing leads through content pipelines engineered to convert them into customers. However, your plan will need to be rock solid because leads prefer to avoid pushy sales reps or spam messages.

The key to lead generation in digital marketing relies on understanding a customer’s pain points, then choosing a strategy that effectively positions your brand as the solution to these challenges.

Digital Lead Generation Strategies that Generate Results

Modern consumers are savvy. Digital audiences can see through traditional lead generation tactics that don’t accurately address their needs, pushing them even further away from a sale. Higher profit margins rely on trust once you have that your leads will not only convert to sales but loyal brand ambassadors—essentially free advertising. Here are nine of the most effective digital lead generation strategies for building lasting customer relationships online.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Search engine optimization (SEO) involves improving the quality and relevancy of your content to rank higher on organic search engine results pages. Qualified leads often Google key search phrases or look on YouTube for “how-to-videos” to solve a specific issue by clicking on the first or second available option. SEO is the most effective way to consistently drive traffic to your website by making your content more visible to consumers online. Learn more about SEO best practices by downloading our Ultimate Guide for Search Engine Optimization.

DOWNLOAD GUIDE

Download our free SEO guide for expert tips and tricks on dominating search engine rankings. We simplify the SEO process and explain how to create high-quality content that delivers organic traffic to your website. Learn about key features of impactful SEO, like:

  • Keywords research
  • Backlinks
  • Meta tags and optimized images
  • What to avoid when performing SEO

and other industry secrets that will land your content on the first page of any search engine. Download the Ultimate Guide for Search Engine Optimization now to start driving organic traffic and growing your digital presence.

 

Pay Per Click Advertising (PPC)

Pay-per-click advertising (PPC) is a digital lead generation strategy where companies purchase ads to be featured on search engine results pages. Under this model, you pay to have your links target specific demographics online, but only when those ads are clicked. Search Attribution Reporting and Pay Per Conversion are two of the most commonly used tools for PPC campaigns. The former grants complete visibility to your leads’ choices when converting into sales and which keywords impacted that conversion. In comparison, the latter automates bidding on keywords or ads based on “if/then” conditions determined by the marketer beforehand.

Lead Generating Landing Pages

A lead generation landing page is a web page designed to capture visitor’s contact information. An effective lead-generating webpage will always employ lead capturing tactics to persuade visitors to engage with your content. Two tactics that produce excellent results when converting leads are call-to-actions (CTA) and value offerings. A strong CTA encourages interested visitors to download high-value content from your website, while a value offer demonstrates how your brand can solve relevant problems.

Online Networking

In the more traditional days of advertising, if you wanted to build a reputation and gain referrals, you’d have to go door-to-door with a sales pitch. Today, online marketing has adjusted this approach to include the quality of your contacts. Your goal should always be connecting with the right people at the right time. With that in mind, social media becomes the perfect gateway to network your brand with these preferred leads, because of the unparalleled access it gives to online users.

Webinars

Webinars are a proven digital lead generation strategy based on offering an educational experience free of charge.  With registration being a requirement of most webinars, businesses can quickly gather and audit data from each online attendee. If you want your webinar to convert leads into sales, your messaging must have topics and information customers value; otherwise, it will fall flat.

The best way for your webinar to build customer trust is to work with interactive options like voting polls, surveys, live Q & A, and panel discussions. Prerecorded webinars have the benefit of viewer convenience but lack real-time audience engagement.

White Papers & E-Books

When it comes to effective digital lead generation techniques, white papers and e-books are reliable methods for gaining creditability and pulling in quality leads. Whitepapers and e-books are informative documents that speak to industry insights, topics of interest, or common customer pain points. These types of long-form content can be used as promotional material to market a specific product or service. Whitepapers and e-books can establish authority in your industry through in-depth research and persuade customers to buy into your brand.

Marketing Videos

It’s not a coincidence that YouTube, with over 2.6 billion active users, is one of the most influential platforms customers use . Consumers love having quick access to entertainment or how-to guides. Marketing videos can add a layer of sophistication, presenting and then simplifying complex services or even humanizing your team by introducing them to the public.  Recently, apps such as Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram have introduced tools for brands to widen their reach by creating interest through short-term video advertising.

E-Newsletters

E-newsletters are one of the most useful tools for lead generation in digital marketing. But, nailing down the focus of your message is vital for convincing new leads to sign up for your subscription list. The content in your newsletter needs to educate or entertain subscribers. Consider partnering with third parties to craft engaging content, highlight recent industry news, or showcase user-generated content in your newsletter. Don’t overthink it—your newsletter should be catchy, well-designed, and concise enough to leave a lasting impact.

Targeted Rich Content Blogs

Regarding digital lead generation strategies, blogs are a complex topic. Blogging doesn’t exactly draw in a large crowd when generating direct leads, but blogs do have the most flexibility in terms of the way you can optimize your content. Firstly, you can promote blogs across social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, allowing for greater reach than traditional print advertising. Secondly, you can implement SEO keywords to attract qualified leads towards your landing pages.

Conclusion

How we understand marketing and SEO’s role in online advertising will continue to evolve and change as technology develops. As these new advantages continue to emerge, the goal of digital marketing should be to work smarter, not harder. Use SEO tools to place your ads on the pulse of key issues qualified leads are searching for online and consider alternative lead generation methods like webinars and e-book curation. These digital lead generation strategies can help you map out a marketing plan that will attract, nurture, and convert valuable leads.