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Objective

Lead generation

Finding people and companies interested enough to talk to sales.

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Lead generation finds people and companies interested enough to talk to sales, and hands them over at the right moment. An integrated plan pairs being found and being useful (search, guides, webinars, trade shows) with steady follow-up by email and messaging. It also keeps some brand building going, because most business buyers are not in the market yet.

What matters when choosing

  • A definition of a qualified lead that marketing and sales have agreed and written down.
  • Content worth exchanging contact details for, built on the questions buyers actually ask.
  • Fast, relevant follow-up, with scoring and routing so that the right person calls back while interest is warm.
  • Consent captured properly in every market, since the rules for email, messaging and calls differ by country.
  • Measures that run through to revenue: qualified leads and meetings booked to steer, pipeline won to prove it.

Questions to ask vendors and agencies

  1. How do you define a qualified lead, and how many of yours become meetings and then deals?
  2. How will a lead reach the right salesperson, how quickly, and who follows up if nobody does?
  3. What are we doing for the buyers who will not be ready this quarter?

Common mistakes

  • Counting form fills and badge scans instead of meetings and deals.
  • Buying lists or leads of unknown origin, which hurts deliverability and trust.
  • Cutting all brand activity to fund lead campaigns, which empties the pipeline later.

Typical disciplines Search (SEO and paid search) Content marketing Events and experiential Email marketing Digital advertising Messaging marketing

Platforms that fit (11)

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