Stages of the process lead capture process
We have previously discussed the types of leads and the different stages that a lead follows in its purchasing process: Early Buying Cycle (EBC), Mid Buying Cycle (MBC) and Late Buying Cycle (LBC). In these stages we advance from a stage of recognition of the need, quantification of the need, evaluation of the supplier (vendor) and completion of the purchase. These stages correspond to a vision of the Buying Cycle. But if we focus on the stages of the generation process we would have:
Consultations. Customers (leads) are in their initial stage of the sales cycle, early buying cycle (EBC) in which they may be quantifying their needs and, generally, they do not establish links or relationships with suppliers at this time (at least directly). Sometimes, the client themselves could be in a stage of recognizing their need, but we assume that it is normal for them to be in a more advanced stage. This stage of the process is usually led by the marketing team or third parties through content distribution (content agencies, social media teams, digital asset managers, email marketing, etc.).
Lead capture. This can be done through multiple lead generation vehicles: forms, click2call, call-me-back, outbound calls, social networks, events, syndicated content, content download, etc.
Pre-sale lead qualification. This can be done through third parties, as is the case with some telemarketing companies, internally with the marketing and pre-sales team, generating lead enrichment, or through vp security email lists marketing automation.
Lead transfer. During this stage, the lead is transferred from marketing to sales, who will be responsible for taking the lead to the next stages of the sales process with greater qualification (if required), working on conversion opportunities and, finally, preparing the lead for sale.
Sales lead qualification. During this most advanced stage of the sales process, the closer the lead has been to conversion as it progresses through the buying cycle. This is the final stage in which leads are ready to initiate the purchase.
Lead capture
Lead capture can be developed through multiple different marketing vehicles or through a combination of them. The main ones in the initial stages of the process are those that allow opening doors: webinars, email with calls-to-actions, events, outbound calls and syndicated content. Content downloads have the formats of infographics, access to information, white papers and others such as SEO, paid search, PR, social, direct mail, digital ads, digital advertising, activity in mobile apps or print advertising.
As customers, we often use multiple pieces of content across different channels before attempting to establish a more direct relationship with a potential vendor, so that mix of lead generation tactics should be considered based on campaigns and customer type. The interaction points where customers converse or interact with a vendor directly or indirectly can determine how a lead generation process moves faster or slower. In any case, combinations of different sources usually have a better response in terms of lead capture.
However, many companies still try to get us to share our data before sharing content, which is common in B2B Marketing . The risk with “hooked” content is that the potential client is not usually prepared to fill out long forms to get something they are not very interested in. To avoid this, companies try to reduce the problem through forms that are more easily auto-completed, taking advantage of LinkedIn’s auto-fill of information, or with automated fields to go more quickly at this stage.
Lead qualification, transfer and scoring
A lead is usually qualified according to a set of pre-established criteria, according to marketing criteria or according to sales requirements. Depending on the case or the other, the quality of the leads can be very different and these are aspects that must be considered. Alignment between marketing and sales is not only essential from the perspective of cultural harmony within the organization, but also in specific cases such as being aligned in the way of treating and qualifying a lead . The sequence that follows in the treatment of that lead will depend too much on these criteria to leave them to chance.
Likewise, the transfer process a lead from the marketing area to the sales area is one of the critical stages of the process and special care must be taken in the way in which this transfer is handled. In general, less than a quarter of the leads that arrive at a company's website are ready for the sales team to follow up on. This applies especially when the company does not have an ABM strategy implemented and when this traffic is not related to highly conversion-oriented performance campaigns, in which case these ratios should be higher.
For this reason, scoring processes and all enrichment strategies are necessary in order to improve the qualification of that lead and its preparation so that it can be addressed by sales. This scoring system allows the marketing team to understand which leads are best prepared for the transfer.
This transfer can occur in different ways, through various channels and according to the needs of the sales person depending on whether the lead is at the very beginning of the purchasing stage or is more in the final stage. The type of person who handles a lead can have a relevant impact on the way in which the lead is received and also on the potential path that the lead has in its purchasing sequence. Here we are not talking about the competence or ability of the person to whom we transfer the lead, it is exclusively a question of aligning the right person with the type of lead that has been generated . In the case of B2B, it is of utmost importance to send the lead of a certain product to the person who is capable of giving that person an answer, in a concrete and concise way. This occurs when the lead requires a specialist and we send it to a generalist. The probability that this lead will die is very high. Additionally, it is necessary to categorize the leads with details that enrich the information according to the different types of sales that we can make.
