Lead generation. We all know we need it, but many organisations still struggle achieve it in a cost-effective, streamlined and scalable way. Should businesses try outbound or inbound? How many quality leads typically convert? How does interest turn to conversion?
In this Quick Guide, AZK Media shares some key statistics, facts and figures on lead generation and factors to consider in order to drive growth and business success.
Automation
According to reports, 80% of marketers who use automation software end up driving increased leads by as much as 451%. Meanwhile 77% of them convert more leads than those who don’t use automation.
B2B
The three most commonly used B2B lead generation strategies are email marketing (78%), event marketing (73%), and content marketing (67%).
Budget
Marketers are still focusing heavily on lead generation, with 53% of them spending half or more of their entire budget on lead gen tactics. Only 34% of marketers spend less than half their budget on lead generation, which makes sense - you have to fill the funnel somehow!
Challenge
Lead generation is not easy. According to a report from Hubspot, 61% of marketers consider generating traffic and leads to be their biggest challenges.
Convert
Research shows following up with online leads in less than five minutes makes them nine times more likely to convert into paying customers.
Content
According to Demand Metric, content marketing is three times as effective at generating leads than outbound marketing (such as cold calling), while costing 62% less. Similarly, 93% of B2B companies say content marketing generates more leads than traditional marketing strategies.
Difficult
Almost half (49%) of B2B marketers find social media lead gen to be the most difficult marketing activity to implement. But it doesn't have to be hard, if you partner with the right specialists.
According to Strategic, 42% of companies consider email to be one of their most important lead generation channels. Email drives higher ROIs than any other lead generation tool, and for every dollar spent on email marketing, you can expect to earn a $42 back, a 4400% ROI, higher than any other lead generation tool. Hubspot also found emails sent out for lead nurturing purposes had an average click-through rate (CTR) of 8%, significantly higher than regular emails, which had an average CTR of 3%.
43% of B2B marketers have acquired customers through Facebook, and social media lead conversion rates are 13% higher than the average lead conversion rate.
Funnel
Marketing Sherpa found 73% of leads aren’t sales-ready, and to get them ready, marketing teams need to engage with them and move them down the sales funnel with nurturing activities.
Generating leads
Lead generation outsourcing is 43% more efficient than generating leads in-house, most likely due to specialist expertise.
High quality
61% of B2B marketers say generating high-quality leads is their biggest challenge.
Information
Marketing Donut found 63% of customers who ask for information about your brand won’t be ready to buy for at least three months - so get that lead nurturing program happening.
Inbound
Outbound leads cost 39% more than inbound leads.
Jump
93% of B2B companies say content marketing generates more leads than traditional marketing strategies, a big jump compared to a decade ago.
Keep attention
82% of purchasing consumers view at least five pieces of content first before buying from the winning company. 47% of B2B buyers view at least 3–5 pieces of content before they contact a sales representative. 96% of B2B buyers look for more information from industry thought leaders before buying.
Read more at Gist: 20+ Content Marketing Statistics that Show the Power of Content https://getgist.com/content-marketing-statistics/
Landing pages
Companies see a 55% increase in leads when increasing their number of landing pages from 10 to 15, and 68% of businesses use strategic, high-converting landing pages to get their leads to take action, whether that’s signing up to their mailing list, following them on social media, or making a purchase, says Marketo.
Lead generation from LinkedIn was successful for 65% of B2B companies, and LinkedIn dominates lead generation for B2B businesses, with 80% of B2B leads coming from the platform, says Oktopost. Only 47% of marketers are actively using LinkedIn, despite the fact that 45% of them have gained customers through the platform reports Quicksprout.
Mobile
59% of B2B buyers use smartphones to research B2B products and services, and mobile apps play a significant role in content marketing, according to 83% of B2B marketers. Half of B2B buyers are using smartphones for business purchases, with 40% of these purchases directly influenced by such devices.
Nurture
DemandGen reports 79% of marketing leads never convert into sales, and lack of nurture is the main cause for this. Lead nurturing drives 20% more sales opportunities than non-nurtured leads. A study from Marketo found businesses who nurture leads enjoy 50% more sales and those sales cost an average of 33% less than non-nurtured prospects. Annuitas found nurtured prospects make 47% larger purchases than non-nurtured prospects. The lesson? Nurturing your leads is absolutely vital.
Outbound
Outbound leads (cold calling and pitching) cost 39% more than inbound leads. Only 18% of professionals believe that outbound practices can provide high-quality leads.
Prospects
A study from MarketingSherpa found only a quarter of businesses regularly reach out to prospects each week.
Quality leads
Increasing quality leads is the top priority for 68% of B2B professionals, followed by increasing lead volume at 55%, says B2B Technology Marketing Community.
Relevance
1 in 7 consumers believes that only half their emails are relevant to them and as a result, 59% end up unsubscribing from email lists of brands because of the frequency of their emails.
Sales
79% of your leads won’t ever convert to sales says Next Leap Strategy. This could be due to a mix of lack of nurture tactic, lead capture mistargets or lack of sales/marketing collaboration - so be realistic about your strategy and alignment.
SEO
A study from Marketing Charts found both B2B (59%) and B2C (49%) marketers thought SEO had the biggest impact on their lead generation goals.
Social media
Social Media Examiner says two-thirds of marketers spend just six hours a week on social media. Unsurprising that marketers also say they find social media as the most 'difficult' lead gen channel.
Struggling
68% of businesses report they are struggling with lead generation.
Timing
When is it best to send an EDM to support lead generation? Optinmonster says 1PM is the best time.
Unsure
25% of marketers don’t have any idea of their conversion rates. Startling and concerning, given today's data-driven decision-making business landscape.
Video
The Content Marketing Institute found the majority of B2B marketers think video content is more effective at converting qualified leads than other types of content. 90% of customers say video helps them make buying decisions, and 64% of customers say that seeing a video makes them more likely to buy, says Forbes.
Vital
85% of B2B marketers say lead generation is their most important content marketing goal, says the Content Marketing Institute.
Website
The first five seconds of page-load time have the highest impact on conversion rates. Website conversion rates drop by an average of 4.42% with each additional second of load time.
'X'perience
Salesforce reveals 80% of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products and services, so don’t be a one trick pony.
Yes
Only 5-10% of qualified leads successfully convert for marketers. That seems like a pretty big disconnect between the the number of prospects inquire about a product or service and those that actually say 'yes'. Why? Lack of nurturing seems to be a pretty big culprit.
Zero attention span
Since the beginning of the century, consumer attention span has decreased by 33%.
Need leads? Let AZK Media help streamline and scale your inbound lead generation for you. Contact us to find out how we can help.