4 Ways to Generate On-Target Leads

If you’re using a wide net to attract new leads, you might be disappointed by your catch. 

Marketing to everyone has the same results as marketing to no one. 

Your message will get lost in the noise. 

Instead, get laser focused with your marketing, and use these four ways to generate on-target leads. 

1. Get to Know Your Customer 

First, identify who your ideal customers are, and then get to know them. 

Ask them questions such as what do you want to buy, what additional services or products are you interested in, where do you prefer to buy (online or in the store), and why do you want to buy from me?

Next, you’ll want to use the information you gathered from your discussions and segment your leads and customers into different groups based on their interests and demographics. This is called niche marketing.

2. Segment Your Market 

Niche marketing is an advertising strategy that focuses on a unique target market. 

Instead of marketing to everyone, niche marketing targets a group of people with similar interests or demographics, who would benefit from your product or service. 

This strategy is a great way to connect with people, and differentiate yourself from other companies. 

Niche marketing can be done through various mediums, including direct mail, social media, email marketing, and paid ads.

One way to think of niche marketing is to imagine fishing in a bucket instead of a large pond. 

The chances of hooking a fish are much greater where there’s a concentrated group of fish in a small bucket. In a large pond, you’re more likely to come up empty-handed or hook something other than a fish. 

Same goes with your potential customers. 

When you place them into buckets and target them with bait they can’t resist, they’ll easily convert and become repeat customers.

3. Use AIDA

All consumers move through a series of stages when making a purchase. 

The AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) model is a step-by-step process that outlines a person’s thoughts and emotions when making a buying decision. It culminates in the individual taking an action. 

Attention

First, an individual becomes aware of a product or service, generally through your advertising. 

A business’s advertising acts as the bait to lure customers in. 

The ad and copy must be relevant and appealing to the target audience. 

And it must be placed in a medium that appeals to the segment and matches their buying behavior. 

For example, if you want to appeal to a younger audience, you’ll probably have more success using paid ads on social media platforms than you will with direct mail campaigns. 

Gen Z and Millennials are comfortable with shopping online and prefer to make purchases through the internet. 

Conversely, the Baby Boomer generation prefers to shop in the store or at a location. If you want to attract this group, you’ll have more success sending an ad through direct mail with an offer that might entice them into your store.

Interest

Once the consumer becomes aware of your company, he or she shows interest in learning more about your brand, and how it fits with his or her lifestyle. 

In this step, a potential customer may visit your website, drop by your store, or speak to someone in sales.

Desire

If the person likes what they see and thinks your service will fulfill their needs, the person will develop a strong feeling of wanting towards your product or service. 

In this step, you’ll want to sell the value and benefits of buying from your company through customer testimonials or white papers.

Action

Lastly, the individual will make a decision to shop around, engage in a trial, sign up for your email newsletter or make a purchase.  

To get the AIDA model right, your business needs to hit each of the four steps through specific mediums that will deliver your message to the best possible customers. 

Another way of looking at your lead generation strategy is Target, Offer, and Copy. If your target is right, and you’ve got a good offer, leads will be drawn in to take an action. 

4. Identify Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) & Guarantee

Within the copy of your ads, you’ll want to identify what makes your product or service attractive. This is called your unique selling proposition (USP). 

You can shape it by determining how you are different from your competitors. 

What is one thing in your industry that your business does that others don’t?

Whatever it is, make sure to identify it and use it to differentiate yourself in your marketing.

One way that you can separate yourself from your competitors is to offer a guarantee.

Many successful online retailers have free return policies to stand out, helping them create raving fans. Case in point, Amazon. 

Once you identify your USP and establish a guarantee, begin defining each in your marketing. 

Perhaps you’ll want to be seen as an industry expert or a preferred choice for the product that you sell. 

Whatever you decide, make sure to include it as the focal point in your marketing and advertising. 

The more your business becomes specialized in the marketplace, the less likely you’ll have to compete on price.

Which will allow you to get more creative with your marketing and see better results.