How to increase sales in the most unexpected ways

Sales are the most important part of any B2B business, and in order to get sales it will be necessary for you to generate leads first.

It is way easier to convert cold traffic into paying customers with B2C, while a sales cycle is longer with B2B, since 94% of B2B buyers research their products before buying them. Lead generation requires tactical skills and plenty of sales finesse for this reason. Since, according to statistics, acquiring high quality leads is the biggest challenge for 61 percent of B2B marketers, freelancers who specialize in lead generation are unsurprisingly in constant demand.

While many people have written and talked about the best ways to find B2B leads, your results can always improve if you are thinking outside the box.

This article is going to give you some insight on the 10 unexpected lead sources for B2B marketers.

1. Quora

Quora is a question-and-answer platform on which you can share insights with other experts and enthusiasts within your field, but also ask any kind of question you may have. Whether you want to talk about gardening, technology or business, you will be able to find several people to talk about these things with on Quora.

By answering people’s questions with expert advice to those in your industry, you will be able to gain credibility and people might even visit your profile or landing page after reading your valuable insights.

2. Cold calling

While this has been around for decades, cold calling tactic isn’t as popular as it once was. Because people can now easily be reached through email and social media nowadays, picking up the phone and risking getting rejected isn’t as appealing anymore. Because most people typically want to avoid cold calling, you might gain an edge over your competitors by stepping up and doing it properly.

3. Interviews

Doing an interview with an industry expert for your website, blog or podcast can get you a lot of traction on your landing page. Especially if the interviewee is a known name in your field, an interview will bring an influx of new traffic to your site. You should try to pick someone whose audience would have an interest in your services as well. Offering a transcript of the podcast as a downloadable content upgrade for lead generation purposes can also be a very smart option.

4. Upgrading content

Marketers often create generic lead magnets as ebooks and checklists for instance. Instead one-size-fits-all approaches to acquiring contact information, you will be able to receive better results by thinking more thoroughly and specifically.

We recommend that you revisit your blog posts that receive the highest amount of traffic, then offer downloadable content upgrades at the end of each post. Offering additional value on a subject that a person is already interested in will lead to them being more likely to be interested to give out their contact information.

5. Live chats:

According to statistics, sixty-two percent of customers are more inclined to make a purchase if live customer support is available. Qualified leads might leave without giving you their contact details if you don’t have this way of communicating available on your platform.

6. Speaking events:

Several marketers online decide to do it because they’re naturally introvert and usually shy away from social situations. However, speaking at things such as industry events can help you become an authority in your field, which will allow you to generate valuable leads just from socializing at the event.

7. Free trials:

Most people love free things. Once the benefits of your product or service can be properly seen, people visiting for the first time will far more likely to become paying customers. If an email address is given to you to participate in a free trial, you should continue your lead nurturing through personalized email marketing.

8. Retargeting:

People who are interested in your services may often visit your site and leave without giving you their email address. When this happens, you should install a retargeting pixel on your site and add a Facebook ad linking back to your lead magnet. If a person has clicked on pricing information or has added your product to their cart, you can retarget them with an overt sales ad.

9. Email signatures:

Have you ever wanted more of your email correspondents to become paying customers? Then linking your landing page in your email signature can be a great way to attract more people and accomplish this. This way, you can promote your products or services in a way that doesn’t come across as too much, since you’re putting the link in front of them without necessarily asking for them to click it.

10. Quizzes

Interactive content is, by many accounts, the future of online marketing. It will take time to research your audience, figure out their pain points and create a quiz that will provide value to them. If this is done well, a great quiz can lead to even greater results.

Helping people overcoming obstacles or giving them insights into their personality, can lead to your quizz receiving better engagement than you typically would with a standard blog post. All you need to do is remember to ask for an email address so you can deliver the answers.

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