Maximise on CS leads – by managing your expectations

CS leads aren’t as warm, but treat them right and they’ll treat you better in the long run.

Content Syndication (known as CS in short to those of us in the lead gen world) is easier and faster to achieve. But like most things that are easy and fast to achieve, it carries less potential and weight. In other words, leads that have shown minimal and casual interest – with thoughts to purchase hardly even in the horizon.

From your routine webinar to a free e-book, CS can be done in a multitude of ways. But many are sceptical about investing any deeper into these leads; these are, after all, folks who’ve signed up only because they’re curious, or there’s a freebie they wish to get access to.

The scepticism here is reasonable. But, being patient enough on these leads can enable your teams to make the most of them – even if they don’t purchase eventually.

And no, it doesn’t have to break the bank.

First off, let’s define the value a CS lead can bring, outside of purchasing your product and contributing towards revenue:

• Brand awareness and impressions,
• An organic, highly stable following,
• Segmented audiences that can be used for surveys and analytics.

If your team can be resourceful enough to build a cadence around CS leads, they can, over time, reap benefits that are highly sustainable for the distant future – even if they never eventually buy.

It’s like investing in a low-yield yet highly stable mutual fund; you aren’t going to see any uptick just yet, and whatever uptick you do notice will be minimal. But it will compound and deliver a return that is sizeable much later down the line.

Rule #1 on CS leads: don’t let them idle

You may be collecting CS leads without even knowing it. Those who sign up for your newsletter, for instance, still count as CS leads, as these actions indicate interest (albeit minimal towards purchasing something). Some form of nurturing is typically carried out for these leads; newsletter subscribers may hear from you periodically, as and when you release a newsletter.

This is all well and good, but go further from this point onwards (while making sure all checks and balances are in place for consent):

Continue to stay at the top of prospects’ minds by sharing what’s truly interesting about your domain.

Market insights, for example. Can you commission this research yourself, or articulate what you’ve noticed in your own databases? Even better!

Share product developments.

Added a new feature or package? Reduced prices to cater to a new demographic? Share it with the world! Nothing garners more respect (yes, respect) for a brand than its passion for building high quality products, by putting customer needs at the fore.

Don’t forget offline marketing.

Digital advertising and marketing has been a blessing and a curse for the exact same reason – convenience. While the ease, simplicity and cost-efficiency surrounding digital advertising has made it more accessible to businesses of all shapes and sizes, it has also blindsided many to categorically assume that it’s superior to any form of offline media.

This couldn’t be further from the truth. Sure, you cannot control that only your ICPs see your hoarding or x-stand banner. But you don’t need to, either. Just continue to maintain a presence out on the public domain. Control what you can control (such as where you choose to advertise, and for how long).

Other than that, recalibrate your thinking around wanting to control every small promotional parameter – a complex that has been subconsciously drilled into us through excessive exposure to overhyped digital advertising.

Also read: The four harsh realities of lead generation

Rule #2 on CS leads: nurturing doesn’t need a hefty budget

Contrary to popular perception (again, drilled into our heads thanks to the staggering turnovers of digital advertising budgets) CS nurturing campaigns can run on minimal fuel and even supervision. With awareness being the KPI here, simply counting impressions may suffice.

Yes, really.

Then gauge CTR from that point onwards. You WILL see lift – but not after one or two nurture campaigns. Consistency is key. Keep doing it, and you’ll have enough trend data to notice what’s preferred and what isn’t, among your audiences.

As for budgets – start small, and ideally work with the resources you already have. Putting junior-level team members and interns to the task of executing the nitty-gritty of nurture campaigns is a productive step that enables senior members to only focus on supervision and analytics – while the young ones get the exposure they deserve to learn and grow.

Also read: Dear SaaS, not going global is going to hurt you

Rule #3 on CS leads: don’t be afraid to share freebies

According to popular belief, sharing too many things for free isn’t going to create any incentives for people to buy from you. Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free, right?

On the contrary, sharing useful tips and advice can actually work to your favour more than you think. This is especially true for technology-focused products and services; with so many working parts involved and under the hood, just getting the scoop on a valuable piece of info isn’t going to teach your prospects to DIY their way to success.

As for anything else that’s not central to tech, the same rule applies. But here, you’re capitalising more on the fact that you’re a reliable source for your domain, and know your craft.

In other words, sharing free tips and advice isn’t as counterproductive as you think. It’ll pave the way towards brand trust, one slab at a time. And while this kind of trust takes time, it’ll be hard to break.

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