People who are successful business owners will tell you that there is great fortune to be had in consistent follow up. This makes sense when you consider that, according to research studies, only about 2% of sales happen upon initial contact. Clients who are among the 2% have already done their research and clearly know what they want.

What about the other 98%?

Each person within the remaining 98% is a warm lead – a potential client who has already shown interest in your stock or service. As they have already engaged with you personally or via your marketing channels they are typically receptive to outreach. However, their journey to becoming your client is still in progress. They need to be communicated with, educated and guided through an established sales funnel to keep them warm so that they don’t lose interest.

How can your Virtual Assistant help?

At its heart, lead nurturing is about making lasting connections with prospects. The three main elements of lead nurturing are building relationships through meaningful conversations, providing valuable insights that answer customer questions, and driving action by moving prospects closer to becoming a client over time. There are many ways your Virtual Assistant can help you in consistently gathering and nurturing warm leads. These include:

Gathering leads

  • Market research: Conducting research to identify potential customers and target markets.
  • Cold Calling: Reaching out to potential leads directly by phone.
  • Referral marketing: Asking satisfied customers to refer your company to their associates and friends. To make your referral programme sing, consider adding incentives like an extra discount or reward. This will encourage clients to spread the word.

Nurturing leads

  • Regular person-to-person follow up: Creating a follow up schedule then checking in with qualified leads via phone call, email or WhatsApp at appropriate intervals – depending on where they are at in the buyer’s journey.
  • Email campaigns: Managing an email drip campaign. Email marketing campaigns can be quite effective at keeping leads warm because they provide the opportunity to keep in regular contact with prospects.
  • Re-engagement campaigns: These campaigns are designed to specifically target leads within your database that have fallen dormant and re-engage them in the sales process.
  • Digital marketing: Building relationships with your prospects with the goal of earning their business when they’re ready. This includes:
    • Social Media: Engaging with potential clients on social platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram
    • Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): Enhancing website visibility to attract organic leads.
    • Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC): Using paid ads to target specific demographics and drive traffic to landing pages.
  • Online education and networking events: Organising webinars and other online events to connect and add value for potential clients.
  • Reporting and analytics: Monitoring and analysing lead generation efforts to optimise strategies.

The benefits of taking on a Lead Generation Virtual Assistant

Marketers can mistake lead nurturing for being nothing more than regular email communication. It should rather be thought of as a workflow in which each step has a clear objective – whether this is moving someone through the sales funnel toward becoming a client or driving another desirable action.

A Lead Generation Virtual Assistant is experienced in identifying, attracting, and qualifying potential leads for a company. They have experience in automating and streamlining the lead generation process and are acquainted with using a variety of tools and strategies to attract quality leads and ensure a consistent pipeline of qualified prospects. Taking on a dedicated Lead Generation Virtual Assistant will ensure you get a continuous stream of leads for you to reach out to and sell your business or product whilst you can concentrate on what you do best.