Internet Lead Generation Sales Plan

By Bill Rice

Are you considering buying or generating Internet leads for your business? The strategy is a good one, but it requires good business planning like any other new initiative. This is not a game that discriminates based on size or product. So, if you are a bank, mortgage broker, recruiter, student counselor, or small business owner there is opportunity here. Just make a good Internet lead generation sales plan.

Why Internet Lead Generation?

The numbers speak for themselves. Your customers are going to the Internet first and abandoning traditional means of finding products and service providers. Industry reports show that 75% of buyers begin their purchases online and 39% of advertisers are shifting their budgets to the Internet. This is an obvious action-reaction relationship.

If you want your business to grow you have to be where the buyers are looking for you. In addition, conversion numbers continue to show that Internet leads tend to convert 3-10 times higher than traditional offline advertising like print and yellow pages. This is significant efficiency paid back into your advertising budget before you even get started.

Lead Quality, Distribution, and Nurturing

Lead generation on the Internet is still an emerging science, but quality matters less if you have a capable lead management system. Your Internet lead sources, whether you generate or buy leads, are going to be diverse in quality. However, with a good lead management software you can effectively manage a variety of different lead flows and sales performance.

You can identify certain lead characteristics and sources as immediate opportunities for your sales force and other may be more appropriate feed into a lead nurturing process. You may also consider using pre-qualification teams.

The important idea here is to manage and track your sales leads in such a way as to ensure you are paying the right price and handling each sales leads appropriately to fit customer expectations.

4 Hidden Secrets to Close More Deals

There are four secrets to closing more deals with online lead generation and Internet lead sales:

• Trust: 69% of sales people that become trusted advisers get the deal
• Lead Scoring: 73% of companies do not have a process to re-qualify leads
• Persistence: 80% of sales close after the 5th contact
• Lead Nurturing: 40%-68% of disqualified leads became qualified within 12 months

(Sources: Wendover, Reed, Elsevier, CMO Council, InTouch, and Carr)
Each of these elements needs to be incorporated into your Internet leads sales plan. A blend of sales training, sales scripts, and lead management software can make these smooth elements of every closed deal.

Emphasizing these hidden keys creates an amazing experience for each of your customers as they come into and are through your sales pipeline.

Make More Money

Internet lead generation and sales is the most efficient way to focus your sales plan on only your target customers. Add in the helping hand and discipline of a lead management software and you have all the ingredients of a killer money making online business.