A blog entry on the LeadLife Solutions website has recently (August 2010) provided some key pointers on what you should think through and do before deploying a lead nurturing program. LeadLife Solutions is a provider of on-demand lead management software - the blog entry is by Lisa Cramer.
In the blog, she argues that often when marketers start using a lead generation tool such as Prospectvision they can't wait to get lead nurturing going. Although this is a positive move, the marketers in many cases haven't done any preparatory work to make their nurturing effective before they've engaged with the tool. It is argued that there are definitely some key issues to be thought through and done before deploying a nurturing program, the list of issues being as follows:.
1) Determine what you are trying to accomplish with each nurturing program. Different goals will dictate different nurturing strategies.
2) Determine (based on number 1 above) if you have the content to support your nurturing program. And does the content represent each stage of the buying cycle (assuming that your nurturing program goes through those stages).
3) Think about how targeted your messaging should be to accomplish your goals for that specific nurturing campaign. Is the message based on previous interest they showed (by what they viewed or downloaded), is it based on their title, industry, etc. or maybe a mix of all?
4) Map out how you are going to move leads through the nurturing process. What's the call to action at each stage that shows buying interest and what's the cliff hanger that's going to keep them wanting more?
5) Are there additional components to the nurturing program that you should consider that would help conversion, such as landing pages or other complementary content?
6) Do you have the tools in place to view the metrics of your nurturing programs while they are running? If you don't see what's working or not, what good is setting up the nurturing in the first place?
Technology will allow you to get very detailed and complex with nurturing programs, but beware that doesn't mean that's what will work best for your specific scenario. Make sure to determine what you are trying to accomplish first and then apply it to your marketing software - not the other way around. Additionally, it is argued that greater success is achieved in the long run if marketers start simple, understand what's happening and grow in sophistication instead of trying to conquer all scenarios from the start.
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