Top 7 B2B Lead Gen Strategies for 2023

Did you know that the average lead conversion rate for B2B e-commerce is a mere 3.2%? 

With such a low conversion rate, it’s no surprise that businesses are constantly searching for innovative and effective lead-generation strategies. While email marketing remains the most popular B2B lead generation technique, with 78% of businesses using it, event marketing and content marketing follow closely behind at 73% and 67%, respectively.

PC: Giphy

However, as we approach 2023, staying ahead of the curve and exploring new and emerging strategies to generate leads is important.

In this article, we’ll explore the top 7 B2B lead generation strategies expected to work in 2023. From leveraging Q&As to utilizing live chats, we’ll dive into the latest tactics to help you generate high-quality leads and take your business to the next level. 

B2B Lead Generation

Finding new customers and growing the sales pipeline starts with B2B lead generation, as it:

• Identifies the right target audience
• Aligns your marketing and sales teams
• Attracts potential customers for your business 
• Provides them with the right information at the right time

Think of it as a journey that takes your potential customers from being completely unaware of your business to becoming loyal. 

And it’s not just about making a sale. B2B lead generation also involves building relationships with your customers and providing them exceptional service to keep them returning for more.

Investing in B2B lead generation can ensure a steady stream of new customers and keep your business thriving.

PC: Giphy

The Best B2B Lead Generation Strategies for 2023

Lead generation is essential for businesses to attract potential customers and convert them into actual buyers. Here are seven of the best lead-generation strategies:

#1: Use Live Chat

Live chat is a powerful tool to help you engage with potential customers and increase conversion rates. In fact:

• When a business offers live chat service, 51% of customers make another purchase from them.
• A great live chat session reportedly led to buying something for 42.38% of clients. 
• The ROI from the proactive chat is 105%.

And here’s why:

• With live chat, you can quickly reach out to potential customers and provide them with personalized answers to their queries. 
• Not only does this increase customer engagement, but it can also help you build trust with your prospects.
• It allows you to ensure customer support before performing sales. 
• Users discover your service quality before you try selling your product.

How to Use Live Chat

To maximize the effectiveness of live chat for lead generation, it’s essential to do as follows:

• Offer timely replies and be transparent with your prospects. 
• Make sure to provide personalized answers to their queries.
• Offer friendly follow-ups to users who previously showed interest in your products but needed more time to think.
• Have the invitation to chat appear automatically on pages visited by users with high-buying intent, such as:
  • the pricing page
  • the subscription page
  • the checkout page

Engaging with leads at these steps is crucial and can greatly impact conversion rates.

#2: Offer Free Tools

Free tools are an excellent way to attract potential customers to your brand, particularly if you’re promoting a SaaS product. The benefits of this strategy are numerous:

• Free tools address the same audience as your primary solution, which helps to create better alignment and focus. 
• Offering a free tool alongside your core product creates added value for your customers without replacing your primary offering. 
• Valuable free tools for your target audience can make them likely to talk about your brand and share it with their networks. This could be a PR push to help grow your business even further.

If you’re looking for a lead generation strategy to help your business succeed, consider creating a free tool that addresses your target audience’s needs and pain points. You’ll be amazed at the results!

Example

One great example of this approach is CoSchedule. They offer a variety of products geared toward their target audience of marketers. 

To further attract this audience, CoSchedule has developed free tools for each of its core products. They also include targeted calls-to-action (CTAs) specifically designed to address their target audience’s needs and pain points. It’s a win-win situation for both the user and CoSchedule!

#3: Super-Personalized Cold Mails

In today’s digital age, it’s easier than ever to reach out to virtually anyone, but it’s also harder than ever to get their attention in their crowded inboxes. That’s why the quality and relevance of your approach are crucial to getting results. 

For example, the click-through rates on your emails might increase by 35% when you use dynamic product recommendations!

A Bad Cold Mail

A Good, Personalized Cold Mail

How to Make Cold Emails Effective?

To make your cold emails effective, you need to follow four simple rules:

• Find out who your prospects are.
• Contact a specific person (not just a company).
• Personalize at a high level.
• Follow up.

#4: Use LinkedIn Lead Generator

With its vast professional network, LinkedIn is the perfect platform to find and connect with your ideal customers. 

How to Utilize LinkedIn for Lead Generation?

Here’s how you can leverage LinkedIn Lead Generator:

1. Find your ideal customer. You need to have a clear understanding of who you want to target, including their:

• industry
• location
• job title
• seniority level
• specific keywords in their profile
• company size

Once you have this information, enter it into LinkedIn Sales Navigator, which will help you find people matching your search criteria.

2. Contact your ideal customer. But be careful not to come across as too salesy. Instead:

• Send a personal message
• Address their pain points
• Focus on building a relationship

3. Make sure your ideal customer remembers you and your business. Churn out product-led as well as industry-oriented content via LinkedIn posts. From images and videos to polls and text-only posts – mix it up and consistently publish content relevant to your audience. 

This ensures: 

• Greater profile visibility
• Engagement from prospects
• Authority building
• Stronger personal brand

This tried-and-tested method works wonders in bringing new business opportunities to the table.

#5: Utilize Q&As

The key to this strategy is conducting a Q&A on popular forums or Q&A sites like Quora. By doing so, you can:

• reach a wider audience
• position your business as the solution to their problems
• establish your brand’s expertise
• gain their trust
• build your credibility

But why is this strategy so effective?

Think about it: people turn to the internet for answers when they have questions. 

Being present on platforms where your target audience seeks information means you’re already one step closer to getting their attention. You’re building a relationship with them by: 

• Providing informative answers to their questions
• Showing them that you understand their needs
• Being a trusted source of information to help them achieve their goals

#6: Collaborate with Micro-Influencers

Have you considered collaborating with micro-influencers? If not, 2023 might be the time to explore this strategy and take advantage of its unique benefits.

Micro-influencers are social media personalities with a relatively small but dedicated following of 1,000 to 100,000 users. Despite having a smaller audience, they are becoming increasingly popular for their authenticity, niche targeting, and cost-effectiveness.

Why Micro-Influencers?

Customers relate to micro-influencers on a more personal level. They are seen as everyday people who share the same interests and pain points as their audience. As a result, consumers trust their recommendations because they believe they are honest and authentic.

Partnering with micro-influencers also allows you to reach niche markets. They usually have a specific content type that their followers are interested in. So, if your product or service aligns with its content, it effectively reaches your target market.

Moreover, micro-influencers have a better engagement rate than their bigger counterparts due to a more active and loyal audience. Therefore, you can expect a better return on investment (ROI) by collaborating with them.

Lastly, collaborating with micro-influencers is also cost-effective. As they have a smaller audience, their rates are usually lower than those of larger influencers.

#7: Use FOMO

Do you ever feel like you’re missing out on something great? It’s not just you – it’s human nature. We all have a fear of missing out (FOMO), and businesses have started to capitalize on it to increase their conversion rates.

One effective strategy to use FOMO to your advantage is creating a sense of scarcity. By showing your customers that something is limited or in high demand, you can make them feel they must act fast before it’s too late.

Here’s an example:

Remember, the key is to do this without deceiving your customers.

The Bottomline

The B2B lead generation process is crucial for any business looking to grow and expand its customer base. In 2023, businesses must stay ahead of the curve and explore new and emerging strategies to generate leads effectively. 

With the right lead generation strategies in place, businesses can take their sales to new heights and thrive in the competitive world of B2B e-commerce.