How effective is your website at being able to convert anonymous visitors into known B2B technology leads?
So you can begin to build a relationship as you educate and build trust with your future potential clients?
The Big Problem: No Way to Engage Anonymous Website Visitors Early on in Their Journey
When I look at most websites, I typically find, especially among really small companies that don't have many significant investments in digital marketing or content marketing.
There's usually only one or maybe two or three places on the entire website where a hot prospect can raise their hand and say, me, me, me, me, me, I'm interested. Talk to me. And usually those. Places aren't offering a ton of value.
The more significant issue is, most of the time, the ways that you're trying to get information from your leads is pretty much screaming from the rooftops that they're going to be in contact with your sales team, which you say is awesome.
Educate and Build Trust to Become More Relevant in the First 70% to 80% of the Buyer’s Journey
Of course, we want leads that are ready to talk to your sales team. Yes, it is kind of awesome. However, the reality is like 70 to 80% of the people that are visiting your website are not ready to talk with your sales team.
And you have an opportunity to be able to intercept them early. And it's critical in today's buyer's journey that you take that opportunity to be able to intercept them early in the first 70 or 80% of that buyer's journey and figure out a way to be able to convert that anonymous visitor into a known lead.
So you can educate, build trust, and teach what to look for; answer their questions.
It's critical because the way people navigate the buyer's journey today is different from five or ten years ago.
Deeper Customer Insight and (Accelerating) Self-Serving Trends
Even a year ago, people were just self-serving so much. They want to control that research and purchase decision.
The companies that are doing well are the ones that are scratching that itch. They have a profound understanding of who their buyer personas are.
They have content that educates and builds trust, frames what people should be looking for and thinking about, and provides them unique insight. That's top of mind for these ideal clients.
And you also take the time to think about how each of your clients is different and provide different content for them.
Get Better at Empathy or Prepare to Miss Out
But you also think about the different needs that people have at various stages of their buyer's journey with your company early on in the awareness stage. Your prospects, typically they have a goal that they're trying to achieve.
They have a problem they're trying to solve. They're not looking for a particular company. They may not even be looking for a specific. Category of a product or service yet, all they know is that they have a problem, a symptom that they're trying to address a goal that they're trying to achieve. And if you're successful in grabbing them by the virtual shirt collars and pulling them into your website, to your social media, you'll gain the opportunity for them to say, wow, this is helpful.
I've been looking for something just like this for hours, days, weeks. I can't believe I finally found this. This is so ridiculously valuable. What else do they have to say? And when they look down and they. Think about what else you have to say? That's when they notice that, Oh, cool. There's an ebook that goes into this in more detail, or there's an on-demand webinar or a downloadable checklist.
The Conversion Path That Exchanges Proportional Value
And they're like, yeah, sure. I'll trade my business card information for what's on the other side of that page because you've taken the time to build up just enough trust with them that they're going to allow you a little bit behind the curtain to. Build a relationship with them over time. And then do you have an early-stage lead that doesn't necessarily mean that they want your sales team to pounce on them and call them 15 times every 90 minutes until they either pick up the call or tell you to get lost?
All it means is you have somebody that fits one of your buyer personas and is looking for help to learn about a problem.
They're trying to solve a challenge, they're trying to address in their company, a goal that they're trying to achieve.
Ensure Your Company’s Place on Their B2B Technology Shortlist
If you understand the buyer's journey and understand what's coming next, the goal, and the problem they're trying to solve, they usually start to narrow things down and give that goal or problem a more concrete name.
And they begin to think about how they're going to solve that. They still don't have companies in mind, but there's a concrete name now. And in that middle part of the buyer's journey, the consideration stage of the buyer's journey, we want to continue to act as the coach, the doctor-patient kind of relationship, the trusted advisor by helping them to compare their different options and think through the other questions they should be asking.
From Awareness to Consideration to Decision
In the consideration stage, it’s often beneficial as well, to share case studies and stories about how you've helped other prospects, other companies, similar to theirs webinars can also be a fantastic strategy to use, to invite warm prospects together, to learn, to educate, to allow you to educate and build trust at scale.
Then, some of them naturally will want to step forward and say, yes, I'm ready for sales contact, and others will hang back a little bit and require more nurturing.
Your Buyers Are Now In Control ⇒ (How to) Deal With It
People have changed how they make their purchase decisions, and they're going to purchase on their timetable.
So our goal isn't to force them to, by on our timetable, by using artificial discounts and other interruption and old school kind of tactics, our goal is to be there as the coach, the expert helpful advisor so that when they're ready to purchase, we are on the short-list.
And if we do it right, we are the entire short-list. That's how you can attract. Engage and delight your B2B technology prospects. And most of all, let them find your company in the right places at the right time. So you can build a relationship with them, and they see you as the go-to experts and not just another vendor.
And that makes sense. All the difference in the world with being able to succeed in today's hyper-competitive environment. Those are my thoughts on some things you should be thinking about when it comes to your overall content strategy, your digital marketing strategy, what needs to be on your website.
It's super important that you have thought leadership content that's hyper-relevant for your target buyer personas. It helps guide them and stay with them throughout their buyer's journey from a stranger to becoming a new client. And for most businesses that rely on repeat purchases or recurring revenue, the initial purchase, we know, is just the beginning, and that's where additional content.
And additional context comes into play with your customer success team. Hopefully, this gives you some good food for thought of what she should be thinking about at a holistic, big picture level on what you need to do to build a successful, scalable, profitable business in today's environment.
What are you doing to convert more of your anonymous website visitors into known leads for B2B technology? Let me know in the comments box below.
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