In times of economic uncertainty, businesses face unique challenges in maintaining growth and securing new leads. Traditional methods may not be as effective. You may require a shift in strategy to navigate the unpredictable market. This guide explores eight proven lead generation techniques designed to help your business prepare for market volatility. Whether you’re looking to adapt existing strategies or explore new avenues, these approaches will equip you to attract and convert high-quality leads when the market is in flux.
Lets look at some strategies that can help you plan for and overcome uncertain economic times to maintain growth.
1. Refine and Prioritize Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
Focus on narrowing down your ideal customer profile to ensure you’re targeting the right audience for your business growth. You can do this by evaluating past clients. Identify patterns across factors such as ACV, company size, and industry. Prioritize high-value segments to increase the likelihood of the best results for your business. If you want to learn more, we recommend reading this “What is an ICP for Sales?” article by Gong.
Best practices for refining your ICP
- Compare your most and least profitable customers and their characteristics
- Use data-driven insights to adjust your targeting criteria
- Apply educated assumptions to fill in the gaps of your targeting criteria
2. Leverage LinkedIn for Targeted Networking
LinkedIn remains a powerful platform for B2B lead generation. Use it to build relationships. You can start sharing your own insights and experiences to establish credibility. Aside from posting, you can engage with others including people who align with your ICP and target personas. If you’re interested in learning more about how and why you should use LinkedIn as a lead generation tool, we recommend looking at this article that they published.
Tips for effective digital networking
- Join the conversation about current events in your target industries
- Use the search feature to filter people by your ICP industries
- Personalize connection requests to stand out from the crowd
3. Create High-Value Content Offers
Offering valuable content, such as exclusive video webinars or tutorials and original research findings and e-books, can capture the attention of potential leads. By offering free samples of content (no sign up/contact information required) and full access in exchange for their name and email, you can build a list of prospects interested in your solutions. The key is to provide unique information as it will likely be more valuable.
Suggested lead magnet techniques
- Ensure samples of content are available for free to grab the attention of potential leads
- Include first-party insights to demonstrate unique expertise and build credibility
- Share your content across multiple channels to maximize reach, but don’t be overly sales-focused as that may alienate potential leads
4. Optimize Email Campaigns with Personalization
Email continues to be a powerful tool if you effectively leverage personalization. Tailor your email campaigns to address the specific needs, wants, and pain points of your audience. If you have a mutual connection, use your network for warm introductions.
Email campaign personalization tactics
- Create one-to-one emails for a highly targeted and personalized approach, or segment your email list based on user behaviour and preferences
- Test subject lines and send times to optimize performance
- Select sender names and addresses with caution as it helps to set the tone of the message
5. Modernize Cold Calling with a Research-Driven Approach
Cold calling can be effective if you apply active listening and have a deep understanding of your prospects. When faced with economic uncertainty, call-only campaigns can be particularly valuable for your business as it enables you to engage with your target audience and collect first-party insights about what your ideal customers are experiencing. Research-driven cold calling is also a helpful technique to support CRM hygiene since it enables your business to identify, revise, and remove outdated information or inactive contacts which leaves you with a refined list of engaged contacts.
Effective research-oriented cold calling strategies
- Research each prospect before the call including any existing information you have in your CRM, their LinkedIn profile, and their company
- Focus on asking open-ended questions to gain a better understanding of your prospect and their pain points
- Test different questions to continuously improve your approach and interactions
6. Host Interactive Virtual Events
Virtual events allow you to engage directly with prospects while offering opportunities to build rapport and trust. Examples of interactive virtual events include Q&As, webinars, and round table discussions.
Virtual event recommendations
- Have an agenda and share it in advance across channels to build and capture interest
- Include Q&A sessions to encourage participation and hear directly from attendees
- Provide follow-up materials to attendees to continue the conversation
7. Incentivize Referrals from Existing Customers
Your existing customers can be a core source of new leads. Forbes cited research by Heinz and Influitive stating that 84% of B2B decision-maker buyer journeys are initiated by a referral and lead to a higher conversion rate. This is because referrals have built-in trust. By offering incentives to existing customers for recommending your business, referrals become mutually beneficial. Apply a similar high-value offer to your referral program as you used to create effective lead magnets. If you decide not to establish a formal referral program, you can still leverage the benefits if you foster strong relationships with your customers.
Best practices for referral programs
- Make it easy for customers to refer others
- Offer rewards that are relevant to your customers for every recommendation they share
- Communicate the benefits of your referral program to keep it top of mind
8. Develop Strategic Partnerships
Partnering with complementary businesses can help you tap into new markets, expand your network, and generate leads that you might not reach on your own. Strategic partnerships can be viewed as an investment.
Tips for building partnerships
- Identify businesses that target a similar audience without being direct competitors
- Establish clear goals, expectations, and mutual benefits for the partnership
- Strengthen the partnership to ensure its success through regular communication
Prepare Your Business for Uncertain Markets
Economic uncertainty does not have to mean a downturn in your lead generation efforts. By implementing these eight techniques, you can be prepared to engage high-quality leads in an unpredictable market.
About Us:
The Sales Factory was founded in 2018 and was ranked Canada’s 9th Top Growing Company of 2023 by The Globe and Mail. The Sales Factory is a Toronto-based company that pivoted during the 2020 pandemic to help technology businesses navigate market uncertainty. The team now proudly supports sales and growth teams with business development across industries such as software, construction, and manufacturing. If you ever consider outsourced sales services, we’re here for you.
Recently, The Sales Factory was recognized by G2 as a Summer 2024 High Performer across Outsourced Sales Providers and Lead Generation Services categories and named by Clutch in 2024 as a Top Sales Outsourcing Company.
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