Marketing is constantly evolving, and one of the best ways to stay ahead of the curve is to proactively adopt new lead generation techniques. This is especially true in the digital space, where the pace of innovation is so rapid.
Every year, marketers need to keep track of developments and embrace new tools that have the potential to separate them from their competitors and boost profits. In 2022, all the buzz seems to be around automation.
Some of the most interesting possibilities of automation revolve around how AI-based tools can supercharge customer service and build sustainable networks of customers that grow with the company.
Keeping all of this in mind, we thought we’d focus on lead generation tips for 2022 that are automation-based.
Engage in conversational marketing
We’re living in an ultra-connected world. The number of digital buyers has been steadily climbing over the past decade to more than 2.14 billion, and more people than ever are spending time on social networks.
These changes represent a great opportunity to connect with audiences. While conversational marketing is by no means new, conversational marketing via chatbots has emerged as a front runner to providing streamlined and personalized digital user experiences.
This is because chatbots are available 24/7, and respond in real time. They can answer FAQs, direct potential customers to relevant content or provide them with all the information they need. They also free up valuable resources while tackling repetitive tasks.
They essentially offer a frictionless experience. And since most users in the digital space are familiar with Facebook Messenger and other chat platforms, interacting with a chatbot comes naturally to them.
Follow the new standard of organic data collection
Concerns about privacy have grown louder over the past few years, with users resisting efforts to collect data about them and target them with interest-based ads. With the use of ad blockers rising and plans for third-party cookies to be phased out by Google, marketers urgently need new ways to learn about their online audiences.
Less aggressive methods are the preferred option, and techniques that put the initiative into the hands of the consumer have a better chance of surviving the next decade. Using chatbots for lead generation is an efficient way to gather data without aggravating users or running afoul of privacy regulations.
Through chatbots and conversational marketing, users volunteer information, and this is invaluable first-party data that businesses can use to strengthen the foundations of their marketing activities.
The right chatbot can develop robust user profiles and segment audiences. Furthermore, they can analyze marketing attribution to determine what marketing efforts are resulting in the greatest ROI.
With such useful features, it’s hardly a surprise that more and more businesses are adopting smart bot technology.
Shorten the path to purchase with interactive methods
Everything is just a click away in the online world and brands have to make a sale quickly or risk losing the buyer’s attention. After all, the average time a user spends on a page is 54 seconds.
A good way to keep visitors from leaving your website is by actively engaging with them throughout the process, guiding them through the sales funnel. AI chatbots with NLP excel at this, since they can react to user’s messages instantly and analyze their motivations for participating in a conversation.
For example, visitors interested in particular products or services can be directed to the appropriate pages on the company website, or offered discounts and special deals to facilitate the purchase.
Use chatbots to coordinate different marketing activities
With so many channels to coordinate in real time, automation can provide relief and allow sales and marketing professionals to focus on the big picture.
Chatbots can be easily integrated with CRM systems and marketing automation platforms to share data across platforms. This can lead to the systematization and synchronization of marketing efforts.
Contacts from social media, requests from corporate websites, responses to online ads – all of these leads can be unified and analyzed to identify the most likely buyers. It’s a huge advantage to mobilize multiple digital channels and have them all contribute to the same database of leads.
And with chatbots this can be accomplished without a significant expenditure of work hours or resources. Once the system is set up and running, it requires only minimal effort to monitor it and make adjustments based on the initial returns.
If you’d like to learn more about chatbots for lead generation or how Instabot can help gain more leads, contact us or start your free trial.