Australia’s software industry, both the sales and development areas of it, held promise. The thing is the country failed to cultivate an environment with lots of room for creativity. As a result, its growth was stunted. If only its scope, size, and level of activity are improved, Australia’s software industry would thrive.
What’s the industry to do, then? More importantly, what should software marketers do in order to generate leads for the business?
Keys to Proper Lead Generation for Software
There are four key areas to concentrate on as far as proper lead generation for software goes.
- Identifying the problem
- Identifying different ways to address the problem
- Pinpointing one specific way to solve the problem
- Asserting your product as the possible solution to the problem
Applying it to a typical scenario, here’s how it works:
1) You put out marketing materials targeting consumers and businesses who might benefit from the software you’re selling (supposing you’re selling time-tracking software).
2) You show these people the many ways they can address their need – manual time tracking, using the Bundy clock, etc.
3) You tell consumers and businesses that time-tracking software is a fast, accurate, and foolproof way to track the hours worked by their employees.
4) You tell consumers that your company has developed the latest time-tracking software that doesn’t only track hours but also computes wages to the dot (or something to that effect).
Now in order to pull a remarkable and feasible lead generation strategy, you need a good mix of the right activities and right timing. How do you go about that?
Lead Generation for Software – How?
Reports say that 66-90% of a prospective customer’s journey is self-directed. Add to that the current situation of Australia’s software industry, it’s not surprising then that marketing your software and generating leads for it present many challenges. This is especially true if you’re new to the industry. The only way you can keep your business afloat is through a steady stream of leads. Now the all-important question arises: “How can you come up with effective ways to convert lead when the fact is it is easier said than done?”
As a marketer planning for successful lead generation for software, you need time and resources to create informative content and plan campaigns. Everything you will do has to revolve around your end goal, which is to generate leads.
So how can you find the right customers, or more importantly, how do you make the right customers find you?
Use SEO tools to drive more quality traffic to your website and/or landing pages. This is no rocket science. You need to understand that aside from being stagnant, you have competition in the software industry that’s trying to find the right customers, too. If you’re bent on generating leads, start comparing your keyword rankings to that of the competition using SEO tools. Perhaps it’s time to try out new keywords. Maybe it’s high time you work on inbound link opportunities based on your targeted keywords and that of your competitor’s.
Use the age-old tactic of telemarketing to generate leads.
Before you scoff at the idea, think in terms of innovative and sophisticated profiling software that you may now invest in. Because of the software, identifying prospective leads is now easier and more efficient. The software allows you to target people or businesses who would benefit from the software you’re trying to market.
Use engaging ads to target the right people.
We’re not talking about traditional ads here. Lead generation for software requires the use of engaging ads on innovative advertising platforms such as Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.
Produce professional landing pages.
You don’t have to be an expert to do this. You don’t even need to pay for HTML or IT support for this. You can easily build landing pages that are professional-looking and SEO-friendly using templates. Most templates these days have drag-and-drop forms that allow you to create compelling pages.
Never underestimate the power of social media.
There’s no better way to amplify your marketing activities than through social media. You can practically do everything via social media nowadays, so extend your reach by taking advantage of it. Produce shareable videos, images, and content that people can easily share by simply clicking on buttons.
Create personalized content.
This is very important. Nothing can be more annoying than generic content and messages. You need to put feelings into your content. Let your customers know that you’re aware where they currently are in their buying journey. Develop offers, messages, articles, and images that show them you know what their problems are, as well as how you can help them.
Is your Blog abandoned? Try these tips and plan a makeover to your business blog.
The bottom-line is you can take on the challenges of lead generation for software in an otherwise stagnant industry by choosing strategies that fit your product and your target consumers.
These software companies have enjoyed their successful lead generation campaign, you might want to check them out:
Australian Software Vendor Taps Callbox to Fast-track Sales in Asia-Pacific
Rock Solid Leads for AU and NZ’s Top Technology Consulting Firm
Callbox and the Quartered Success of The File Transfer Expert
