Depending on what type of business you are engaged in, there are various reasons why you could be losing leads at that rate.
You haven't provided much detail, though. So, I'll show you some of the most common issues below, along with the best strategies you can employ to manage your sales leads effectively.
Knowledge about your leads
Just how much do you know about your prospective leads? Do you know their demographics, interests, etc.? Do you know the problems they are facing?
Having this kind of information is very important when managing your leads. Firstly, it will help you target the right people. The right crowd would be more receptive to your future communications and thus be more likely to convert.
Second, it will enable you to dispense the most relevant information during the nurturing process. Many of your leads could be falling out because the content does not relate to them.
Thirdly, customer information would help keep your sales and marketing team in sync. If they are all aware of the leads' interactions, they can customize their tactics and be better positioned to win the sale.
So, you will want to invest in data collection processes, especially using marketing automation tools. You can use contact forms, surveys, etc., to collect user data. Alternatively, your team can conduct ample background research on every qualified lead you encounter.
Use CRM tools
CRM tools will help you manage your sales leads more effectively.
They help you add and consolidate lead data much easier and faster. As such, your sales and marketing teams can work together to track the lead activities and behavior at each stage.
Since information is available, it becomes much easier to move sales-qualified leads to the salespeople to drive the sale further. You may be losing out on leads because your marketing and sales teams are not handing off leads efficiently, causing delays or miscalculations.
CRM tool can solve this problem for you.
Use Lead Scoring Systems
Lead scoring features mostly come with automation tools and are essential to your leads management process. You assign scores to each lead your business generates based on different attributes with a lead scoring system. Triggers could be multiple behaviors, signups, social media engagements, among others.
Different businesses have different ways of assigning these lead scores. So, use whichever metrics best represent your particular goals.
You may lose leads because you spend a lot of time and resources on many who are not very interested in your offerings. As such, you give less attention to those that could convert, thus missing out.
Lead scoring mainly helps you identify the most promising leads early enough in the customer journey. That way, you can focus on nurturing these rather than waste time and resources on empty leads. So, prioritize this process.
Lead Nurturing
Your lead nurturing tactics will make all the difference when managing your sales leads. Perhaps you are not sharing enough with them before pitching a sale? Or maybe communicating at the wrong time?
Lead nurturing largely involves regularly providing additional content to your leads to inform them about your offerings. The most common methods are email sequences. Are you using these?
If so, you might want to re-evaluate your tactics. Ensure that you are leaving enough time between emails so as not to nag your audience. Also, check that you are not delaying communication in that they forget about you and opt for other alternatives. Furthermore, check that you are sending messages or calling at the right times.
Marketing automation is a must-have to make your lead nurturing process most efficient. It will provide you with the lead information you need to create the right content. The tools will also help you schedule those communications to optimize the process.
Measure and Tracking
To better manage your sales leads, you may want to look into your measurement and tracking methods. You must track all lead activity across the different channels. But also, keep an eye on your results at every stage.
First, identify the metrics that best represent your set goals. Are you aiming for more click-throughs, purchases, downloads, etc.? Whatever the goal is, constantly check if you are hitting them and which areas need improvement.
This practice will keep you from acting blindly. You will be able to identify issues early and change course before making further losses.
Sales Team And Marketing Team Collaboration
Your marketing team is instrumental at earlier customer journey stages, while sales teams are more at the end. However, for proper lead management, the two must work in sync.
So, check if your sales and marketing teams have seamless processes in place. Otherwise, lack of coordination between sales and marketing could be costing you leads.
Marketing teams would primarily generate leads and nurture them accordingly. When they are sales-qualified, they can then pass them on to sales. Ensure that your teams have the platforms to share lead data to make this process run smoothly. CRM tools and marketing automation share the best options for this.
When both departments collaborate, it becomes easier to convert leads. There are no repetitions, and prospect customers can enjoy customized service across the board.
In conclusion,
Several reasons could explain why your business might have lost sales leads over the months, some of which I might have mentioned. But with these strategies listed, you can start making the necessary improvements to boost your lead management.
The best tactic is to adopt sales and marketing automation tools accompanied by valuable content.
For more information, feel free to contact some of our lead management experts.