The best way to establish a strong, results-oriented strategy is to base your tactics on a solid foundation. Lead generation’s most important characteristics can be trimmed down to 8 essential commandments that guarantee your hard work will result in success.

• Emphasize Warm, Not Cold, Calling – You can make a lengthy list of prospects more manageable by conducting some initial research. Discovering distinct characteristics and connections between your company and the prospects will make your conversations more meaningful and reduce the amount of “random” calls made.
• Social Media is Your Friend – There are numerous social media platforms that can be used utilize to personalize and enhance your efforts. Whether it’s connecting with industry contacts on LinkedIn or doing Facebook research to note your leads’ interests, you can efficiently and effectively increase the number of converted, qualified leads.
• Focus on Qualified Prospects – Qualified prospects are far more valuable because of characteristics like intent to purchase, time and money. The most dependable prospects are those with an additional quality – belief. These leads believe in your company’s value proposition and will therefore be valuable customers for years to come.
• Create an Effective Follow-Up Strategy – If you want to increase conversion rates then you must develop a strategy that involves interacting across multiple platforms in a timely manner. Determining which outreach efforts are most effective for each lead will allow you to create a personal connection indicative of a great relationship.
• Be Mindful of the Rule of 78 – When each year begins, considering the rule of 78 can create a more mindful and profitable strategy. The rule of 78 allows your company to estimate yearly revenues based on consistent monthly charges. In addition, you can come to find that sales made earlier in the year have a more significant benefit overall.
• Streamline the Process – Streamlined lead generation can reduce your company’s efforts while increasing sales, but, when you move to a more cohesive strategy, your company must avoid a one-size-fits-all mentality. Each lead still needs to be receiving customized, personal care so your company can continue to make genuine connections.
• Leverage Your Strengths – Maybe your company has the best, most relevant content or maybe you know how to most appropriately interact with leads across multiple industries. These strengths should be honed by utilizing them to their full capacity. Tailoring your strategy to highlight these features can positively impact sales growth.
• Use Your Time (and Money) Wisely – Companies have become notorious for spending the majority of their time on the first few stages of sales prospecting, which don’t directly impact sales. A simple way to avoid this problem is using an outsourcing company so your company can focus on the sales-inducing aspects of lead generation.
• Practice What You Preach – If you want leads to trust your company and view you as a valuable source of information then you need to ensure that you are incorporating the measures that you know are most successful. If you stay true to your leads then you can establish a dependable customer base that will vouch for your company.

The 8 commandments of lead generation are the most effective roadmap for sales success. Creating a strategy that incorporates and appreciates these 8 commandments will allow your company to foster strong connections that will continually and positively impact conversion rates.