Where Do Leads Come From?

One way to generate leads is to give them a push. In a nice way, though – not in a fall-to-the-ground sort of way.

With push strategies, you’re often using traditional media (TV, radio, billboard, newspaper) to get your message in front of prospects. It’s just your way of giving them a nudge along the lines of, “Stop what you’re doing and give us a call right now to get this great service.” And some say, “Will do.” In other words, you find customers by pushing out your message in mass advertising and email blasts. When you pique their interest, you get a response.

The other tactic is: You don’t find them; they find you. The companion four-letter word (but a nice one for marketers to use) is “pull.” To generate leads, you pull them your way through digital marketing. This is a combination of your local listing, pay-per-click ads and SEO strategies that begin with your next customer entering your keywords and finding you in his results.

One upside of pull marketing is that you’re already narrowing down to more qualified buyers – because, while someone will drive by a billboard who has no need of a purchasing a new HVAC system, no one will enter “new heating and cooling system” in a search engine who doesn’t at least have a passing interest in the subject. Also, according to marketing researcher Forrester, some prospects can be two-thirds to 90% through their decision-making process before they reach the company – just from Internet research.

Another pull marketing upside is how accurately you can measure campaign success based on clicks, impressions and views. But the point is not that push or pull is better than the other, but that an integrated marketing plan using both strategies generates the leads you need.