Many businesses turn to lead providers to get a list of high quality leads. High quality leads are leads who have had contact with the lead provider and have expressed an interest about being contacted by your company to discuss the goods or services you offer. Your sales staff saves time, because everybody they contact is already willing to talk to them about what they have to offer.
One drawback to lead buying is that it can be expensive. Also, not all companies who advertise themselves as lead providers are reputable. When you are deciding whether or not to work with a company that generates leads, take a few moments to think about the following factors.
1. Read the Fine Print
Find out what, exactly, you are being offered and how much it will cost. Beware of hidden service feed. It’s also best to avoid companies that make extravagant claims, like a 100% conversion rate.
2. Ask Where the Company Gets Its Leads
The answer you want to hear is that they generate fresh leads from their own website or through telemarketing. Less encouraging answers are that they buy their leads in bulk from another company, or that they recycle leads, selling the same lead to dozens of clients. Both of the latter practices lower lead quality. Before you put any money down or sign a contract, make sure you will be getting exclusive leads, or leads that are specifically generated for your business and have not been sold to your competitors.
3. Ask How the Leads Are Delivered
Many companies deliver leads in bulk once or twice a day. It’s better to find a company that relays each lead to you in real time as soon as the lead requests additional information about your goods or services. Pursuing leads is a matter of “striking while the iron is hot.” Lead quality decreases for every hour that goes by without making initial contact.
4. Evaluate Their Customer Service
When you are lead buying, take a few minutes to evaluate the customer service of the company you are thinking about hiring. If the company is hard to reach or unable to give you clear information over the phone, or if the associates are rude, you’re probably wiser looking for another lead provider. How the company treats you gives you a pretty good indication of how it treats the leads with whom it has contact. If the leads have a bad experience with the lead providers, they’re likely to generalize that experience to your organization as well, which can hurt sales.
5. Check Them Out
Before making any final agreements, check the lead provider company out with your local Better Business Bureau. It’s also a good idea to ask the company for a list of references who are willing to vouch for their services.
Lead buying can be an effective marketing tool, but it’s important to be sure that you’re working with a reputable company that focuses on lead quality rather than quantity.
