The software development industry is highly competitive in nature. In the last decade alone, software development companies have experienced a boom in competition, requiring more expertise from the sales and marketing teams to find sustainable solutions for growth. 

In order to keep the lights on, a software development company requires a consistent inflow of projects, after all, they are the lifeblood of the entire business. How do you get more projects? Through software development leads! 

To generate leads that align with the solutions you offer, you must advance your B2B marketing mechanisms to create reliable lead generation avenues. Software development entities must take the time to formulate a strategy that will produce relevant information catering to the needs of their Ideal Customer. It is crucial to improve your search presence, build your visibility, and create brand awareness. All of this is possible through creating content that will help users. 

This blog delves into the steps one can use to create a concrete approach for generating qualified B2B leads. But before we get into that, let us first understand how the ‘Lead Generation’ funnel works. 

Importance of Lead Generation In Software Development Companies 

Lead generation is one of the most important aspects of almost any business. Yes, it is true lead generation can be time-consuming and difficult, but it yields results! It is the driving factor from customer engagement all the way to the final sale. 

Lead generation is paramount for the success of your business not only because you are able to reach customers but also because it educates customers to make the best purchasing decisions. Let’s look into some of the reasons why lead generation is so important: 

1. Targeted Reach: Lead generation enables you to target leads at desired geographical locations, and collect information about their needs and preferences. This can help you tailor your approach or product/service to better meet their particular needs. 

2. Improved Brand Awareness: The more people that have heard about your brand, the stronger your reputation becomes. What does this mean for your brand? Increased profits! The process of lead generation is undertaken in a way that educates leads about your products and their features, creating an avenue for ‘word of mouth’ marketing. 

3. Expand Your Reach Into New Markets: Targeting a specific group of audiences is a great way to go. But with lead gen, when you start learning more about your prospects and ultimately your industry, you are able to expand your reach. For example, your analytics have revealed that prospects from a specific role are engaging far more with your campaigns. This gives you an opportunity to expand your reach into a new market. 

4. Improve The Quality of Leads Generated: Creating a lot of content will no doubt generate a lot of traffic, but if they’re not converting then it’s a wasted effort! When you practice lead generation you make use of a highly targeted approach for content creation. From website content to landing page hero headlines, the messaging is targeted to cater to a specific group of people. This helps in creating content that resonates with your audiences. By doing so, you improve the quality of the leads generated (which of course improves conversions and sales). 

5. Boost Your Revenue: If undertaken with precision and skill, you can maximize your organization’s ability to generate qualified leads. This entails using the right type of messaging, offerings, and content to pique the interest of your Ideal Customers. By doing this, you will find your brand capturing the attention of quality leads making it easier for your sales team to convert them. The potential revenue growth is exponential, especially when you are investing your efforts towards the interests and pain points of your audiences. 

The Lead Generation Funnel 

A lead generation funnel is a blueprint that marketers and salespeople use to understand their lead’s journey. The journey begins with brand awareness and comes to an end when the lead has been successfully converted into a paying customer. 

While each lead will undertake different approaches throughout their buyer’s journey, most of them will pass through three distinct stages in the funnel. These three stages are known as, the top, middle, and bottom of the funnel. The further a lead moves down the funnel, the more qualified they become.

Top of the funnel (ToFU) 

The top of the funnel can be regarded as the awareness or discovery stage. This is the first stage of their journey, they are just getting to know about your brand and the solutions you provide. Your website generally plays a crucial role here as it’s one of the most commonly visited places for visitors to get to know you more. Businesses create awareness through online activities through blog posts, social media marketing, content marketing, reviews, web pages, and so much more. The primary goal here is to gain the trust of your lead. 

When you deliver timely content, you inevitably build brand awareness and authority. This helps move your leads to the next stage of the lead generation funnel. 

Middle of the funnel (MoFU) 

Leads at the middle of the funnel are in the consideration stage (also known as interest and desire). This means they are already aware of their pain points and are exploring different options available to solve them. At this stage, your top priority is to convince leads as to why your solution in particular is a good fit for them and how it can solve their problems. This can be done by showcasing your value proposition or unique selling proposition (USP). You can also use customer reviews, drip emails, and product comparisons.

Bottom of the funnel (BoFU) 

When leads reach this stage of the funnel, they are in the decision-making stage (also known as the action and qualification phase). They are ready to transact with your brand. You want your leads to be at this stage as you’ve spent a considerable amount of time and effort to get them there. The bottom of the funnel is where you bring in your conversion strategy, and convert leads into paying customers. 

At this stage, leads go beyond general engagement to taking specific action such as exchanging their contact information for a valuable resource through a lead magnet or replying to your cold email. Your main goal here is to sell! You must convince them to buy your product or service. This can be done by using case studies, product demos, pricing comparisons, lead magnets, and offering free resources. 

A well-thought-out lead generation funnel ensures there’s no friction between each stage. To ensure this, you must think ahead about certain reservations leads may have about selecting your solution. Optimizing your lead generation funnel will lead to a smooth sailing buyer’s journey whilst simultaneously increasing your chances of conversions. 

Types of Lead Generation Channels

More leads + more projects = More revenue 

Everybody wants this! But the question is, what is the best way to generate more leads, projects, and revenue for your software development company? 

Before you start your lead generation initiative, you must understand the difference between inbound and outbound lead generation. Both of these concepts have extremely different methods. Plus, understanding the difference between the two will help you choose the right one for your company.

Inbound 

Inbound lead generation entails the prospects or leads coming to you through SEO practices or content marketing. In this form of lead gen, the prospect decides when to reach out to you. For instance, when you create content and publish it on relevant platforms, your intention is to attract your target audience to your website (brand).

For your inbound lead generation efforts to bear fruit, you must create a valuable offer in the form of a lead magnet. A lead magnet is used as a medium of exchange on websites. Leads trade you their contact details by filling out an opt-in form for a downloadable asset. 

Here’s how you can devise an effective inbound lead generation strategy: 

1. Write down your leads’ pain points and understand them.
2. Optimize your content in accordance with SEO best practices. When done right SEO can bring in lucrative results. 
3. Ensure there is an alignment between the marketing and sales team. They should be able to execute the strategy you have created.

Outbound

Outbound lead generation is when you initiate the first interaction by sending out a message to your potential leads. It is often called “interruption lead generation”, as it entails the marketer or salesperson doing all the work. Some of the most commonly used outbound lead generation methods are cold emails and calls. 

This approach has more of an “old school” feel to it. But marketers have adapted this concept to modern tactics and technologies. There are numerous lead gen software that focuses solely on outbound efforts. Cold emailing tools, for example, were created with the intention of automated lead generation. 

To formulate an effective outbound lead generation strategy, consider the following: 

1. Create an Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
2. A/B Test out your outreach messages
3. Deep dive into analytics and set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Outbound Lead Generation Strategies 

1. Cold Emails 

A cold email is a type of email sent to leads that you have had no prior contact or relationship with. Cold emails are generally sent out with the intention of procuring a meeting or closing a deal. 

Cold emails are similar to cold calls. The difference is that they are less intrusive and can be completely automated and sent out on a large scale. Cold emailing is reported to have 2 times the ROI compared to cold calling. One of the best things about cold emailing is that it doesn’t require much capital—only time and effort. If you have a tight budget, focusing on cold email campaigns can land you the sales you desire and create the cash flow you need for other lead-generating opportunities. 

Cold emailing is a great outbound lead generation strategy to get in touch with your leads because: 

• It lets you target exactly who you want. Each message sent is personalized down to the individual. Any other form of lead gen cannot provide this level of personalization, meaning low conversion rates. 
• Most important people in firms manage their own inboxes. You are provided with easy access to key decision makers’ inboxes. So long as you have a verified email address (you can use email finder tools such as Saleshandy Connect), and solid deliverability measures, your message will land right in the inbox of important stakeholders. 
• Cold emails are extremely cost-effective as they offer a low capital investment. With the market booming with cold email tools that can automate your outreach, all you need is a strategy and an email account. This means that you can start right away, and avoid burning through your budget before generating tangible revenue. 

If you are looking for cold emailing software that will automate your outreach, I recommend using Saleshandy. With Saleshandy you can create automated follow-up sequences, personalize each email (body and subject), verify your prospect list, A/B test different sequences, have an AI-powered email assistant guide on the content of your email, and so much more!

2. Cold Calls

Cold calling is a technique used by marketers and salespeople to contact individuals that have had no prior contact with their brand or expressed any interest in the product. The aim of cold calling is to persuade these said individuals into buying your product.

Cold calling is indeed a difficult process. Most individuals will not engage with a stranger that has telephoned them out of the blue, let alone agree to make a purchase. However, with the right technique and expert tips up your sleeve, it can become a lucrative method. 

For cold calling to work, it is best to research your prospect beforehand. Make it a pre-call ritual. Look into finding key information about them that will help you plug in your product as a solution. Without research, your whole approach will appear selfish and most likely ignored altogether. Prospects will appreciate you going the extra mile if they are approached with personalized elements.

3. LinkedIn Cold Outreach 

Networking on professional social platforms is a great way to directly reach out to key decision makers. LinkedIn is one of the largest professional networks available with over 830 million members. 62% of marketers say LinkedIn generates twice as many leads than any other social platform. 

To use LinkedIn Cold Outreach, you must come up with a strategy. Making a list of all the key decision-makers, and then crafting a personalized message for each of them will help you connect more effectively. 

To use LinkedIn to generate leads, here’s what you can do:

• You can use your official company’s page to promote the content or the solutions you offer
• Ensure your prospects are active LinkedIn users 
• Join LinkedIn groups that your prospects and clients are active in. You can also join groups that are related to your industry or niche 
• Post consistently on your page or profile 
• Use connections of existing clients/customers as a stepping stone 
• Create engaging posts like polls or ask people’s opinions to establish trust and increase engagement amongst your target audience

Pro Tip: If you wish to direct message LinkedIn users that are not a part of your connections list, you will need to purchase LinkedIn Premium or get InMail Credits.

4. Online Communities 

Online communities are bustling with engaged users! Communities such as Quora, Reddit, Twitter, GrowthHackers, and GitHub, are some of the most commonly used communities in the software industry. People like networking with other like-minded individuals, sharing/reading reviews, discovering new industry trends, and learning about new brands. 

It’s of extreme importance that you position yourself as a thought leader rather than promoting your product or service directly. Direct pitching is generally frowned upon in such communities. Additionally, this avenue will also help you gather further insights directly from your target audience (you could also directly ask them questions). These insights can be used for product, marketing, and sales teams accordingly. 

Google’s algorithm ranks pages with reliable and trusted content. Online communities are a great way to leverage SEO benefits. Google wants users to find answers from trusted sources, if you are an active contributor to these online communities your answer or question could easily rank on the first page.

One of the biggest differences between this type of lead generation is that it requires a humanizing approach. You could be targeting audiences based on their demographics, but they’re still individuals with diverse experiences and backgrounds. Talk to them the way you would in real life, ditch the business jargon, and inject your own unique voice and personality into conversations. 

Why Choose Outbound Lead Generation? 

With outbound lead generation you can shorten your sales cycle. Since outbound lead gen lets you hyper-target the leads you think are ready to make a purchase right now, you skip a few stages of the sales cycle. This approach helps you articulate your organization’s value proposition and give your targeted audiences with pertinent information they need to make a purchasing decision. You’re at advantage here, because you can anticipate the question which will frequently show up and answer them effectively.

As compared to inbound lead generation (this takes time and requires consistent efforts), outbound lead generation facilitates the speedy building of brand awareness. You can actively distribute your content directly to targeted audiences, increasing your content’s overall visibility. 

What Do Experts Say About This Channel?

If your primary goal is to generate leads at an accelerated speed, then choose outbound lead generation. This channel is fast and has a lower cost of failure since you are able to gain feedback or become privy to analytics in a matter of days or weeks (not months). Outbound also outshines its ability to target specific audiences and organizations. Sure, an inbound strategy will also attract the right type of people; but the level of control outbound offers far outweighs the former.

Inbound Lead Generation Strategies 

1. Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) 

Conversion rate is defined as the percentage of visitors that complete a desired action on your website. These actions can range from, purchasing a product, filling out a landing page form, signing up for a service or event, and booking a demo. One of the most effective ways to boost your conversion rate is to optimize your page for higher conversions by creating specific landing pages. In fact, companies that increased their landing pages from 10 to 15 saw an increase of 55% in leads. Through targeted landing pages you can focus your efforts on creating a powerful value proposition that clearly showcases your product value to potential customers. 

Pro Tip: Use a professional landing page creator software

You can optimize your website pages as well, you don’t have to center everything around optimizing landing pages. There are numerous ways to optimize the website (pages) to increase conversion rates, including: 

• Add compelling calls-to-action (CTAs) on pages known to drive conversions
• Position your CTAs at the top of your page
• Each CTA should be tailored in accordance with the page’s content 
• Use the power of customer testimonials, reviews, and case studies to provide social proof 
• Use A/B split testing to test out different copies and designs 
• Highlight demos and videos that will propel visitors to take action 
• Make use of customer-focused content to establish trust whilst highlighting your value proposition

Beyond this, you may also choose to focus on SEO-backed optimization. This generally comprises of: 

• On-page SEO entails aligning page elements like headings, tags, content, and search intent with a specific set of keywords in line with your ideal customers.
• Off-page SEO involves optimizing your website through external avenues such as social media marketing, brand mentions, and guest blogging. All of this will improve your overall website’s SEO. 
• Ensure you optimize your website for mobile usage. 
• Increase your page speed for both, mobile and desktop. 
• Get quality backlinks from websites with high domain ranking. Backlinks are one of the driving factors of high search engine rankings. 

It is important to keep in mind that website and landing page optimization is an ongoing process, not a one-and-done activity. Continue to monitor the performance of your pages and optimize accordingly when needed. 

2. Content Marketing 

Content marketing should be at the forefront of your inbound lead generation efforts. Creating and publishing valuable content that aims to educate, inform and delight leads will help you build a solid impression of your brand. It will also attract a steady stream of qualified leads to your website. 

Having a blog is one of the best forms of content marketing. It gives you a space to create valuable content to attract leads, keep them engaged and also build trust. By writing blogs you increase your chances of being found through SEO best practices. This is pivotal to your success as research has shown that SEO is a top-qualified lead source. 

A few other examples of content marketing include:

• Blogs 
• Guides 
• E-books 
• Case studies 
• Reports
• Infographics 
• Videos

Keep in mind that content is being created by everyone. To stand out from the crowd, ensure your content marketing initiatives provide value, solve the pain points of your target audience, and establish its own uniqueness.

3. Develop a Social Media Strategy

Social media is being used by literally each and every organization out there. To increase the reach of your published content (blog posts and cornerstone content pages) you can start posting on social media platforms daily. Additionally, you can also engage and interact with other people from your industry—leading them to read your content. Several social media automation tools are available such as Hootsuite or Hubspot Social media management to help you schedule your posts. 

Understand and become familiar with the different features each platform offers. Facebook, for example, offers geotargeting and age-segmenting features. Make use of popular and trending hashtags in your niche to cast a wider net and reach audiences that are interested in what you have to share. 

Identify key influencers in the software development industry and find out what type of content they are sharing. LinkedIn is one of the most effective platforms for B2B marketing. You will find a wide range of leads through this channel. 

Lastly, ask your employees to post your content on their own social media to boost visibility. By spending six hours a week on social media, 66% of marketers have been able to generate leads through this avenue. 

4. Invest in Paid Ads 

Paid ads are a great way to attract leads, improve your brand awareness and generate revenue. 68% of marketers agree that paid advertising is pivotal to include in an overall marketing strategy. In fact, paid ads generate 50% more conversions than organic advertising. 

Here’s what you should include in your paid advertising strategy: 

• Identify your target audience – demographics, industry, job title, company size, annual revenue, etc. Social media and Google Ads offer very specific targeting. 
• Ensure visitors are directed towards cornerstone pages with the use of customized URLs (UTM links, so you can track the number of audiences that came in from your ad campaign)
• Test out different variations of ads 
• Start with a small-scale budget to examine what is working best for you 
• Thoroughly analyze the results generated through campaigns

Paid ads generate results faster than SEO. While it is no doubt, that SEO offers big results over a period of time, paid ads bring you relevant traffic right away. You don’t have to wait for weeks or months for your campaign to start paying off. If you have strong landing pages, and compelling CTAs, you will start generating leads pretty much the day you launch your campaign. 

5. Host Webinars Targeting Your Ideal Customer 

Hosting or conducting a webinar/seminar positions you as an authority and makes you stand out from your competitors. It is also a well-known fact that people like doing business with people they know, trust, and like. Around 73% of B2B marketers and sales professionals concur that webinars are an excellent way to generate qualified leads. 

This form of lead generation is effective because you are able to address any concerns or queries on the spot in real time—highlighting your unique perspective and attracting prospects impressed by your approach into your sales funnel. Webinars also allow you to showcase a live demonstration of your product or service. 

Software Development companies can use webinars or seminars to: 

• Share their expertise with target audiences to help them resolve their pain points 
• Provide knowledge about industry trends and best practices 
• Collect the contact information of prospects through their registration form
• Use recorded webinars as future access only content 
• Build trust amongst prospective customers 
• Provide an avenue for existing customers to interact with future prospects
• Gain a better understanding of your audiences

6. Video Marketing 

One of the pillars of lead generation is trust. Customers will not give out their contact information to just anyone. They require some level of trust. Videos are known to improve trust between customers and businesses. Videos are also flexible, easy to digest, and inspire one to take action. 66% of consumers prefer learning about a business’s product or service through watching a video, it’s a more engaging form of media. 

Search engines have also started showing short videos in search results for certain queries. Video marketing is a great opportunity for IT and software development companies to increase their brand visibility. Through the use of short videos, you can also convey complex information concisely. This is another reason more tech businesses have started creating videos. 

For lead generation purposes, there are mainly 5 types of videos created, they include, brand videos, testimonials, video ads, tutorial videos, and FAQ videos. 

Video marketing allows Software Development Companies to: 

• Highlight their features and benefits with how-to/tutorial-type videos 
• Create promotional video content that helps users visualize new features and updates
• Showcase your company culture/employee branding to help connect with viewers 

Why Choose Inbound Lead Generation? 

When leads come to you on their own, it means one thing: they are already in search for a solution. 85% of consumers do their own research before deciding to buy from a brand. You don’t have to make them actualize their need for it, they’re already on their buyer’s journey. To add, if they have interacted with your content and come across your brand through their own research, there is automatically a sense of trust. The trust is far greater than buying from a billboard urging users to “Buy now!”. 

Beyond brand awareness, with inbound lead generation, you are also drawing in the right type of leads and traffic. When you make use of a targeted approach, you are able to attract leads that are more likely to benefit from your offerings. If inbound lead generation is executed with a solid strategy then you are not only getting qualified leads but qualified leads that are ready to buy!

What do experts say about this channel? 

Inbound lead generation requires patience and persistence. It can be a slow process if you are opting for organic routes such as search, referrals, and word of mouth. A large part of this channel relies on content creation, which takes a lot of time. Distributing content and getting noticed is another aspect that consumes a fair bit of time. With increasing competition, having numerous promotional channels is important which means having to manage multiple tasks. If you want to generate results quickly, then opt for outbound lead generation. The speed of lead flow is much better with outbound lead generation provided you are well-versed in creating email campaigns. 

At the crux of an inbound lead generation strategy, your aim is to truly understand and know your customers to provide them with even more value. When you thoroughly monitor insights you are able to solve their problems better and create content that answers their questions. 90% of customers prefer personalized content. Inbound lead gen also lets you easily track your efforts. Should you continue to pool your funds towards a particular channel? Inbound lead gen lets you see the precise effect of your efforts.

Developing a Lead Nurturing Strategy

Once you have generated enough leads, your job is not finished. Now you must nurture them so they can convert into paying customers. A lead nurturing strategy must be optimized for multiple steps and touchpoints of the sales funnel.

Lead nurturing is the art of adding value to your relationships with leads. When undertaking this process your aim should be to address queries, fears, and uncertainties that muddle the mind of leads preventing them from completing a purchase. Lead nurturing is important as only 21% of non-nurtured leads will move towards a purchase. 

Design your lead nurturing campaigns in a way that drops educational breadcrumbs in various places so prospects can follow along. As they follow the path, they learn more about how your product can solve their pain points till they make their way to an eventual purchase. It is also pivotal that you reach out to leads at the right time, to answer questions or help them move forward in their buyer’s journey. It is recommended to automate your lead nurturing sequence or workflow so you reach out to them in a timely manner. 

There are many lead nurturing channels available, some of them include, social media, retargeting, website content, webinars and seminars, and email marketing. 

Pro Tip: Make use of a ‘Lead Scoring Model’ to accurately quantify the quality of your lead. 

Additional Pro Tips For Generating Leads For Software Companies 

1. Use the Power of Call-to-Actions (CTAs)

Don’t underestimate the power of a good call-to-action (CTA). Customize your CTAs in accordance with the content of each page and make them action and sales-focused. 

When figuring out the phrasing of your CTA, remember this, certain words inspire action. Common words like “download” “click” and “share” are commonly used verbs for CTAs. Here’s the tricky bit, these phrases are more for people that have already engaged with you. If your focus is lead generation, then you require a different approach. 

Effective lead generation is about understanding your audience members and their motivations. If you have a buyer person or ideal customer profile (ICP) in hand, the phrasing of the CTAs will be easy to write and it will also become highly relevant to them (making it more personalized too).

When you are writing a lead-generating CTA, consider asking yourself these questions. These questions will act like a CTA checklist of sorts: 

• Will I as a user click on this? 
• Have I established a sense of urgency? 
• Is my interest piqued? 
• Is this topic relevant to my persona? How so? 
• Is the intent of the CTA clear? Do I know what I will accomplish/receive by clicking on this? 
• What pain points of theirs will be resolved by clicking this CTA? 

2. Cornerstone Content

Cornerstone content is also known as ‘Evergreen Content’. Cornerstone content, in short, comprises of content on your website that focuses on core keywords that you want to be known for. Cornerstone content can either be in the form of long-form blog posts or website pages (landing pages). Whichever they are, ensure they are well-written and optimized from time to time. These pages are highly relevant to your niche, and often have a contact us form (if it’s a landing page). 

Many businesses offer free e-books, templates, or white papers as lead magnets in exchange for a lead’s contact information. Your cornerstone pages should rank as high as possible. 

For example, you publish a cornerstone blog on a core topic, ‘What is cold emailing’?, offering readers a wealth of information. This blog post can be linked to other related posts, which are then linked back to the main cornerstone piece. Ensure internal linking is properly mapped out and strategized, it should be a part of the hierarchy in your website. Visitors should be easily guided towards learning more about topics. 

With cornerstone content, your main aim should be to get those pages to rank high on search engines. Publishing supplementary content that links back to your cornerstone content will boost your search engine authority to the main piece.

3. Add in Supplementary Content 

One of the best practices for boosting SEO is to publish continual blog posts that link to your cornerstone content. This helps in bringing more search engine authority to your original piece — which means you generate more leads. Companies that have a good amount blog posts are known to have over 434% more indexed pages. And more indexed pages mean more leads and visibility. 

The blogs you publish can make use of long-tail keywords related to your cornerstone piece that encompasses questions your leads are asking, their pain points, and industry-relevant concerns. The content should go beyond talking about your offerings, it should include unique insights about the broad topic or your industry. 

Another form of supplementary content is third-party articles written by executives at your company. Researchers want to learn as much as possible about the industry before buying from you, so having third-party platforms publish under your brand name is important (this can be done in the form of guest posts). When creating this type of content, add links that are connected to your cornerstone content and discuss the overall performance of your organization. 

Conclusion 

If you are confused about choosing between inbound and outbound lead generation, I suggest running both of them together. Inbound requires a slow and persistent effort but will yield high-quality opportunities. At the same time, outbound prospecting and pitching will help you start conversations with leads right away. Depending on what’s working for you can distribute the percentage of investment accordingly for both strategies. 

If you want to generate qualified leads for your software development company, it is important to build and nurture relationships intricately. Your strategies should focus on buyer-centric messaging. Since it’s a competitive market, you will have to get creative and be unique to maintain substantial growth within the industry. 

Set goals and monitor your progress daily, make changes to your strategy as you go. Always refer back to your ideal customer profile (ICP) to ensure you are attracting the right type of leads.