What is the difference between lead generation and demand generation

Lead generation and demand generation are both essential topics in B2B marketing strategies. If you can't generate demand, you can't generate leads effectively and sustainably and generating demand loses a lot of its value.

As both the terms generate the same-end objectives, it doesn't mean that they are the same. In fact, some B2B marketers started using these terms interchangeably. They feel lead generation may fall under the demand generation umbrella. But it is only the specific part of the process that includes specialist strategies.

Mixing these terms will result in missing out on leads and paying more for leads than you need to. But adding both these ingredients differently in your B2B marketing strategy will help you drive more leads. As simple as that. So how will you differentiate between lead generation and demand generation?

Read on to explore the truth behind lead generation vs demand generation.

What is demand generation?

Demand generation is all about awareness and interest and how you can position your company as an essential source of information. As a result, the more your target audience grows interested in your company, the more receptive they will be once you interact with them.

If people get excited about what you are doing in your company, they will be more likely to look at you once they realize they have a need. However, creating a demand for your products or services means educating your audience on the challenges they face and why it is worthwhile to invest in their products or services for solutions.

What is lead generation?

Lead generation is all about gaining a person's information in exchange for content. Lead generation aims to achieve the contact information to facilitate contact and engagement for sales and marketing purposes.

It assumes your audience already knows they face a problem and seek a solution through products or services. They will be in the position where they are ready to assess your business to see if you can help them solve the existing problem.

Lead generation vs Demand generation

Demand generation grows your audience by attracting new visitors to your website. On the other hand, lead generation is all converting your audience into qualified leads. It is one of the subtle distinctions, and it also shows that both the terms are deeply connected to each other.

Let's break down the key difference between demand and lead generation more clearly.

Demand generation strategies

Once you have created your B2B strategies, you must recognize how valuable demand generation is and implement them. It might help your business move forward in the growth plans. Below, we will show you some demand generation strategies you can use to make it work for you.

1.Target your ideal customers with buyer's personas

When targeting audiences with your marketing, creating buyer's personas is the essential factor. However, it will help you focus on who you need to reach.

A complete buyer's persona must consider who the person is, what influences their purchasing decisions, what questions they have before reaching any decision and what challenges they face. This information will allow you to target your ads efficiently and ensure that the content you created addresses what your audience wants to read.

2.Producing valuable content

There is a lot of content out there on the internet competing for attention. The right content can constantly shift the purchasing decisions.

Investing in high-quality content is an essential part of demand generation. If you are already creating some content but feel that it is not gaining much traction, you have to consider that what you are publishing is different from other content in your industry.

You have to look for new ways to tackle the same topics, offer a new angle on an old subject and curate insights from experts to deliver the best.

3.Use platform features to extend the reach

You have to look for ways to extend your reach using established platforms like Facebook advertising. Facebook advertising is one of the best platforms for building visibility with relevant audiences.

It comes with in-depth targeting features that allow you to reach specific audiences and measure results through analytics. The best thing is that it will enable you to create lookalike audiences similar to those already interested in your services.

4.Use display ads to raise brand awareness

Using display ads is another effective way for creating brand awareness. However, you can focus on people who are likely to be interested in what you are offering if you can control where your ads appear. Display advertising is all about getting the brand name in front of prospects.

5.Increasing conversion rate with display remarketing

Remarketing will help your prospects remember you after your initial interaction and boost the conversion rates. If you notice that users are visiting your website once but not returning, you have to understand why and explore ways to regain their attention.

In this case, remarketing is an effective way to increase repeat visitors and even extend the time people spend on your site.

6.Optimizing your campaigns with contact segmentation

Someone who heard about your company will not be ready to see in-depth content that answers their questions. Instead, they need introductory content to help them recognize a challenge and how you will solve their problems.

In this case, you can use contact segmentation to manage your customer contacts into groups based on their stage. In this way, you can target campaigns for each group to deliver valuable content.

7.Offering free resources

Offering a free tool, an app, or any other resource is one of the best ways you can win over new prospects. It can also be an effective strategy if you are new to any industry and trying to grab attention in crowded markets.

It will allow prospects to experience your brand and connect with your company in a personal way.

8.Power up your email marketing

Email marketing is the best way to convey the correct information to the right audience with impeccable timing. You only have to make sure that your emails are unique and understandable.

You have to send emails that directly address different groups, addressing their questions. Further, these groups will be broken out by stage in the buying process.

9.Explore lead scoring

You not only have to focus on increasing the number of leads coming into your company if they do not become happy customers. Evaluating the quality of leads you generate will realize that some leads become the customer journey, and others become satisfied customers.

In this way, you will start noticing patterns of behaviour that are more likely to lead to conversion.

Lead generation strategies

1.Reviewing your homepage messaging

Your homepage will be getting visitors from referred sites, social media sites and other resources if you are actively promoting your site. Reviewing and adjusting your homepage is one of the best lead generation tactics for you to absorb.

For example, the founder of Digital Marketing Pro, Alex Chris, focuses on the homepage, leading to over 400,000 visitors per month on his site. You can add a must-read section like he did to drive more attention.

2.Link webinars directly in your content

Linking webinars directly to your content is one of the best lead generation strategies that will definitely work in your favour. It is one of the inexpensive ways to get more valuable messages in front of targeted audiences.

According to stats, around 52% of B2B marketers believe that webinars are the most effective ways to generate qualified leads. Therefore, if you want to generate leads, nurture them and build a thriving business, you should consider hosting a webinar.

3.Separate your lead generation team from your sales team

When it comes to lead nurturing, you have to separate your lead generation team from your sales team. The lead generation team has to stimulate and capture interest in products and services to develop the sales pipeline.

On the other hand, the sales team has to exchange goods and services for money, which is selling something. So separating the lead generation team and sales team is all about improving customer satisfaction.

4.Create an irresistible offer and syndicate across blog communities

If you want to get people to say yes to your offer, you must create a top-notch and high-value offer, and it will help you attract more clients and retain them. You only have to remember that it becomes desirable when your offer is scarce, relevant, and in high demand.

5.Retargeting campaigns

Retargeting will serve the prospects that are not ready to commit to your products or services with automated touch-points and follow-up offers and nurturing them until the right time comes to call them.

Customers that are served as retargeted ads are likely to convert, making this strategy highly effective.

Lead generation tools

Here are some tools that will help you make your processes more efficient.

Email Finder

Finding new prospects to add to your sales funnel is one of the essential things for outbound marketing. However, many people do not love getting cold emails, and now, you might start imagining they do not advertise their contact details easily.

In that case, a lead generation tool like an email finder comes into action. The tool will help you find the relevant email addresses to reach the right people with your email outreach.

How do lead generation and demand generation work together?

As both the terms ultimately serve the same goal, they have to work together to provide healthy conversion and keep the pipeline healthy. Your sales team can't generate inbound leads without a solid demand generation strategy.

On the other hand, the diversity of demand generation is another vital factor in the health of your sales funnel. For this reason, you must have a robust offering of branded videos, social media posts and speaking engagements to ensure that you are not leaving valuable prospects behind.

Moreover, call-to-action and strong offers are also effective ways to make prospects more confident in directing their attention. And a lead generation will increase the chances of getting them to entrust contact information and proceed with the buyer's journey.

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