5 Reasons Why Your Lead-Generation Campaign Fails

Over the years, we’ve managed hundreds of lead-generation campaigns for our B2B and life science clients. These programs have become even more important as companies market in a pandemic environment. While most of our clients’ campaigns were successful, we have also experienced a few flops. When assessing the causes for these losing efforts, five common problems surfaced. Do any of the following culprits sound familiar?

1. Creating one-size-fits-all content:
   Most lead-generation campaigns use content to stimulate prospect conversion. Many times, the content’s subject matter will be very broad, hoping to attract the largest possible audience. But the absence of message personalization and relevancy will doom your campaign. Content must be personalized by job type, industry, application, and/or stage in the buying process to generate maximum response. For example, if you’re a senior vice president of operations at of an oil refining company, which content would you respond to, “New Process Valves Improve Flow Control Precision and Maintenance” or “Advanced Process Valve Technology: The Hidden Answer to Improving Refining Profitability?”
2. Promoting products and services in your content:
   If your content’s subject matter simply promotes your products and services, then you will miss the 95% of the market that is not actively engaged in buying. We guarantee that sharing content perceived as sales collateral will fail to attract prospects. When preparing lead-generation content, identify customers’ major problems and pain points Then, explain how they can be solved with answers that include the benefits of your technology or service. In other words: think education, not sales.
3. Buying media channels to mass audiences:
   If you are fishing for large-mouth bass, you don’t want to fish in a lake with a variety of fish. You want a lake that is brimming with bass. Your lead-generation media strategy should be the same. Most B2B and life science clients have specific personas that buy their products. Yet, we frequently see them buying media channels that reach broad audiences. The result is a wasted media spend, poor engagement rates, and lots of low-quality leads. Instead, micro-target your content through channels that are tightly focused on your desired personas.
4. Utilizing less-trusted content formats:
   How many times have you received a product brochure or ad as part of a lead-generation campaign? Did you respond? Probably not. Content formats carry various levels of perceived value and audience trust. For example, research shows that brochures, sell sheets, and ads carry lower prospect trust than white papers and Webinars.
5. Hiding content on your website:
   A Netline content consumption study concluded that “content discovery has become a scavenger hunt for most customers and prospects.”¹ It appears that marketing leaders have little confidence that their content is easily found on their Web pages, blog posts, and landing pages. Websites must be designed for easy content discovery. That work should include promoting relevant content downloads on associated product and services pages, plus creating content-rich, application-based digital resource centers.

¹ 2019 State of B2B Content Consumption and Demand Report for Marketers, Netline Corporation, June 2019.