The Ultimate Guide to B2B Lead Generation in 2024

61% of the B2B market works exclusively online now. The key to success in the B2B business landscape is simple–creating sustainable quality B2B leads will make your company thrive. With so many options and methods for B2B companies, it can be challenging to know which ones will work to find your customers. 

Here at NetShopping, we’ve been working in lead gen marketing since 2017,tailoring our expert services for B2B lead generation services. In this blog post we’ll cover what B2B lead generation is, what makes it important and how to use it for your business.

 

What Is B2B Lead Generation?

A B2B lead is a prospective customer who needs your product, service, or tool to run their business efficiently. They may have signed up for a webinar or download on your website or have never heard of your company before but could be interested in the future.

49% of B2B marketers saying generating more leads is their highest B2B marketing goal of the year, according to ViB

Identifying and attracting potential business clients takes a different path in the B2B world. It’s focused on the business-to-business connection, and your marketing should be directed toward other companies rather than individuals, i.e., B2B inbound marketing. Here’s the general framework of the lead generation for B2B process.

The B2B Lead Generation Process

1. Identify the Target Audience: The first step is understanding your ideal B2B clients by creating what’s known as a ‘persona,’ or a typical target customer. What does their company provide to the industry? How big is the company, and how long have they been in business? Most importantly, you need to figure out where their friction is. If they don’t have enough customer service people to handle inquiries, or they’re expanding to a new region and need help with payroll conversion, these particular pain points should inform all of your next steps.
2. Create Marketing Campaigns: It’s common to have several campaigns simultaneously aimed at customers at unique points in their business lifecycle. Digital marketing channels like email, content marketing, paid advertising, and SMM can help you communicate strategically and cohesively with your future customers.
3. Nurture the Leads: You’ve got your leads, and now you need to nurture them by offering them content that they find valuable—whether that be educational, social proof and testimonials, or even something like a link roundup each week of industry information. While your focus may be on the B2B sales leads, you’re still a person aiming to help another person—prioritizing this connection will go far in creating brand loyalty and referrals, too.
4. Convert the Leads: The final step is converting these interested and nurtured B2B leads into paying customers. You might think this is the hardest part of the process, but if you’re spending the right time and being intentional with the first three points, getting that final ‘yes’ isn’t that difficult.

Differences between B2C and B2B Lead Generation

If you’re familiar with marketing strategy, you might think this list is the same no matter what kind of business you’re in—the goal is to sell your product. However, there are fundamental differences in how these goals are reached in B2C advertising versus B2B advertising. Here’s a quick breakdown:

Target Audience

• B2C targets individual consumers whose spending is influenced by their world, such as school-aged kids wanting the newest pair of shoes.
• B2B focuses on businesses with a hierarchy of decision makers and approval levels, such as executives and management teams—like a paper products company specializing in sustainably sourced materials.

Sales Cycle Length

• B2C: Generally shorter, with quicker purchasing decisions and lower transaction values. The shoes you want to sell will likely be out of vogue in a year, so you need to move your units quickly.
• B2B: Longer and more complex, involving multiple stakeholders and higher transaction values. If you offer a way to print on these paper products, you must address all parties’ concerns, from cost to shipping to replenishment schedules.

Decision-Making Process

• B2C: Often emotional and influenced by personal preferences, social proof, and instant gratification. If the hottest influencers are all sporting the shoes, you can bet the desire to own them will grow.
• B2B: Rational and data-driven, requiring thorough research, budget considerations, and stakeholder consensus. In our printing example, your target customer will need assurances that the ink you use is also eco-friendly to stay in line with their mission statement. 

Marketing Channels

• B2C: Predominantly uses channels like social media, direct email, and e-commerce platforms. The effect grows exponentially if your target audience sees your shoes splashed in their favorite places.
• B2B: Utilizes channels like LinkedIn, industry events, webinars, email marketing, and content marketing. This assures businesses like the paper products company that your offering is legitimate and professional and will reflect money well spent on their products

Comparative Table: B2C vs. B2B Lead Generation

 

Aspect	B2C	B2B
Target Audience	Individual consumers	Businesses and key decision-makers
Sales Cycle Length	Short	Long
Decision-Making Process	Emotional and quick	Rational and deliberate
Marketing Channels	Social media, direct mail, e-commerce	LinkedIn, industry events, webinars

Why Is B2B Lead Generation Important?

Lead generation is vital when you market in the B2B space. 

• Increased Sales: Effective lead generation in B2B drives more qualified leads into the sales funnel, ultimately leading to higher sales. You’re not wasting time (or marketing budget) on customers who ultimately aren’t right for you.
• Better Customer Relationships: Nurturing B2B leads helps build trust and rapport with potential clients, fostering long-term relationships. Time spent here leads to the real gold of the B2B marketing funnel—recommendations and referrals from happy clients to more qualified leads. 
• Higher ROI: Precisely targeted inbound lead generation strategies paired with intentional marketing efforts ensure that your focus is on high-potential prospects, leading to a better return on investment. Every dollar spent goes further.

What NetShopping Has Achieved in B2B Lead Generation

NetShopping has helped numerous businesses achieve significant results through tailored B2B lead generation strategies. 

• An international software provider tasked us with creating a large-scale advertising campaign to increase brand recognition. We gave them 1000+ new clients.
• A leading international quality control company in Asia approached us for assistance in setting up and managing paid advertising. We helped them double their qualified leads.
• A global leader in commercial real estate services was experiencing audience burnout after two years without adjustments. We grew their online lead generation and saved them money.

There’s more where those came from. Read our success stories and case studies.

How B2B Lead Generation Works

1. Lead Acquisition—Whether you employ pay-per-click (PPC) advertising or B2B SEO, the first step in this journey is when your potential customer initiates contact by signing up for more information on your product or service.
2. Lead Nurturing—Your marketing campaign for these customers educates them about your product, often through emails or posts that answer their questions before they ask.
3. Marketing Lead Qualification: When your customer engages with your marketing, by submitting contact information or joining a program, they become a marketing lead. They have demonstrated interest through action.
4. Sales Transfer: Your customer is now in the hands of your competent sales team, moving further down the funnel and closer to purchase or subscription.
5. Sales Lead Qualification is a critical step, as it can clarify any lingering questions your customer may have about your product or determine whether the marketing team needs to be nurtured a bit longer to get the appropriate stakeholders on board.
6. Conversion—now you’ve come to terms, and money changes hands. However, unlike the B2C pipeline, B2B doesn’t end here. It goes on to a final and essential next level, which is
7. Customer retention: According to Add-on, the average B2B company generates 30% of its profits from retained customers. Your B2B leads return to purchase from you again because they feel loyalty and trust your company over researching new ones. Acquiring a new customer can cost 5x to 25x more than retaining an existing one.

Main Types of B2B Leads

So, now that we’ve covered how crucial B2B lead generation campaigns are for your company, let’s explore the different types of B2B leads and why understanding them makes your lead management more effective. 

Marketing-Qualified Leads (MQLs)

Marketing-qualified leads show interest in your company and what you have to offer, such as downloading your lead magnets or signing up for your monthly newsletter. They’re interested in what you say but must be assured you’re the right solution for their challenges. 

Sales-Qualified Leads (SQLs)

Sales-qualified leads have met several criteria, showing they’re ready to purchase. These are your serious candidates for customers, the ones who have been in contact with your marketing and sales teams and are openly reaching out to have you help them. These are your ‘hot’ leads, and you want to take extra care in walking them through your door.

Let’s compare them:

 

Aspect	MQLs	SQLs
Definition	Leads identified by the marketing team as having potential interest and engagement	Leads further evaluated and deemed ready for direct sales engagement
Criteria	Based on actions like website visits, content downloads, email interactions	Based on deeper criteria like budget, authority, need, and timeline
Stage in Funnel	Middle of the funnel	Bottom of the funnel
Responsibility	Marketing team	Sales team
Primary Goal	Nurture and educate leads	Convert leads into customers
Engagement	Engages through marketing campaigns and automated workflows	Engages through direct communication (calls, meetings)
Typical Activities	Email marketing, content sharing, webinars	Product demos, personalized sales pitches, negotiations
Conversion Potential	Indicates potential interest	Indicates readiness to make a purchase decision

How to Qualify a Lead

Thinking about lead qualification is helpful as if you’re putting on your detective hat. You’re gathering essential information about your leads to determine whether they fit your product well. Two of the most common processes B2B businesses use to qualify leads are the BANT Framework and the Lead Scoring Matrix. Here’s a quick rundown of those two methods.

BANT Framework

The letters in the BANT Framework refer to four important categories: Budget, Authority, Need, and Timing. 

1. Budget: Does the lead have the budget to purchase your product or service? From the pricing of their wares to the clients they work with, you can see what stage of their business lifecycle they’re in and whether they can spend the money on your solution.
2. Authority: Most B2B purchasing decisions go through six levels of approval. Is the lead a decision-maker or influencer in the purchasing process? Figuring out the right person to be talking to regarding your products will save you from wasting valuable time.
3. Need: Does the lead have a genuine need for your solution? If we go back to the paper products company example, do they do any printing on their products? If they don’t, perhaps you can find out why. If it’s for any reason other than they can’t find a suitable partner, pursuing them might be a waste of time.
4. Timing: Is the lead ready to purchase soon? Yes, we know. We talked quite a bit about how important it is to nurture your leads, but you also don’t want to wait forever. Coaxing them to try and buy could be better spent finding someone ready to roll.

Lead Scoring Matrix

The Lead Scoring Matrix is a system used to assess the value of a B2B lead and dictate how much money should be spent towards converting that lead. Each interaction is given a base number, depending on how vital that interaction is and how close it takes the customer to convert. Using a basic 0–10 scoring range, a sign-up on your website might be worth 8 points as it shows interest in action. Someone returning to your website several times would be worth a 4. Someone who comes to your website and doesn’t return will receive a 1.

Examples

• Qualified Lead: A lead with a high score, showing interest in your product, having decision-making authority, and a clear need. The person may have both gotten in touch through your website (10 points) and searched your blog for articles that answered their questions (4 points). They’ve shown more engagement with what you have to say and, therefore, deserve more attention. 
• Unqualified Lead: A lead with a low score, lacking budget, authority, or immediate need. A person could have looked at your website and then never gone much further than that— and you may score them a 1. 

Which framework to choose: Lead Scoring Matrix vs. BANT Framework:

 

Aspect	Lead Scoring Matrix	BANT Framework
Flexibility	Highly customizable to fit specific business needs	Standardized criteria applicable across industries
Complexity	Can be complex to set up and requires regular updates	Simpler to implement with clear criteria
Data Requirement	Requires detailed data tracking and integration	Needs specific information on BANT criteria
Usage Stage	Can be used throughout the lead nurturing process	Typically used in the qualification stage
Primary Goal	To prioritize leads based on their engagement and fit	To assess lead readiness and suitability for sales
Ideal For	Businesses with complex sales processes and multiple lead touchpoints	Companies needing straightforward qualification criteria
Decision-Making	Helps in prioritizing leads for nurturing and follow-up	Assists in quick qualification for sales readiness

Top B2B Lead Generation Strategies

At NetShopping, we’ve assembled a team of industry experts with experience crafting effective lead generation strategies using the best B2B marketing trends. Here are some that we use every day with our clients.

Promote Your Website in Search Engines (SEO)

Business-to-business search engine optimization (B2B SEO) entails the optimization of your website to increase visibility and bring qualified leads to your website. Over time, this leads to the building of credibility and trust in your industry. Since it is organic traffic, it’s cost-effective and continues to bring in customers beyond the initial setup.

Researching the strongest keywords and using them in your content (like blogs) and on-page SEO like meta descriptions is a proven way to maximize this strategy. Creating high-value content and using analytical data to make adjustments are also vital things to prioritize.

If this topic gets your brain tingling with ideas, we’ve got another blog post that walks you through creating a reliable and proven B2B SEO strategy.

Invest in Paid Advertising (PPC)

According to PoweredbySearch.com, in general businesses can expect an 8:1 return on investment (ROI) from Google Ads. PPC campaigns drive targeted traffic to your website by surfacing your product and website on pages that correspond with what customers are searching for. By doing this, your marketing budget goes further, and you receive high-value leads in return. 

Through the use of keyword planners and A/B testing, you can refine your messaging in real time. When choosing platforms for B2B lead generation, your best bets would be utlizing Google Ads and posting on LinkedIn.

This example from Lattice, an SaaS company working with HR professionals. By offering them something they would find valuable such as a calendar populated with important dates and tips, they are reaching the stakeholder directly and proving their worth. 

Ads that are too generic, such as ‘best calendars for 2023’ or a busy font choice, are two pitfalls to avoid when creating PPC content for B2B leads. The decision to click should be clear and compelling for your audience.

Review some of our strongest case studies for successfully using PPC campaigns in all industries. 

Implement Social Media Strategies

Leveraging your company’s social media account is an excellent form of lead generation for B2B. By using platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, you connect directly to your industry, establish social proof, and show expertise in your field. Depending on the need of your campaigns, you can create posts focusing on customer testimonials, host webinars or special events and introduce new products and services.

Kentik, a network security and traffic visualizer, often hosts training lives and connects its audience with experts. They announce these events on social media and later share recordings for free. Information from such events could easily be repurposed on other platforms, such as Twitter.

Avoid content that is too salesy or pushy–the intent here is to provide value. Engaging with your audience is key to nurturing these B2B leads so you don’t miss opportunities for connection. As always, impactful CTAs such as ‘sign up’ propel the visitor to take immediate action.

The team at NetShopping knows all about the best moves to make, and if you want to learn step by step, you can read our post about effective B2B social media strategy.

Utilize Email Marketing Campaigns

Everyone loves a beautiful email, but the B2B lead generation strategy calls for effective emails. Business emails have a host of excellent tools for precise targeting: 

• segmentation (where only leads interested in a particular thing receive the email),
• personalization (using the company stakeholder’s name in the greeting and body of the email),
• automation (where a series of emails are ‘dripped’ to the receiver based on a predetermined schedule for nurturing).

The email below from analytics plug-in creator MonsterInsights is a great example of using email as a lead generation tool for nurturing. With personalization in the greeting and offering important information in a friendly coworker-like manner, they show their customers that they are aware of the latest news and want to share it with them.

Additionally, giving them a call to action to check their bounce rate gives MonsterInsights data on who is engaging with their emails. This could inform future marketing campaigns or blog posts regarding how to manage your bounce rate. 

Leverage Content Marketing

A key ingredient to establishing a content marketing strategy is researching your goals. From generating new leads to increasing brand awareness, being clear about the desired end result allows you to focus on creating premium content.

58% of B2B marketers say that content marketing has helped them generate sales and revenue in the past 12 months, up from 42% in the previous year. 

When it comes to lead generation for B2B, content marketing stands out thanks to its cost-effectiveness. Well-created and optimized content will continue to attract traffic and generate leads long after it is first posted. This is key when it comes to B2B customers since the buying process is lengthy and may include multiple decision-makers. This is why lead nurturing is important for B2B leads. 

Use Retargeting

Retargeting, or remarketing, is the use of http cookies to track a user’s activity while searching. While this might sound unsettling, it’s gold from a B2B lead generation perspective.

B2B retargeting performs better than B2C retargeting by 150%, according to Kwanzoo.

Customer acquisition can be expensive if you aren’t retargeting people who have shown interest. Using retargeting in your lead gen campaigns for B2B can include the following methods:

• Website retargeting with the use of a tracking pixel.
• Search retargeting based on high-quality keywords.
• Email retargeting focused on sending offers to interested customers who haven’t converted.
• Dynamic retargeting that resurfaces the products or services your lead has viewed on your site.

Personalization is the key here along with precise segmentation. By having your customer feel welcomed and given a custom-made solution, they are open to continue down the sales funnel.

Collaborate with Influencers

Like anywhere else, hearing from someone trusted in the industry that a particular product or service helped them streamline their logistics or achieve their goal of no open work tickets carries weight. Look for influencers with a solid reputation and values you align with, along with their followings. 

General Electric did this so well that they won an award for it. They hosted a tour for 12 influencers—6 professional photographers and six aviation ‘super fans’—who got VIP access to the Ohio assembly line and test center, highlighting their newest engines. This way, they could ‘advertise’ to a B2B audience while giving a more general public an entertaining view of an unconsidered product.

Create CTAs that Convert

In B2B lead generation, your customer journey can start at the landing page of your website. The average session, where the customer browses your pillar pages and figures out if you have what they need, can be between 2 to 3 minutes. B2B businesses experience a bounce rate of 25% to 55%, so the importance of offering multiple intentionally placed CTAs is crucial.

Salesforce uses several B2B lead generation tactics here, offering CTAs for a variety of visitors. For the ones ready to act, they can ‘start a free trial’ or ‘try for free’. If they’re not quite ready to jump in, they can watch a demo or chat with a representative online or via phone number. There’s even an option to say ‘no thanks’ to the chat, giving Salesforce valuable data on how well their chatbot is achieving their goals. 

Leverage Public Relations

When looking for a powerful way to cultivate credibility and attract the best B2B leads, public relations supports your lead generation for B2B strategy in several ways. 

• Press releases that announce company achievements and new product or service launches.
• Thought leader interviews or speaking engagements that demonstrate the authority and insight of your company’s executives.
• Sponsoring events or online webinars increases visibility within your field, establishing trust.
• Community engagement shows your commitment to your brand values.
• Media coverage from industry newsletters and other outlets can lead to inbound inquiries from B2B leads.

Microsoft used its #BuildFor2030 campaign for community engagement by creating case studies, webinars, and promotional content that showcased its partnerships with other companies working towards sustainability goals.

This strategy works because it demonstrates Microsoft’s brand values, emphasizing its visionary team. 

Participation in Events and Conferences

Every industry with B2B companies has events and conferences that are flush with B2B leads. But you need to make some intentional preparations long before the show date. You can maximize your time onsite by creating a pre-event campaign, prepping your sales teams, focusing on clear messaging, and using any site-specific tech, like a QR code or hashtag unique to the conference.

Many B2B sales teams even score leads, taking notes and offering video content such as product demos and brochures. Keep current on industry newsletters and online forums to find your market’s best events and conferences.

Critical Challenges in B2B Lead Generation and How to Overcome Them

B2B sales have their challenges. Here’s how we like to tackle them.

Market Saturation

How can you stand out in a sea of equally hungry B2B companies? By authentically being the brand you take pride in. Use what makes you (and your product or service) unique to find your people. 

Lead Quality

A generated lead is nothing but an email address if they’re not qualified. You don’t want an enormous number of leads—you want the best ones. Take time when planning your B2B lead generation strategy, and be focused when scoring the ones you do get. 

Data Management

Finally, spending time and money on lead generators is a waste if you don’t have a suitable CRM system or another way to collate and segment your audiences. 

Tips for Effective B2B Lead Generation

Retention

When you spend time cultivating relationships with your clients, the sales increase pays dividends.

The success rate of selling to a customer you already have is 60% to 70%, while the success rate of selling to a new customer is only 5% to 20%.

Multi-Channel Approach

Creating a cohesive message throughout several channels leads to trustworthy and enhanced visibility. An offer posted on LinkedIn could be repeated in a personalized email and surfaced again in a retargeted ad. Adding conversion rate optimization techniques increases the likelihood of quality leads.  

Quality Over Quantity

What’s true in our personal lives is also true in B2B leads—quality will always triumph over quantity. To ensure success, spend time planning, executing, and reviewing your B2B lead generation strategies often to stay fluid in the marketplace.

How to Measure B2B Lead Generation Success

Here’s the short list of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) you should look for to evaluate your B2B leads.

• Cost Per Lead: the total marketing spend divided by the number of leads generated
• Conversion Rate: how often a visitor becomes a customer
• Customer Acquisition Cost: the average cost in bringing a new customer onboard
• Engagement: how long does a customer stay on your website or interact with your tools and team
• Customer Lifetime Value: identifies your best customers by determining the total amount they will spend with you over your relationship. 

Conclusion

Lead generation in B2B is different than expected if you’re only familiar with the B2C funnel. With its focus on qualifying leads and nurturing the customer, a lead generation strategy to sell your product or service becomes more of a relationship than a transaction. 

With so many B2B lead generation tools out there, it’s understandable that it might feel overwhelming to execute. It’s why we here at NetShopping do what we do—generate leads for your business. We’re your helping hand in boosting lead generation, driving demand, and skyrocketing your ROI. Unlock your potential with a free call today!