All businesses center around sales, and tech companies are no different. However, many IT businesses struggle to meet their sales targets.
An essential part of meeting the sales target is improving your efficiency so you can eliminate unnecessary tasks.
That said, the following tips will provide the foundation you need to create compelling offers and successfully convert leads to sales.
1. Improve Calls-To-Action On Your Website
Calls-to-action, CTAs, are a powerful nudge to guide your website visitors on the next action to take. Check out this page to understand how well you utilize Call-to-action in your business platforms.
They are more effective where they get the most attention, so naturally, you’ll want to use them appropriately.
Position CTAs Strategically
Here’s the thing, you want your CTAs to be seen without the visitor having to scroll down the page. This position is called ‘above the fold.’
The reasoning behind this is simple and based on heatmap analysis. Only 50% of the people who view a particular page get to the section below the fold. If your CTA is down there, only half the people will see it.
By placing it above the fold, you are doubling the impressions it gets. In a game of probability, tech companies that have their CTA above the fold will increase the impressions and thus the leads each page generates.
Leverage Images To Complement Text
Given that attention is a major aspect of your CTA’s effectiveness, you should integrate images into your strategy.
Images get more impressions than text on your website. On top of that, visitors tend to pay more attention to images because they communicate the intended message clearly.
Images also allow you to create more impact than if you were using text alone. Images will enable your CTA to stand out and get the desired consideration from your visitors.
Add CTAs To Each Blog Post
When you have a new blog post, find a relevant offer, and attach it to the post using a CTA at the end.
The CTA should have a link that takes the reader to the landing page that has the offer. This is a perfect strategy for IT companies with informational offers like guides, eBooks, and even webinars.
2. Improve Landing Pages
Landing pages are supposed to build on the CTA foundation. They should offer continuity and relevance, communicating clearly what the offer is.
You should also design your landing pages to encourage the user to stay on the website longer.
Match The Headline Of The Landing Page To The CTA
One way of ensuring consistency is maintaining the messaging from the CTA to the headline of the relevant landing page.
If the headline reads differently from what the CTA promised, then the visitor will be confused and may leave the page.
Also, if the CTA made people believe there would bea free offer ahead, you should make sure they get what your CTA promises… or you will lose their trust.
The online space is a competition for attention and visitors’ trust. If your site visitors feel you are asking more from them than what you are giving, they will move elsewhere.
Keep Text Short, Concise, And Easy-To-Scan
You want your readers to get what you are offering in a short time without much struggle. A short and concise text also means they get to read everything about the offer.
The headline should be short. Your offer will be placed where more information will be divulged. Under the headline, a small paragraph should explain the offer in brief. Use bullet points to expound on what the offer consists of and its benefits.
Create A Thank You Page To Keep New Leads On The Website
IT companies often forget to add a Thank You Page as part of the buying cycle. Where one is present, it tends to be limited to hosting a tracking code.
However, there is so much more you can do with a Thank You page.
First, it is a tool that can help you keep the new leads on the site longer.
As you give back the navigation, provide other links that are potentially interesting to the new lead. You can also add other calls to action to guide them further in the buying cycle.
For example, you could ask them to follow you on social media or subscribe to your newsletter. You could also link them to your blog. The idea is to keep them engaged and make them take further steps to build a relationship with you.
3. Improve Offers
Offers provide value to your prospective leads. You want them to be effective so that they can guide them further down the sales funnel.
Your offers should be attractive to the target audience and connected to the end goal.
Link The Offer Back To Your Site
Lead nurturing is an essential part of developing quality leads and converting them into customers. The only problem is limiting their contact with your company to emails.
Emails may feel like an extra step for them, and they could also be inclined to ignore emails from strangers. Other people are also not keen on emails they perceive to be marketing scams.
Adding a link that your customers can use to get to your website is an effective alternative, and it does not hurt to have both methods. IT companies that create excellent whitepapers can add a link on the cover page.
Thus, if your clients contact you, they can easily make the connection between the paper and the source.
Create Super-Compelling Offers
To make your offers compelling, you should have some value for the recipient, in this case, website visitors or prospective leads.
The recipient should be able to see clearly the benefit for them in taking up your offer. Well-designed and comprehensive pricing brochures and self-promotional videos may look nice but may not be compelling.
As such, you should not use them as offers. On the other hand, tools like webinars and whitepapers offer clear value to the leas, so make use of them.
Create Offers At Each Stage Of The Customer Value Journey
It is important to differentiate the offers you are offering to people at various stages of the buying cycle.
The best way is to have offers at every phase of the buying cycle to ensure the offers are relevant to that person. For example, a new lead at the top of the cycle is often in search of information.
Thus, a guide or eBook will hold more value and is relevant. On the other hand, the person towards the bottom of the cycle is more interested in trying out your product. Therefore, a demo or free trial will be an excellent offer.
Spread your offers across various stages and make use of primary and secondary calls to action leading to them.
4. Pump Up Lead Nurturing Campaigns
A good amount of lead nurturing happens through emails.
To improve your sales prospects, you want to grab your leads attention and make them understand what your offer is about. You also want to create a connection back to your website.
Include Links Back To Your Site
Linking back to your site creates a continuity of your messaging. It also offers an alternative and effective way to measure success. Emails only have the unsubscribe rate as a way to tell if your campaigns are successful.
With links back to your website, you can test different variations and better establish what is effective. CTAs do not have to lead to landing pages only, but you can have them directing leads to your social media pages or blogs.
Create An Enticing Subject Line
The headline is what gets leads to bother with your email in the first place. It should grab the attention and convince them to find out what the email is about. It should be straight to the point and precise.
More importantly, let the reader know from the headline what they stand to benefit by reading your email.
Cut Down On Images In Your Emails
Images may work excellently on a website but not in an email. Text-only emails are far more successful than ones with images. Images take away the personal feel of an email and thus part of its appeal.
You want your emails to appear as tailored for the individual and not a template for thousands of people. Without a personal feel, your email is likely to end up in the spam folder, and your unsubscribed rates will rise.
Reducing your images or not using them at all will increase the success of your lead nurturing emails.
Conclusion
For your IT company to meet its sales targets, you have to increase the number of quality leads you generate.
There are many strategies and aspects to achieving this, but the four key areas you should start with are:
CTAs
Landing pages
Offers
Lead nurturing campaigns
The idea is to capture and direct the attention of potential leads to your offers and start them on the buying cycle. Improve the quality of your offers and constantly test approaches to establish what works for you.
If you want to learn more, visit our blog page or services page to see how we might be able to help your business.