At the wake of the coronavirus havoc, everything seemed to be put on hold and many changes had to be implemented suddenly and immediately. For a lot of businesses, that means almost everyone had to work from home or worst, stop operations for good. For some, it means cancelling vacations, business trips, or an upcoming conference.
Cancelled events might have a small or significant impact in your business depending on the scale and timing. No matter how big or small the effect is, there’s no denying one thing – a cancelled event means losing leads that you meant to capture during that event.
Here’s the thing – it’s not the end of the world for you and your business. You can still capture leads using alternative and fresh lead generation strategies. Here are some ideas for you:
Offer Extended Trials
In a survey conducted for video marketers, 50 percent of customers said that free trials played a major role in their buying decisions.
As mentioned above, consider this time an opportunity to showcase your product by giving more time for your customers to experience it for free. If you normally offer a 14-day free trial, why not extend the timeframe to 30 or 60 days or even more. This strategy encourages people to respond positively. After all, who can resist such a generous offer
One noteworthy company who’s doing it at this point is the yoga app, Down Dog. They provided an ingenious CTA that even first-time yoga practitioners cannot resist. Under the “Subscription” section, there’s a message that asks users what their major reason is why they cannot pay for subscription now. Once you click that, a pop-up will appear where you can type your answer. Their reply is also quite phenomenal because visitors receive a reply within 24 hours with a link that enables them a free 6-month subscription. The move is thoughtful especially during this time and it is also a great way for them to get more information from their customers.
Host a Webinar
Webinars are a great way not only for generating leads but sales as well. Among other strategies, it is the closest experience to a live event. Different platforms, like Zoom, allows hundreds of participants to attend which translates to hundreds of leads per webinar. In fact, 73 percent of B2B marketers say that it is the best method to generate high-quality leads. That is why a lot of companies – from insurance to tech – are hosting webinars these days.
Give Out Freebies for a Limited Time
Aside from extended trials, giving out freebies for a limited time can generate both leads and sales. The freebie doesn’t have to be costly. It can be a free content that gives tips and guidelines to your customers and prospects. It can be a free webinar or coaching session, or a free tool that will benefit businesses that you are targeting.
Giving out something for free, especially this time, is your thoughtful way of saying that you care. Not only will it help you drive sales but it will improve your brand image and increase customer loyalty.
Widen Your Social Media Outreach
Social media platforms have evolved overtime. Now, they are equipped with built-in features that help businesses boost their sales and generate their leads easily. Utilize these features to your advantage and get the needed boost your brand needs. Use them to announce any upcoming webinar, conference, or content to your customers and target audience.
Consider This Time an Opportunity
There are still a lot of challenges that are going to happen in the coming months due to the coronavirus outbreak. But rather than treating it with fear, you can consider it as a good opportunity to generate more leads. And as long as you engage those leads and become transparent to them, your efforts will have its rewards in the future.
