The landscape of lead generation has changed a lot with the influx of social media and other online platforms, and it can seem nearly impossible to get noticed by new leads among the millions of other businesses online.
And, if you don’t get noticed, you don’t get sales.
I’ve been there.
Thankfully, there are ways to generate leads without overloading your budget. Here are my top suggestions to get your business into the public eye without spending a dime.
Create a bundle
The purpose of a bundle is to offer something for free that they’d normally have to pay for. For example, you could offer them a month of coaching, a premium template, or a spot in your virtual class- something to entice them to sign up.
Once you have your free item, you can create a free landing page, display the normal price, and create a nurture sequence. They’ll do the rest.
Participate in a virtual summit
Virtual summits are becoming increasingly popular, and they’re a great way to get your business in front of different audiences. Find one that’s relevant to your niche, offer to participate, and have something ready to offer (like a free resource). Then, it’s just a matter of getting with the organizer and seeing what they need.
It may be an audio clip of your expertise, a short video, or a live interview. And, depending on which summits you join, you could reach over 200K new and potential customers. Go on there and talk about your business, offer your freebie, and watch the leads pour in.
Optimize LinkedIn
LinkedIn is made for businesses, and it’s a great place to network with like-minded individuals, gather industry trends and info, and grow the professional side of your business. You can even use it to market your services if your ideal clients are business owners, coaches, finance pros, programmers, and other, more business-savvy positions.
By optimizing your LinkedIn profile, you’ll make it easier for other businesses to find you, see what you offer, and connect with you. However, remember not to hit them with the sales pitch immediately- you want to cultivate a relationship first.
Create a referral program
Referral programs are a great way to create loyal customers who will market your business for you. It works by offering rewards or incentives to existing customers for every new customer they bring in.
It’s an easy way to get word-of-mouth advertising from people who’ve worked with your business before, and the rewards don’t have to be big. They can be a discount on their next service, a free ebook or webinar, some free merch, etc.
Plus, you can advertise your referral program on your social media profiles and website, through emails and newsletters, and even on your bundles and virtual summits. Anywhere your existing clients go, your referral program can go, too.
To learn more about creating a referral program, check out this article!
Get interviewed on a podcast
Podcasts are gaining popularity, and a million business podcasts are looking for guests to interview. Find a couple that talk about your niche and send them a pitch.
Explain who you are, what you do, and why you’d be an asset to their show. If they agree, you now have access to lots of listeners- aka, potential clients.
Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher are great places to search for podcasts.
Bonus idea: Attend local events
Unless you live in the middle of nowhere, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t take advantage of your local business community. You can check Facebook events for business meetups in your area, gather some business cards, and mingle with people who aren’t behind a screen.
It’s the perfect way to grow your network, meet new leads, and gather local support for your business. Plus, face-to-face interaction builds trust much faster than online.
Final Thoughts
Lead generation may look different nowadays, but that doesn’t mean you must spend thousands of dollars to get noticed. Instead, you can use the tips above to generate new leads, grow your network, and boost your business without breaking the bank.
