2

Defining Your Leads

THE NEXT FOUR chapters focus on the terminology and qualifying processes of leads themselves, the fundamentals of lead-generation strategy, and the principles and methods for using lead-generation tactics. In reading these four chapters, you might think I’m overexplaining the principles and theories of lead-generation marketing.

Be patient with me. It’s very important that you understand these terms and concepts, because they provide a common framework for all lead-generation campaigns.

As I said in the “Before We Begin” chapter, the goal for Part One is to lay a strong foundation for your lead-generation campaigns. Using the terms and concepts I provide in these next four chapters will help you to define your campaign objectives and strategies. You’ll be able to plan and execute your campaigns more effectively, no matter which lead-generation tactics you use. And you’ll be able to test and measure your results to find out how well your campaigns and tactics worked.

Before we explore lead-generation strategies and tactics, we need to examine the nature and context of leads themselves. In this chapter, I’ll examine the different kinds of leads, and also look at how to define “leads” or other “actions” that you may be seeking from your potential customers.