Lead generation is the lifeblood of any B2B company. Without a steady stream of qualified leads entering your sales funnel, revenue will eventually dry up.

But not all leads are created equal. Low-quality leads sap your sales team’s time and morale. High-quality leads accelerate growth.

So how do you attract more of the right leads?

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover 9 proven best practices for B2B lead generation, with real-world examples and expert insights.

1. Create Compelling Content

High-quality content entices your ideal prospects to engage with your brand. Through search engines, social media, and influencer shares, content brings new leads into your funnel.

But generic content won’t cut it in B2B You need to create content specifically tailored to your target personas’ needs.

For example, an IT services company could create guides like:

• The Small Business Owner’s Guide to Choosing an MSP
• How to Calculate Your True IT Costs: A Guide for Finance Leaders
• 5 Ways to Get Employees to Embrace New Technology

Each targets a specific persona with their precise interests and pain points.

To create compelling content:

• Interview existing customers to learn about their needs and motivations.
• Research your personas to find their common questions and objections.
• Promote gated offers like guides, templates, and demos to capture lead information.
• Repurpose content into multiple formats like blog posts, videos, and webinars.

With strategic personas and messaging, your content will speak directly to your ideal prospects.

2. Leverage Thought Leadership

B2B buyers value insights from industry experts. Your company likely has untapped thought leadership potential.

Thought leadership establishes your authority on important business topics. It shows prospects you can provide unique value beyond your products/services.

How can you demonstrate thought leadership?

• Publish data-driven research and reports. Provide original data or analysis on trends in your industry.
• Get spokespeople quoted in relevant media. Become a trusted source for reporters writing on your niche.
• Speak at conferences and events. Share your expertise on panels and in keynote speeches.
• Host your own webinars, podcasts, and webcasts. Position your leaders as forward-thinking teachers.

When done right, thought leadership makes your brand synonymous with innovation and insight. Prospects seek you out rather than the other way around.

3. Prioritize Inbound Marketing

Inbound marketing attracts visitors by creating helpful, relevant content for each stage of the buyer’s journey. Instead of interrupting people, inbound guides them to you.

Some of the most effective inbound strategies include:

• SEO – Optimize pages and content to rank for valuable organic searches.
• Content offers – Provide gated assets like eBooks and templates in exchange for lead contacts.
• Email nurturing – Send targeted, personalized content to subscribers over time to convert them.
• Social media – Share content and engage followers on platforms where your personas are active.

The inbound methodology aligns your messaging with the buyer’s natural behavior. And the leads it generates are warmer since visitors found you themselves.

4. Tap Into Account-Based Strategies

Many B2B companies find success by focusing sales and marketing on high-value target accounts. This account-based approach seeks to win over entire organizations.

First, you research and select priority accounts that fit your ideal customer profile (ICP). Then you execute highly customized campaigns for engaging them.

For example, you could:

• Create an eBook specifically addressing one target account’s needs.
• Sponsor or speak at an event where they will have executives in attendance.
• Run LinkedIn ads with messaging only relevant to their industry.
• Send direct mail or sales outreach to contacts at the company.

While more work per account, this hyper-targeted strategy yields higher conversion rates from those you care about most. And contacts in one account can make warm introductions to other targets.

5. Optimize Lead Nurturing

The average B2B sale takes months and requires follow-up across multiple touchpoints. Lead nurturing keeps you top of mind during this long journey.

Through email, content, and multi-channel outreach, nurturing builds awareness of your brand and solutions. Over time, cold prospects turn into hot leads ready to buy.

To nurture leads effectively:

• Segment your database based on interests, behaviors, and firmographics.
• Track lead activity like email opens, content downloads, and site visits.
• Map content to the typical buyer’s journey from awareness to consideration.
• Personalize emails and offers based on lead attributes and actions.

Nurtured leads make purchases at a 47% higher rate compared to non-nurtured leads. So consistent follow-up is well worth the effort.

6. Leverage Marketing Automation

Running multi-touch nurturing campaigns at scale requires marketing automation. These platforms track interactions and trigger actions based on lead scoring algorithms.

Popular options like HubSpot, Marketo, and Pardot integrate with your CRM and email. Key capabilities include:

• Automated email sequences based on time or behaviors
• Web tracking and analytics on visitor actions
• Landing page and form builders to capture contacts
• Integration with sales for shared workflows and handoffs

With marketing automation, you can nurture every lead appropriately. No more missed follow-ups or mixed signals between sales and marketing.

7. Partner With Channel and Influencers

Your company shouldn’t handle lead generation alone. Engage partners who can endorse your brand and share their networks.

Channel partners like resellers, affiliates, and tech partners tap into their own audiences. Co-marketing initiatives and incentivized referrals are a win-win.

Influencers like analysts, journalists, bloggers, and customers carry credibility with buyers. Getting positive mentions or content placements multiplies your reach.

Partners expand your marketing ecosystem. Their reputation rubs off on your brand, while letting you share costs on lead gen programs.

8. Buy B2B Contact Lists

While inbound tactics are ideal, targeted outbound can accelerate results in the short term. Purchasing a list gets you direct contacts at your dream accounts instantly.

Look for lists filtered by parameters like:

• Industry
• Company size
• Job title
• Location

before uploading into your CRM. Then use email, phone, social media, and ads to reach them.

You can also complement purchased lists by sourcing your own contacts with tools like:

• LinkedIn Recruiter and Sales Navigator for social selling
• ZoomInfo for firmographic data appended to contacts
• Seamless.ai for predictive lead scoring

Just remember to keep messaging relevant and make the value clear. Outbound works best when contacts see you as an advisor, not just another sales rep.

9. Measure Effectiveness

How do you know what lead generation tactics work? Detailed measurement provides the insights needed to double down on high-ROI activities.

Make sure to track key performance indicators (KPIs) like:

• Cost per lead
• Lead to customer conversion rate
• Sales cycle length
• Lead quality score
• Marketing qualified lead (MQL) volume
• Sales qualified lead (SQL) volume
• Revenue from marketing leads

Crunching the numbers ensures your strategies align to business goals. The data also helps convince stakeholders to fund proven lead gen programs in the future.

The Path to More and Better Leads

With these nine best practices, you can build a well-rounded B2B lead generation engine. Start where you can have the most impact based on available resources.

Just remember that buyers want to feel understood and guided through their buying journey. Keep their experience at the center, and your lead gen efforts will compound results over time.

What challenges have you faced with B2B lead generation? Let us know in the comments below!