![\"\"](\"https://mercurylabsmarketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/rebecca.jpg\")
Many things in life rely on good old trial-and-error method \u2013 choosing a major, looking for a job, hiring an employee, finding a significant other. But especially finding a significant other. You never really know until you try. Indeed, life is a box of chocolates.
\n\n\n\nWhen it comes to business, there\u2019s only so much you can do to make sure everything goes well. There are feasibility studies, various marketing strategies at your disposal, and all other measures necessary for a business to thrive. But there are also numerous factors beyond your control that impact your business trajectory. Needless to say, nobody can eliminate these variables from the equation altogether. You can only limit their potential negative effects, and that is by adhering to certain standards \u2013 standards that have evolved through time and practice and continuous innovation.
\n\n\n\nHere are several tips on how to level up your business inquiries this year.
\n\n\n\nIs there a saying that means in the neighborhood of \u201cPlanning is winning half the battle.\u201d? No? Then it\u2019s high time we had that saying. Planning, strategizing, preparation \u2013 whatever you call it in whatever language \u2013 is always the key to success, be it in sports, academics, war, or business.
\n\n\n\nAnybody who comes in prepared will beat, nine times out of 10, somebody who\u2019s good but ill prepared. Ok, you can argue that we can never be truly prepared for anything, but by golly, just do your best preparing.
\n\n\n\nThat said, list down your new year resolution for your business or planning out a decent marketing or lead generation strategy will always beat an incredible tech solution or software.
\n\n\n\nRebecca Matias, Business Development Manager of Mercury Labs, agrees.
\n\n\n\n\u201cTo put things in perspective, optimizing landing pages so they perform better, or qualifying leads properly before they move down the sales funnel will have a much better outcome than just making a hundred updates and wishing for the best,\u201d she said. Get to know Rebecca, read more about her..
\n\n\n\nWhether it\u2019s data management, a new payroll software, CRM, or an automated lead nurture tool, learning to use a new system is a pain in the neck. Sure, some people enjoy discovering how a system works, but aren’t really keen on infusing it into the “whole system” because they’ve grown too comfortable with the existing one. It\u2019s always more love at first sight than an enduring kind of love. Most of us abhor change and would rather stay where we\u2019re comfortable at or do what\u2019s convenient. The solution?
\n\n\n\nFind a team of people to lead the charge. Better if they\u2019re more senior than the subordinates.
\n\n\n\n![\"ameer](\"https://mercurylabsmarketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/ameer.jpg\")
\n\n\n\n
\u201cBased on experience, being senior and able to show \u201cbattle scars\u201d adds up to one\u2019s credibility, authority, and overall respect. Sometimes, it just needs a great leader and a little prodding to make a great team. In our case, because we know brief internal correspondence from the bosses come through Spark and Slack instead of email, we\u2019re far more likely to keep an eye on them than email,\u201d
\n\n\n\nsaid Ameer Ahmad, Lead Generation Specialist and Appointment Setting Expert.
\n\n\n\nIn your own organization, try to get people on board fast to make sure you don\u2019t waste your money on a system no one uses.
\n\n\n\nOftentimes, we use the turning of the year as an excuse to start with a blank slate, to recalibrate our standards, to raise the bar, and it\u2019s only fitting that when we do this, we do it across the board. Along with your plans to go to the gym, save more, get a pet iguana and volunteer for that group of tree-huggers, include cleaning your mailing list/s this year. I think it\u2019s a good place to start.
\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https://mercurylabsmarketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/logo.png\"){kind=logo}
\u201cA bad email address can never convert. A clean email list increases conversion rates by removing addresses that will never convert. When your messages are being received by an engaged audience, your conversion rates will increase,\u201d the nice people of GetB2BLeads, say.
\n\n\n\nRead more on Start Fresh with a Clean Email List for 2017
\n\n\n\nWhat you need is a database of leads that\u2019s clean and qualified at all times so your sales team is able to focus more on closing significant sales. Of course, a clean and qualified database starts with a one qualified lead at a time, and ends with regular cleansing. That said, your organization should have a team dedicated to cleaning your data. If you don\u2019t, your platform wouldn\u2019t work.
\n\n\n\nHere are some easy tips and guide for you to have a cleaner list this 2017:
\n\n\n\nPut greater emphasis on quality\u00a0marketing data this year, learn more about our customer profiling process!
\n\n\n\n![\"John](\"https://mercurylabsmarketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/makemoneywithablog.jpg\")
Make sure you\u2019re creating and distributing varied content. Again, that\u2019s easier said than done, but it makes a ton of sense. Blogs are a staple. But you can add press releases, short videos, podcasts, case studies, and whitepapers in the mix. Always think about where customers want to engage with you. Is it via Email, webinars, social media, events or through phone calls? Which is best for specific customers? Think about that when building personas out, and when qualifying leads.
\n\n\n\n\u201cWrite targeted, helpful content that fits your audience at all levels. Don\u2019t worry about giving to much away for free, I would rather write a helpful piece of content that teaches something on its own, than to write content that leaves the reader needing to go elsewhere to finish the \u2018learning\u2019,\u201d
\n\n\n\nsaid John Paul Aguiar, an Internet entrepreneur, pro blogger and social media consultant.
\n\n\n\nRelated: The Five Elements of Quality Content (According to an End-user)
\n\n\n\nAny decent lead gen system will have dozens of templates and automated triggers to help you get more out of it. It\u2019s great, but don\u2019t let your life depend on them. Set aside some time to \u2013 for lack of a better term — breaking rules. By that I mean implementing something that veers a little away from the traditional way things are done. But first you have to have a deep understanding of your internal processes and know what works for you and what doesn\u2019t.
\n\n\n\nConsider this strategy from a PR guy who was helping his team come up with ways to assure their prospects their phone and chat lines are handled by real people and not bots. Running out of solutions, the PR guy told his team to deliberately use typos in their live chats (and apologizing for them right away). \u201cThat way, they\u2019d know the one they\u2019re chatting with is 100% warm-blooded.\u201d PR guy = borderline genius. So yeah, ignore advice that doesn\u2019t fit your style and do what works for you.
\n\n\n\nParting Shot
\n\n\n\nIf this list looks familiar, it\u2019s because the pros have said this at one time or another. And by pros I don\u2019t mean those who have the most awards, the most twitter followers, or the biggest names. These are people who have been around long enough to commit a significant number of errors, learned from them, moved on, and succeeded. They just care enough to share some of the lessons from their blunders. After all, success isn\u2019t success just by falling down and getting back up, but by also preventing others from falling down in the first place.
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Here are several tips on how to level up your business inquiries this year and taking your sales and revenue to greater heights.
\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":69767,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_callbox_draft_pusher_loaded":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[1245,1246],"class_list":["post-18608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lead-generation","tag-increase-new-business-inquiries-2017","tag-increase-number-of-prospects-this-2017"],"acf":{"cb_acf_post_contact_cta":"","cb_acf_post_contact_desc":"","contact_utm":"","contact_utm_button":"","cb_acf_post_offer_type":"ebook","cb_acf_post_offer":[13438],"cb_acf_guest_post":{"author_avatar":"","author_bio":""},"featured_case_study":null,"blog_faq":{"title":"","faq_list":null},"cb_acf_hero":{"h1_title":"","headline":"","description":"","image":"","video":"","video_header":false,"cta_link":"","cta_link_hs":"","cta":"BOOK A MEETING"},"has_contact_form":false,"dark_themed_form":false,"has_review_section":false,"top_level_page":false,"featured_services":{"section_title":"","section_description":"","featured_service_cards":{"card_1":{"title":"","description":"","button":null},"card_2":{"title":"","description":"","button":null},"card_3":{"title":"","description":"","button":null},"card_4":{"title":"","description":"","button":null}}},"leadgen_apac":false,"leadgen_au":false,"cb_asset":"","cb_web_property":"MAIN","cb_acf_relational":{"case_study":"","cs_industry_image":""},"cb_acf_testimonial":"","cb_regional_pages":null,"cb_acf_ctas":{"contact_form":"","banner_image":"","goto_form_button":"BOOK A MEETING"},"cb_acf_post_alt":{"alt_post_title":"","alt_post_image":"","alt_post_excerpt":"","alt_post_image_url":""},"form_redirect_url":"","cb_banner_announcement":null,"hubspot_form_guid":"6c1dda45-65a3-49f4-9de6-7bc157f6abbb"},"yoast_head":"\n