Classification Of Leads

Having leads flow into your business is the best thing that can ever happen to anyone’s business, and it's worth being called a blessing; however, it doesn’t just stop at that. There is a lot more to play until those leads are turned into buying/purchasing clients.

Knowing whether a lead is worth pursuing is important because it helps you determine how much you have to have this lead turned into a purchasing customer. Also, it helps you determine where you have to put efforts, for example; whether to put so much effort on a hot lead or a warm lead or whether on a cold lead, knowing where to invest your time and resources, and finally helps you know where to focus rather than pressing on leads that won’t benefit you anything apart from wasting your time.

Generating leads for a business can really be stressing especially if you have to spend a lot of time on them. They end up not becoming a customer; it is so hectic and really stressful; however, modern marketing makes things pretty much easier.

Before going any further regarding our main discussion, let us first tackle the sales lead's meaning; what are they?

Sales leads are people/individuals/companies or organizations/businesses that may have interest in your products or services and may turn into clients for your organization. However, you do not have assurance whether these are likely to decide to purchase and become customers or whether they won’t make any purchase decisions. Businesses always get leads from online adverts, offline platforms, trade shows, promotion campaigns, direct advertisements and third-party sources, the confrontation at workplace or office space, and many other ways.

Well, now let us get down looking at cold leads, warm leads, and hot leads.

We are going to look at all the three kinds of leads, which ones are the best to focus on, where should one concentrate their energy while looking at leads, how do you tell a lead that is likely to become a customer and one who won’t even if you give them as much attention as what, what stage should you give up on a lead if you see that nothing is likely to come through and anything else concerning leads, we will discuss and discover more together, now let us get down to it;

Cold leads

Cold leads are people/organizations/companies that didn’t show any interest in your products or services, neither contacted your business for service,s nor could be happy for your efforts while trying to reach them (basically irritated by your calls).

Cold leads are the people you are targeting on the market. You have first to let them know who you are, what you do, and how it can help them. You have to spend a lot of time with them while explaining, and that’s when they will realize that they actually need you. Advertising/marketing your product to them can be done in different ways; for example, physically, this involves you being on the ground and demonstrating to them, doing mass advertising using billboards or any other means. Cold leads need a lot of time for nurturing to become customers; they might become customers or not become customers.

Warm leads

Warm leads are people or businesses that have expressed interest in the kind of goods/products or the services you offer. These prospects could be interested in knowing more about your company, what you do, how you do it, and where you do it from? These prospects are likely to become customers; however, they need nurturing as well.

Warm Leads show interest differently and in different ways for example, by following you on your social media platforms, liking and commenting on your posts, filling up email subscription forms, asking people who have used your products before, asking other people who could be knowing about your products and so many other forms. At its stage, it’s up to the sales personnel to make a pitch to the lead and make sure that they are the ones at the forefront of every other alternative because at least you are sure that the person really needs the product. However, maybe he is still figuring out the best company to provide; therefore, you have to make efforts and show him that you are the one with the only best solution.

Hot leads/Qualified leads

These are the people who have shown interest in your products and services, and they have all the qualifications to become your customer. Alternatively, hot leads are always regarded as better leads since these are people or companies who are nearing the end of the sales cycle. These are the people who go-ahead to search about a particular item or product on Google or social media, and of course, by the time a prospect does that, it really shows that they require your products or services. Hot leads don’t really take a lot of time; if you have the product they want, they will call you or message you to ask about the price, and if it’s within their means and in good conditions, they will buy. Additionally, you can determine the nature of hot/qualified lead basing on;

1. The intensity of significance in regards to your product

The amount of importance a client attaches to your product determines their level of interest; for example, if a client is interested in your product, you will find that they have already researched it, they are aware of it, and so you don’t need to explain too much about the product and what it will do for them.

2. Budget

This looks at how much the lead has already prepared to spend on your product or service. If the prospect has already put a budget for your service that automatically qualifies him or her as a hot lead and it’s good to contact them immediately and market the more to them so that their morale to purchase the product increases and they don’t have to bargain about it.

3. Authority

Does the person have purchasing authority or no? If the person you are dealing with has the authority to make a purchasing decision, they qualify as a hot lead. Still, if the person has to wait to hear from someone else, it means that lead is not reliable, and you can’t just qualify them as a hot lead because a decision may turn around if the consultants are not convinced.

4. Need

Of course, by the time a prospect shows interest in your product, that means they need it, though that doesn’t mean that they will come and buy as if it’s automatic. Some prospects might step aside and might want to ask themselves whether there could be alternatives to that particular product or not? If yes, how much do those alternatives cost while relating/comparing to your product or service? And if there are no other alternatives, the lead might have to ask him or herself whether the product is really worth the purchase and whether it will help him or she solve her problems before making a final decision to buy.

5. Duration

This looks at the time frame the prospect is taking to make a final decision towards a purchase; if the prospect badly wants a product, they will not take more than a month; however, if your product is not so urgent, then a prospect might want to take his time. So the time period taken from the time of knowledge about your product/service up to the time of purchase can tell your product's urgency towards the client.

Key features and differences between a cold lead, warm lead, and hot lead; you can check out these features if you want to differentiate between these groups so fast.

Cold lead

• Shows no interest in your product or service

• Doesn’t engage the company profile or social media packages

• Feels irritated when contacted by the company or organization

• Chances of not making any single purchase are high

• Has not identified his/her need yet

• Needs a lot of time while being nurtured?

• Not even close to being called a qualified lead

Warm lead

• Has shown interest in your product by checking out your company profile and subscribing to newsletters

• Usually engages the organization or company.

• He or she is likely to result in a sale after nurturing.

• Not yet aware of the need.

• Can qualify to be a lead after nurturing

• It doesn’t need a lot of time while doing the nurturing.

Hot lead

• Already interested in the product or service you are offering

• Contacts and engages the organization there and then as fast as possible

• Chances for resulting in a sale are very high.

• He knows the need he wants

• Can be classified as a qualified lead

• The customer doesn’t need nurturing but rather a solution just.

In conclusion, understanding and knowing where you lead falls saves you a lot of drama and wastage of money and time; therefore, I would recommend all sales reps first to understand the kinds of leads they are selling out to before wasting their time.

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