You can’t make sales without customers, and you can’t make customers without leads. If you want to enhance your B2C lead generation and keep people flowing through your sales funnel, you should leverage some of the internet’s most powerful marketing platforms.
First, we should acknowledge that there’s no single “best” platform. In fact, most B2C companies would benefit from using several different platforms and integrating them through a cohesive digital marketing strategy.
That said, which platforms should your business prioritize?
Depending on the nature of the product you’re selling and your target audience, there are a few lead generation platforms that are essential for most businesses in the B2C space.
Best Platforms for B2C Lead Generation
Remember: every business is different. Platforms that are effective for one business might be frustrating for another, and vice versa.
If your goal is B2C lead generation, however, then the selections below will be a great place to start.
Website Platforms
A website is not only a great lead generation tool, but also one of your company’s most important marketing assets. No matter where you’re marketing—emails, social media, search engines, traditional ads—all roads lead back to your website.
The most important platforms for website lead generation are:
- WordPress: There are many web-building platforms on the market, but B2C companies will get the most mileage from WordPress. WordPress is ideal for three reasons. First, it allows you to build stunning websites, which is essential for nurturing leads. Second, it gives you the most control over your SEO so your pages can achieve strong search query rankings. Third, you can easily integrate your other marketing platforms, like social media channels and email marketing tools.
- Shopify: Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce tools available for businesses that sell products online. The platform streamlines everything from online checkout to stock management, and also gives you a variety of marketing tools.
Something to note: WordPress can be fairly complicated to set up, especially if you don’t have a large or dedicated marketing team. It might be helpful to enlist a digital marketing agency to get things started for you.
SEO
Search engine optimization (and by “search engine” we’re mostly talking about Google, which commands over 90% of the market share) is the most effective way to make your brand visible to potential customers and turn them into leads.
The following SEO platforms can help you boost your B2C lead generation:
- Google Search Console: Google Search Console is a free service that shows you how your website ranks on certain keywords and search queries. This platform gives you insights on where your leads are coming from, and can also help you discover lead-rich marketing spaces that you might have overlooked.
- Google Analytics: Your website should not only be designed to attract and nurture leads, but also help you determine where your leads are coming from so you can optimize your marketing accordingly. Google Analytics (and Google Marketing Platform, by extension) is the best platform to see how people are interacting with your website. What are the demographics of your visitors? Who’s making purchases, and who isn’t? Which parts of your website are drawing high engagement, and which parts are not? Google Analytics can help you answer these questions.
- Google Ads: Google Ads is the world’s most robust platform for digital advertisements. A well-target ad campaign can dramatically increase your brand visibility and generate substantial leads.
- Google Business: Google Business is essential for B2C companies with brick-and-mortar stores. When you list your company on Google Business, it will show up in Google Maps so people can find it. You should optimize your Google Business listing with the same care that you put into your website.
Social Media
Social media is great for B2C lead generation because you can increase your brand visibility organically and also through paid advertisements. Organically, you can reach your target audience through relevant, interesting, or highly-shareable content. Most platforms also enable you to run paid ads that are similar to Google Ads.
Your business doesn’t have to pour money into every single social media platform. Focus on the platforms that are used most widely by your target audience.
- Facebook / Instagram: Facebook is the most popular platform for social media marketing, and it’s well-integrated with Instagram since they’re owned by the same company.
- YouTube: YouTube is the second-largest search engine behind Google, which makes it a valuable marketing platform. Although YouTube has made an effort to foster short-form video content, many of its users prefer longer videos.
- LinkedIn: Many businesses mistakenly believe that LinkedIn is only useful for B2B marketing, but B2C companies can benefit, too. Nowadays, customers care more than ever about brand identity and want to purchase from companies that share their values. LinkedIn is a great space for defining and marketing your brand image.
- TikTok: TikTok has short-form video content that’s popular with younger demographics. As of March 2024, there has been discussion around banning the app in the United States, so marketers should do some research before committing resources here.
How Do You Manage All These B2C Lead Generation Platforms?
You might have realized something:
Effective B2C lead generation requires using not one, but several crucial marketing platforms. How on Earth do you find the time and money to manage all of them?
If you don’t have an in-house marketing team, or if your marketing team isn’t large enough to handle multiple campaigns, you might want to consider hiring a marketing agency to plan and execute these campaigns for you.
Marketing agencies are more cost-effective than hiring multiple in-house marketers. The best agencies can execute campaigns across a variety of different platforms and have a strong track record of results. You can also enlist an agency to create a Digital Marketing Strategy for you so you know how to use these different platforms to generate leads.
Fill out the form below for a free consultation to discuss your digital marketing platforms and strategy with KWSM.
