Team GB have put on an impressive display this Olympics, and it’s something that has had us all hooked. Not only has it been fascinating and inspiring to watch, but there’s a lot as marketers that we can take away from these games. The commitment, time and effort the athletes put into their sports is truly admirable, and if you follow suit for your lead generation campaigns there is no reason you can’t win gold too. These 6 key takeaways will look at how the best athletes have a lot in common with lead generation teams at the top of their game.
Measure performance
It’s what the Olympics are all about – best times, scores, distances and of course the medals. Most athletes are driven by their goals, whether that’s qualifying for the finals, making the team or breaking world records. In order to judge success athletes need their efforts to be measured, and your lead generation campaigns should be no different. Your campaign’s strategy should include objectives and targets beforehand, performance should be monitored during, and campaign execution should be reviewed afterwards. Was it a winning campaign or a big old belly flop?
Suss out the competition
Athletes get to know their opponents, they watch their tactics and strategies to learn their strengths and their weaknesses. You should be doing exactly this! Look at what is around you, look at your competitors, what content they produce, who they work with and how they conduct lead generation campaigns. This way you can learn best practices from them, but more importantly spot weaknesses to capitalise on.
Be the one to watch
Two words- Usain Bolt. Is there anyone who doesn’t love him? But people don’t just watch him for his spectacular running skills, they watch him for his personality and the entertaining show he puts on for the audience as well. When creating material for your lead generation campaign think of Bolt and give the audience something they really want to read. Make sure it is entertaining and interesting, as well as informative. Don’t push boring sales material on your audience – great content doesn’t sell, it tells. If you keep producing valuable content your audience can’t wait to read, you’ll soon be the sell-out event everyone wants a ticket for.
Get training
Becoming a top athlete doesn’t happen straight away. They train often for years to be able to compete for the gold, learning what methods and tactics work for them. This should apply to you too, as a lead generation expert isn’t born overnight. Do whitepapers or webinars work best? What sort of subject lines and landing pages generate the most interest? You need to find out what strategies work best for you and your business over time. A/B testing is also necessary to find all this out, think of it like an athlete trying new techniques and eventually perfecting their talent.
Communication is key
Many Olympians have to work as part of a team, therefore communication is vital. No team can work well together without this skill, and this applies just as much to marketers as it does to athletes. Not only does creating a lead generation require communication amongst the team, but just as importantly so does the aftercare of the lead between sales and marketing. When sales and marketing are aligned there are measurable increases in the number of leads that are turned into real prospects as a result of continuous nurturing. This can only be done effectively when a prospect is transitioned between teams smoothly, requiring some award winning communication.
Dedication
Olympian athletes dedicate time, effort, sweat and tears to their sport. If you can avoid the sweat and tears, producing regularly successful lead generation campaigns can be time consuming and will take commitment and effort. If you want to be up there with the best you need to commit to continual content creation, constantly trying to improve from the last time. After all, when the Olympics are over it’s back to training!
Overall the Olympics are a time for athletes to show off their talent and your lead generation campaign is a time for you to show off your skills. By adopting their winning mind-set, with careful training and planning you can win gold with your lead generation campaigns.
