How to Find High Quality Leads on a Budget

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As a small business owner or growing marketing agency, it can be difficult finding leads on a budget. However, there are a number of methods that you can use to generate leads for cheap (or even free). In this article, we will discuss some of the best ways to find high-quality leads on a shoestring budget.

I’ve run a bunch of small businesses over the years, and in that time, I’ve tried nearly every lead generation strategy under the sun. Some have worked better than others. I’m going to review the major positives and negatives of some of the most popular methods to generate leads. In this article, we will cover Paid Ads, Social Media, SEO, and Cold Email Marketing.

Marketing to find quality leads is a tricky business. There are so many different options and strategies, and it can be hard to know which one is right for your product or service. Some marketing strategies are more expensive than others, and some are more time-consuming. But at the end of the day, the most important thing is that you find marketing tactics that work for you and your business. For me, cold emailing is the way to go. It’s cheap and effective, and if done right, it can be downright fun. But it’s important to review all of them so you can make the best decision for your business. So take a look at all of your options and pick the strategy that feels like the best fit.

Paid Ads

Paid ads are a form of advertising where businesses pay to have their ad shown to a certain audience. Obviously, as the name implies, if you’re looking for ways of finding leads on a budget, this will probably be the most expensive strategy. The most common platforms to drive paid ads are Google ads and Facebook ads, but many others are becoming more popular such as Tiktok. Paid Ads provide a way for businesses to specifically target certain demographics with their message which can help increase conversion rates. When done correctly, paid ads can be an effective strategy for growing a business. However, if not done correctly, they can be a massive waste of money. It’s important to do your research and test different strategies before investing a large amount of money into paid ads.

There are many different types for lead generation, but the most common are Cost-Per-Click (CPC) and Cost-Per-Thousand (CPM) ads. CPC ads are paid per view, while CPM ads are paid per click. Both types of paid ads can be effective, but they require different strategies.

But if you can afford to do a paid marketing strategy, there obviously can be some benefits, but for now, let’s weight the benefits and costs so you have a better idea of what’s best.

Benefits of Paid Ads for Finding Leads on a Budget and More

A quicker way to reach a large number of people

There’s no doubt that paid ads are a quick and easy way to reach a large number of people. But how do you make sure you’re targeting the right audience and using the right keywords? Keep reading to find out!

When it comes to paid lead generation, one of the most important things to keep in mind is your audience. Who are you trying to reach? What are their interests? What needs do they have that your product or service can help with? Once you’ve answered these questions, you can start to craft your ad strategy.

As far as keywords go, relevance is key. You want to make sure you’re using terms that your target market is actually searching for. Otherwise, they’ll never see your ad! To find the right keywords, try using a keyword research tool like Google AdWords Keyword Planner. This lead generation tool lets you see how often people search for certain keywords.

Remember, paid ads for lead-generation strategies are a great way to reach a large audience quickly. But if you want to make the most of your investment, be sure to target the right people and use relevant keywords.

One of the benefits of paid ads is that you can specifically target your audience. With paid lead generation, you can target people based on their location, age, gender, and interests. This ensures that you’re reaching the right people with your message and that you’re not wasting your money on ads that no one will see. Another benefit to paid lead generation is that it can help you increase brand awareness. When people see your ad, they’ll start to associate your brand with the product or service that you’re offering. This can help you attract new customers down the road.

Results Can Come Quick

Anyone who has ever navigated the complicated world of online marketing knows that getting your business seen can be a challenge. With so many businesses competing for attention, it’s difficult to get your voice heard above the noise. However, one of the benefits to running a lead generation campaign with paid ads is that results can come quickly. Since you are paying money to get seen by your prospects, you can often jump to the front of the line compared to doing something with organic marketing. In addition, paid ads allow you to target specific demographics and interests, ensuring that your message is reaching the right people. As a result, a well-executed paid ad campaign can be an effective way to generate leads and grow your business.

Easier to Track

For paid ads, one of the benefits is that you can track your data and conversions if you are savvy with technology and understand how to set up tracking metrics. This information is valuable because you can learn what is working well and scale your paid ad campaigns accordingly. Additionally, if something isn’t going well, you can save money by reducing your paid ad spend on that particular metric or campaign. In other words, paid ads give you the ability to be nimble and adjust on the fly which can lead to a higher ROI. 

Negatives Running Paid Ads for Finding Leads on a Budget and More

Can Be Pricey

Paid ads can be a great way to reach many people quickly, but aren’t the best for finding leads on a budget. To get the most out of paid ads, it’s important to target the right audience and use relevant keywords. Otherwise, you might end up paying for ads that no one sees or clicks on. When it comes to targeting, consider who your ideal customer is and where they are most likely to see your ad. As for keywords, choose ones relevant to your product or service, likely to be used by people interested in what you’re offering. If you take these steps, you’ll be well on your way to making paid ads work for you.

When You Stop Paying, So Do Your Leads

One downside to paid ads is that they stop working when you shut off the campaign. This means that you need to be sure to monitor your ads carefully and make sure that you are getting the most out of your investment. Otherwise, you could be wasting your money on an ad campaign that isn’t even reaching your target audience. So if you’re thinking about using paid ads to find leads on a budget, be sure to keep this potential downside in mind.

Landing Page is a Must

One of the biggest disadvantages when running ads is that you need to create a landing page that’s optimized properly in order to get the most out of your paid ads campaign. This means that you need to make sure that you target the right audience and use relevant keywords in order to get the most out of your investment.

Social Media Marketing for Finding Leads?

If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that social media is here to stay. Whether you love it or hate it, there’s no denying that social media has changed the landscape of marketing forever. These days, businesses of all sizes are using social media to promote their products and services. And why wouldn’t they? With over 3 billion people using social media every month, there’s a huge potential audience to reach.

And like any form of marketing, there are pros and cons to consider when it comes to social media marketing for lead gen.

Benefits of Social Media Marketing for Finding Leads on a Budget and More

Can Connect with a Wider Audience

Social media marketing allows businesses to connect with a wider audience more easily than traditional advertising methods. It is an effective way to reach out to potential leads, and build relationships with them.

Cost-Effective

Social media platforms are often free to use, which can save businesses money when finding leads on a budget. However, it is becoming more difficult to get organic reach without some ad spending. Nevertheless, social media platforms provide businesses with an opportunity to connect with customers they wouldn’t reach otherwise. In addition, social media platforms offer a variety of features that can be leveraged for lead generation, such as the ability to run ads and target specific demographics.

Creates Brand Awareness and Credibility

Businesses can create brand awareness and credibility on social media platforms by sharing high-quality content, such as blog posts, images, and videos. They can also interact with customers and followers on social media, and respond to any questions or comments that they may have. Additionally, businesses can use social media to track how their brand is being perceived online, and make changes accordingly.

Negatives of Social Media Marketing for Finding Leads on a Budget and More

Time-consuming

Social media can be quite time-consuming. Many businesses have social media managers whose job is to create content, post content, interact with followers, and monitor analytics. While social media can be very effective for lead generation, it does require a significant time investment. This can take away from other marketing initiatives that the business is pursuing. For example, if a business is devoting all of its marketing efforts to social media, then it may not have the time or resources to invest in other channels. Therefore, businesses need to carefully consider whether social media is the best use of their limited resources and time.

Difficult to measure

Social media marketing can be a lot like dating. You might spend weeks swiping right, crafting the perfect profile, and sending flirty messages…only to find out that your match is a total dud. And just like with dating, social media marketing can be frustratingly difficult to track. Is your campaign really performing as well as you think it is? Does it generate quality leads? It can be tough to tell, which makes it tough to justify the time and expense of social media marketing.

However, there are some ways to make tracking social media marketing easier. By setting up goals and KPIs at the beginning of a campaign, you can more easily determine whether or not your social media marketing is effective. And by regularly analyzing your analytics, you can get a better sense of what’s working and what isn’t. So don’t give up on social media marketing just yet – with a little effort, you can make it work for you.

Can Be Bad For Business

Social media is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it’s a great way to connect with customers and promote your brand. On the other hand, it’s a potential cesspool of negativity, where people can spread false information about your business. This can be damaging to your reputation and may lead to customers choosing to do business with a competitor. The best way to avoid this is to monitor your social media accounts closely and address any negative comments or reviews immediately. With a little effort, you can turn social media into a powerful marketing tool. But if you’re not careful, it can also become a liability.

Bots Often Crowd the Space

As social media platforms become more and more popular, businesses are increasingly turning to social media marketing as a way to reach their target audiences. However, social media marketing comes with its own set of challenges, one of which is the increasing prevalence of bots. Bots are computer programs that can mimic human behavior, and they are often used to spam social media users with unwanted content. This can make it difficult for businesses to reach their target audiences, as their messages may get lost in the noise created by bots. As a result, businesses need to be even more strategic in their social media marketing efforts in order to reach their target audience.

It Takes Forever!

Social media may be free, which can be great for finding leads on a budget, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. One of the biggest challenges with social media marketing is organic growth. It can take a long time to build up a loyal following and generate enough qualified leads to make a significant impact on your bottom line. However, once you reach a certain critical mass, your organic posts will start to reach more people, and you will be able to find more leads on a budget as a result. In the meantime, don’t be afraid to use social media ads to jumpstart your marketing efforts. With a little ingenuity and some elbow grease, you’ll be surprised at how quickly you can grow your social media presence and start generating more leads.

Need a Well-Designed Funnel

It can be difficult to generate leads through social media alone. Often, you need to have a well-designed sales funnel in place to capture your prospect’s attention. This may include a message bot, landing pages, or lead magnets. Without these elements, your chances of generating leads are slim. So if you’re serious about generating leads through social media, be sure to create a foolproof funnel first. Otherwise, you’ll be spinning your wheels with little to show for it.

SEO for Finding Leads?

If you want your website to be seen by a lot of people, SEO is the way to go. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and it’s a process of making sure that your website is easy to find and that it comes up in search, ideally on the first page. SEO is important for lead generation because it helps drive more visitors to your website. If you’re not doing SEO, you’re missing out on a lot of potential leads.

Let’s look into some of the benefits and costs…

Benefits of Using SEO for Finding Leads on a Budget and More

Increased web traffic

SEO is often thought of as a dark art, understood by only a handful of practitioners. However, when SEO is done correctly, it can be an extremely effective tool for generating leads and converting them into customers. The key is to ensure that your website is seen by as many prospects as possible. This can be achieved by optimizing your site for the search engines, making sure that it appears near the top of the search results pages for relevant keywords. By doing this, you will make it more likely that people will find your site and click through to it. In turn, this can drive traffic to increased leads and conversions, as people are more likely to do business with a company that they can easily find online.

Improve Brand Visibility

SEO is not just for big companies with large marketing budgets. In fact, SEO can be a great tool for small businesses that are looking to generate leads and grow their customer base. This is because when someone searches for a company or product like yours, you are more likely to show up in the search engine results pages (SERPs). This means that more people will see your website and might be more likely to do business with you. SEO can be a great way to improve your brand’s visibility and reach a wider audience.

Cost-Effective (Over Time)

SEO is a great long-term investment. Sure, you may have to spend money to hire agencies at first but when you’re done with their work your site will continue generating and capture leads for years! SEO is not a one-time thing, it’s an ongoing process but once you get it going it will be well worth the effort. Search engine optimization is all about making sure your site appears as high up in the search engine results pages (SERPs) as possible. The higher up you are, the more likely people are to find you. And if you’re selling products or services, that means more leads and sales!

Negatives of SEO Marketing for Lead Gen

It Takes Time

SEO can be a great way to generate leads for your business. But it’s not a magic bullet, and it can take some time to see results. If you’re not patient, you could end up feeling frustrated and giving up before you see any real benefits. SEO is a long-term game, so it’s important to set realistic expectations and be prepared to put in the work. But if you’re willing to stick with it, SEO can be a powerful tool for growing your business.

Always Changing

Another disadvantage to SEO is that it’s constantly changing. Search engine algorithms are in a state of flux, so what worked last year might not work this year. You need to be willing to change your approach and stay on top of the latest trends if you want to keep getting results from SEO.

Back-Link Headaches

 It can be confusing chasing after backlinks and keywords and time-consuming writing blog posts that may not even do anything for your SEO rankings. Also, attempting to game the system by buying links or using other black hat techniques can result in penalties from Google that can be difficult to recover from. 

SEO Can Be Expensive

Just like anything else in the world, if you want something done right, you have to be willing to pay for it. The same can be said for SEO marketing. If you want to see any real results, then you’re going to have to put down some cash.

And for those of us trying to find leads on a budget, SEO agencies are not cheap. They will charge you an arm and a leg for their services. But in the long run, it will be worth it. After all, what’s the point of having a website if nobody can find it? So if you’re serious about making your site visible to potential customers, then you need to invest in SEO. Just be prepared to empty your wallet in the process.

Cold Email Marketing for Finding Leads?

For years, SEO was the bread and butter of internet marketing. But as Google continues to crack down on manipulative tactics and prioritize user experience, many marketers are finding that their old methods just don’t work anymore. That’s where cold email marketing comes in. Cold emailing is the process of sending targeted emails to potential customers in order to generate leads. It can be a great way to connect with potential customers who may not be aware of your company or product. And best of all, it’s great for finding leads on a budget and it doesn’t require you to game the system or resort to shady tactics.

But just like the other marketing strategies, it’s important to be aware of both the positives and negatives of cold email marketing for lead generation.

Benefits to using Cold Email Marketing for Lead Gen

Affordable

Cold email is the least expensive and reliable way to finding B2B leads on budget. In fact, you can probably generate a high number of higher quality leads for free if you’re willing to put in the time and effort.

High Response Rate

Another advantage of cold emailing is that it has a high response rate. This means that you’re more likely to get a positive reaction from potential customers than with other methods like advertising or social media outreach.

More Targeted

With cold emailing, you can target potential customers who are most likely to be interested in your product or service. This increases your chances of converting as many leads into paying customers.

Easily Scalable

Cold email marketing may not be the sexiest form of marketing, but it sure is effective. Not only is it inexpensive, but it can be scaled easily as well with little to no extra investment needed. Once you begin to get your sales to copy dialed in through testing, you can begin increasing the traffic sources which in turn will increase the amount of booked appointments from eager prospects excited to buy your service each week.

No Sales Funnel Needed

Cold email marketing is one of the simplest, most effective ways to drive leads. By sending emails to a dedicated list of potential customers, you can easily book calls and introduce your business. In fact, some cold email marketers don’t even use a landing page, lead magnet, or website. They rely solely on the power of cold email to generate new quality leads month after month. If you’re looking for a benefits-driven way to market your business, cold emailing should be at the top of your list. It’s simple, it’s effective, and it gets results.

Negatives to Cold Email Marketing for Finding Leads on a Budget and More

Difficulty Opening Emails

Despite the fact that email is one of the most commonly used forms of communication, many people still don’t know how to do it properly. If you’re planning on starting a cold email marketing campaign, there are a few things you need to consider to ensure your prospective customers open your emails.

First and foremost, you need to make sure that your technical setup is optimal. This means using a reputable email service provider and making sure your deliverability is as high as possible. Getting things such as your MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records properly set up and your email domain warmed properly (more on this in another blog post) is key. Secondly, you need to write sales copy that’s engaging and interesting enough to get people to actually want to read it. A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that any old sales pitch will do, but this simply isn’t the case. If you want to succeed with cold email marketing, you need to put in the effort to write quality sales copy.

Time-Consuming

Cold email marketing can be a Catch-22. On the one hand, it’s an effective way to reach out to potential customers who might not be aware of your product or service. On the other hand, it can be time-consuming to find the right contacts to email. Going out and researching websites manually can take days to build even a small list. Luckily, there are ways to accelerate this process by hiring a well-trained VA who can make you a good email list, or using services such as LinkedIn Sales Navigator or Hunter.io, just to name a couple. So, if you’re considering cold email marketing, don’t let the prospect of building a contact list deter you. With a little help, you’ll be up and running in no time.

Difficult to Track

One issue with cold email marketing is that it can be difficult to track leads. You can do this manually using a google spreadsheet or a CRM, but what I found that actually solves this problem completely is using dedicated software that tracks your open rates and conversions into booked calls. The lead generation tool I use and recommend personally is called Instantly.ai. Not only does it track your open rates and conversions, but it also has a nifty little feature that allows you to see who has opened your email and when. Even if your goal is to finding leads on a budget, this is super helpful in following up with leads, as you can now easily see who is interested and who isn’t.