Prospecting tools for sales

Let's start from the beginning

A bit of history

In the days of cavemen hunting mammoths and traders exchanging pearls against land, it was all about person to person.

Then, companies relied on referrals, going door-to-door, and being in pedestrian zones where there would be people interested in their product. This could be a stand in an open-air market or a storefront. Groups of artisans network and share deals to each other.

Word of mouth was essential to build a successful business at that time. Most companies only marketed to their area. It was essential to work hard to be a reliable specialist and have a high quality product that was worth mentioning!

Anyway, during those times, generating prospects and business took a long time. Generating new leads required someone to connect directly with another person, which made it difficult to scale and not to saturate a market.

And so the technology was

Fortunately, technological advances rapidly changed the logistics and the area in which companies could both serve and generate new business.

Consumers were inundated with ads and offers and began to become skeptical. Too many promises and too little to show: it created a distrust of the ads.

Then the Internet was created in 1983 and got more recognition in 1990. It was a dream for marketers and advertisers. Pay-per-Click (PPC) began in 1999-2002, which allowed companies to pay for traffic from searches for specific solutions. Websites can generate traffic and leads with SEO. Email marketing allows companies to reach the inboxes of millions of people for virtually nothing. Video and audio have allowed companies to build relationships with potential customers in specific niches.

The software has given even more possibilities to configure these lead generation systems automatically, such as automation platforms like HubSpot and Constant Contact.

The history of lead generation shows that executives, technologies and methodologies are constantly changing. It is essential for companies to stay on the cutting edge of trends and developments in order to improve the cost, time and efficiency of their lead generation efforts.

Take the time to look at your business today:

• Do you really know your potential customers?
• Do you really know your current customers and what makes them special? What do you know about them?
• Do you know where to find more of those ideal customers?
• Are your marketing efforts effectively focused on generating more of them?

Regardless of the century, successful companies can generate consistent leads because they know their market and how to position themselves in front of them with their solution.

Personalize your prospection

Are you looking for the best lead generation tools to grow your business?

Lead generation is not just about getting people to visit your website. It's also about collecting their information to foster communication and turn occasional traffic into loyal customers.

Lead generation requires the right tools, even for marketers. That's why, in this article, we'll share our top choices of tools that will help you master every aspect of lead generation in the sales enablement.

Why do you need lead generation tools?

Lead generation tools and software help you easily capture the contact information of people interested in your company's product or service. It will collect the email address so you can track your leads and start the process of converting them into paying customers.

The key to lead generation software is that leads are collected without any ongoing manual work on your part. Essentially, these tools automate the process so you can focus on other tasks.

If you're struggling to gather leads, then it is time to introduce a new lead generation software, or upgrade the one you currently have. We've worked with many companies like yours and have identified the key drivers of successful lead generation campaigns.

Types of lead generation tools

Lead generation is not a "one size fits all" process. In fact, there are many ways to generate leads. They include:

For an initial segmentation:

• LinkedIn Sales Navigator
• Societeinfo
• Kaspr

To find emails, phone numbers and information about companies:

• Datagma
• Dropcontact
• Lusha
• Hunter

For prospecting automation:

• SaaS orienté LinkedIn : Waalaxy
• SaaS orienté email : Lemlist
• SaaS généraliste Overloop

For advanced automation or automation between prospecting tools

• PhantomBuster
• Captain Data
• Zapier
• Integromat

For prospecting in technological verticals

• Similartech
• Builtwith

It all depends on what type of tools you are comfortable with and what type of campaigns you want to run.

What to look for in a lead generation tool

Here are the characteristics you should look for in a lead generation tool:

• Easy to use: it is important that everyone in your organization knows how to use the tools. Otherwise, it's just another piece of unused material.

• Accessibility: the best lead generation solutions are cloud-based, which means you have access to your lead generation campaigns and data via any Internet connection. This makes it easier for the entire organization to engage in lead generation.

• Affordability: no one wants to spend money on something they are not sure will work for them.

• Solid Support: make sure that any issues you encounter are handled quickly and professionally. There is nothing worse than spending money on a tool and not using it because there is no support when questions arise.

• Target the right audience: you need to make sure that your software allows you to reach the people you want to reach with your lead generation campaigns.