An effective B2B sales funnel requires a constant stream of new, qualified leads, and there are many tools and techniques geared toward helping sales teams achieve just that.

Of course, the efficacy of those same tools and techniques will depend on how you actually put them to use.

A hammer is a very effective tool, unless your goal is to paddle up a river.

Likewise, lead generation tools can help you grow your company and find that constant stream of qualified leads – but only if you’re using them in the right place, at the right time, and in the right way.

So, let’s take a look at how you can increase your B2B sales using these tools as effectively as possible.

Use the Right Tools on the Right Platform

All the kids may go on and on about TikTok or whatever the latest social media trend is, but it shouldn’t take more than a glance to realize that most of these platforms aren’t exactly the ideal platform to generate B2B leads. 

LinkedIn, on the other hand, is the #1 place for B2B sales. There are more than 260 million active users on this platform and it’s estimated that nearly half of them are CEOs, VPs, and Directors.

In other words, if you want to get in touch with the real decision makers leading companies, LinkedIn is the platform best suited for finding new B2B leads.

Optimize Your Landing Page with the Right Messaging

A lead-generation landing page is likely going to be one of the first points of contact between your leads and your company. This page needs to be fully optimized to provide the information your prospects are looking for.

What are their pain points? What are their concerns? How does your product resolve their questions?

Most importantly, does this page make it easy for every potential client to contact you and take the next step through the sales funnel?

Make Sure You’re Targeting the Right Audience

While lead generation tools are designed to help you automate certain processes and streamline your sales funnel, they still rely on some input that only you can provide.

And if you want to use these tools as effectively as possible, you need to make sure you’re connecting with the right audience. If you’re not talking to the right people, it won’t matter how effective your lead generation tool is. It’s as simple as that.

This will require a little research and a lot of follow-through, but you can filter through your potential leads to make sure you’re speaking to the right people, in the right place, in a company that can actually use your products and services.

Always Humanize Your Approach

No matter what tools you use to generate B2B leads, you should never forget the human touch.

The right tools allow you to generate more leads in less time. They can even help you nurture some leads at the top of the funnel, providing common answers and resources for prospects who are just starting to explore their options.

Automation can only take you so far, though. 

Let’s just say it’s really hard for a chatbot to build real trust in a brand. (Though they can definitely get the ball rolling.)

When you personalize your efforts – go beyond the automation and focus on humanization – you can build better, longer-lasting relationships while gathering insights into your potential client’s needs and concerns.

Use Tools that Increase Interactions

Going right along with the humanized approach, it’s critical to use tools that help you engage person-to-person with your contact.

An email may open a conversation, but it rarely closes it.

There are a wide range of tools out there that allow live chat and live video that have the potential to help you make better connections with potential leads.

Through live video you can deliver webinars, hype product launches, or host Q&A sessions. Live chat, on the other hand, can help you build a better customer experience by providing direct answers to important concerns where your customers are online.

Put the Tools to Use

Many companies sign up for different services and tools because they sound like a great idea at the time. However, if you don’t have complete buy-in from the entire team, a lot of those great tools can fall by the wayside.

Before you know it, you’re paying for an entire portfolio of tools that aren’t paying for themselves.

When you begin using a new tool for B2B sales, make sure you are pushing it to its limits so you can get the full value out of it. This will help your sales team jump on board and continue using the tool.

For example, our LinkedIn outreach system can send out up to 100 personalized connection requests every day (2100 per month). This ensures that you can constantly make new connections without any business from LinkedIn.

As your team sees the ongoing success through these efforts, they’ll make sure you get your money’s worth from your tools.

Measure Performance

Any lead generation tool that’s worth its salt should stand up to repeated testing over the years.

Take a look at the tools you’re using and don’t hesitate to cut out those that don’t measure up to your expectations.

Are you getting the responses you expect? Is your sales funnel constantly filled with new, potential leads? Are these leads showing interest in your products and services?

If you’re not getting the results you want, it may be time to take another look at your lead generation tools and see where there’s room for improvement. Don’t just keep using a tool because it’s the one you’ve always used. Make sure everything is serving a purpose.

Building Up Your B2B Sales Pipeline with the Right Tools

An optimized sales funnel is a critical part of your company’s growth and development, and that means finding new ways to effectively use your lead generation tools. 

It may take some time to get everything running smoothly and efficiently, but the results will be worth it. 

These tools and techniques can help you develop the approach that will maximize engagement, encourage follow-ups, and increase your ability to close more sales.