The document serves as a comprehensive guide to lead generation, outlining its importance, evolution, and various strategies, such as content marketing, SEO, social media, and email marketing. It emphasizes the need for a defined lead process between sales and marketing, including steps for defining leads, creating buyer personas, and optimizing a company's website for conversions. Additionally, it discusses the significance of testing and metrics to refine lead generation efforts and maximize effectiveness.

1. THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO
LEAD GENERATION WORKBOOK

2. WHAT IS LEAD GENERATION;
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
Lead generation describes the marketing process of
stimulating and capturing interest in a product or service
for the purpose of developing a sales pipeline.

3. WHAT IS LEAD GENERATION;
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
WHAT LEAD GEN IS:
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT:
Content marketing and blogging
Find more leads
Website and SEO
Find better leads
Social media
Enhance prospect relationships
PPC
Close deals faster
Content syndication
Cross-sell and upsell to your
current customers
Direct mail
Telesales
Email marketing
Maximize your spend on all
marketing campaigns
Be more strategic in your
marketing strategy
Lead nurturing and lead scoring
Leverage cross-channel
marketing
Align with sales for a
closed-loop deal process
LIST A PRIMARY GOAL YOU BELIEVE LEAD GEN CAN HELP YOU ACHIEVE WITHIN THE NEXT YEAR.

4. HOW HAS LEAD
GENERATION EVOLVED?
Traditional lead generation has undergone substantial changes in recent years,
thanks to new online and social marketing techniques. In particular, the abundance
of information readily available online has led to the rise of the “self-directed buyer”
and the emergence of new ways to develop and qualify potential leads before
passing them to sales.

5. HOW HAS LEAD GENERATION EVOLVED?
To show how lead generation has changed, use the key phrases at the
bottom to fill in the blank boxes on the right. The words on the left
represent lead generation in the past, and the blank boxes on the
right represent lead generation now.
TRANSFORMATION OF MARKETING
IN THE PAST
NOW
MISSION
Represent the company
Find customers
CUSTOMER INTELLIGENCE
Mass advertising
Demographic
MECHANICS & TACTICS
Point-in-time blasts
Few/isolated channels
MEASUREMENT
Third-party data (Nielsen)
Intuitive decision making
KEY PHRASES
1:1 Targeting
Behavioral
Represent the customer
Owned, big data
Exploding/integrated channels
Fact-based decision making
Continuous relationship
Being found

6. STEPS TO DEFINING A LEAD
To build out your lead generation strategy, you must start with the basics.
Every organization will have its own definition of a “good lead”. If you don’t know
yours, begin with lead generation 101.

7. STEPS TO DEFINING A LEAD
Sales and marketing teams must create and agree upon a universal lead definition.
1
Schedule some time to meet. Gather all your key stakeholders in a room,
and pick each other’s brains.
2
Ask the hard questions. For marketing: What does your target market
look like? Who do you have in your system, and what are they engaging
with? For sales: What prospects are you speaking to? What types of
buyers are closing?
3
Decide how good is “good enough”. Set a base level. What does
marketing consider a good enough lead to pass to sales? Conversely,
what does sales think is a lead worth following up on?
4
Get the flip side of the story. What leads does marketing consider bad?
And what leads does sales consider not worth their time?
5
Agree on a definition, and write it down. Once you have written down
your definition, abide by it. Add it to your marketing automation system;
post it up on walls—do whatever is necessary to keep both teams
on point.
6
Iterate. Meet regularly to review this definition. You should iterate and
change your definition as your company grows and priorities shift.

8. DEFINING A LEAD
Use the 6 steps below to help shape the definition of a true lead.
1
Write down when and where the sales and marketing teams will meet.
2
What does your target market look like?
3
What type of leads are in your system currently, and what are they engaging with?
4
What types of leads are closing? What size companies do they work for? Where are they located?
What does marketing consider a good enough lead to pass to sales?
What does sales consider a bad lead?
5
Agree on a definition, and write it down.
6
Iterate. Meet regularly to review this definition. You should iterate and change your
definition as your company grows and priorities shift.

9. CREATING YOUR BUYER PERSONAS
Content is the foundation of your inbound marketing efforts, and a great way to
generate leads. The Content Marketing Institute defines content marketing as “the
marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to
attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience—
with the objective of driving profitable customer action.”
Your content marketing will be what fuels most, if not all, of your lead generation
campaigns, so you need to make sure you get it right.

10. BUYER PERSONA EXERCISE
Don't dive into content marketing without a strategy. You need to
understand your buyer so you can set the tone, style, and delivery
strategy for your content.
Conduct interviews with customers, prospects, sales, and your customer
service teams to come up with at least 1-2 personas. Focus on the following
topics when creating each persona:
• Background: Basic details about your ideal customer and his or her company
• Job details: Key job responsibilities, likes and dislikes about job
• Main sources of information: Where your persona does his or her research
• Goals: Persona’s primary and secondary goals
• Challenges/pain points: Your persona’s challenges, and the emotions which
accompany those challenges

11. BUYER PERSONA EXERCISE continued
• Preferred content medium: How your persona likes to absorb content
• Quotes: Bring your personas to life. Gather actual quotes during interviews
• Objections: The objections you anticipate from personas during the sales
process
• Role in purchase process: Persona’s influence in the decision making process
• Marketing message: The messaging that speaks directly to this persona

12. BUYER JOURNEY EXERCISE
To map your own persona buying journeys, create a spreadsheet with a
separate tab for each buying phase, and fill in the following items:
BUYING PHASE
ACTIONS &
QUESTIONS
BUYER ACTION
BUYER
DOING
(Y/N)?
QUESTIONS BUYER ASKS
EVENT #1
EVENT OCCURS
EVENT #2
EVENT #3
PROBLEM #1
KEY BUYER
ACTIONS
PROBLEM
SURFACES
PROBLEM #2
PROBLEM #3
CONSEQUENCES
OF PROBLEM
IDENTIFIED
CONSIDER
ALTERNATIVES
FOR SOLVING
THE PROBLEM
PHASE EXIT CRITERIA

13. CONTENT MARKETING WORD SEARCH
Content marketing comes in many forms. See how many you can find below.
Article
Guides
Slide Decks
Blog Posts
Email
Case Studies
Infographics
Surveys
Templates
Kits
Checklists
eBooks
Podcasts
Videos
Webinar

14. WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION
FOR LEAD GENERATION
When it comes to converting leads and making lasting impressions, your website
is where the magic happens. Analytics and testing company KISSmetrics stated it
best on its blog: “Your leads are only as good as the website that produces them.”

15. WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION
FOR LEAD GENERATION
Below is a handy SEO checklist for the different types of content on your site.
Use this as a reference while reviewing your website content.
HOMEPAGE
WEBSITE
CONTENT
LANDING
PAGES
Highlight the latest /
hottest content
Use attention-grabbing Include your logo
headlines
Use eye-catching
visuals
Tie customer needs to
solution benefits
PRODUCT/
SERVICE
PAGES
Use strong calls-toaction on each
product page
RESOURCES
PAGES
Organize your content
logically
Write a great headline
Focus on a single
call to action
Write catchy copy
Make contact
information clear
on the page
Make calls-to-action
clear and prominent
Include ways for people
Use consistent voice
to opt-in to content
Write clear and
concise copy
Copy edit for typos and
grammatical mistakes
Keep paragraphs short
Use easy-to-read font
Make content
scannable
Use compelling
imagery (little or no
stock imagery)
Entice readers to
respond to your offer
Use plenty of bullet
points
Feature relevant
visuals
Include a short form
to capture leads
Display a “Thank You”
page that points to a
related offer
List pricing
information (if
applicable)
Address customer
pain points
Make your content
easily accessible
with one click
Include visual
thumbnails of
each asset
Make sure each page
is optimized for SEO

16. LANDING PAGES
Landing pages are customized pages that your leads are directed to from social
media pages, received emails, event invitations, paid ads, or search engine results.
For effective lead generation, specifically create new landing pages for each program.

17. LANDING PAGES
Use the tips below to create landing page
content that is guaranteed to convert.
WRITE YOUR LANDING PAGE COPY USING THESE 5 STEPS AS A GUIDE
1
Set up the problem.
2
Talk about the solution.
3
Point out the WIIFM (What’s In It For Me).
4
Add a clear call-to-action.
5
Deliver the goods (such as an ebook, video, or webinar registration).

18. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Your prospects are searching for what you sell, but will they find you? Search
marketing is about prospects discovering you through search results and converting
them into opportunities. The higher you rank in organic searches, the more people
will find you.

19. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Write 5 keyword phrases that are valuable to your business. Then use the
Google Adwords Keyword tool to research CPC, CTR, and Conversion Rate.
KEYWORD
1
2
3
4
5
COST PER
CLICK (CPC)
CLICK
THROUGH
RATE (CTR)
CONVERSION
RATE
URL

20. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
The MOZ guide below is an example of a perfectly optimized webpage.

21. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Use the MOZ guide on the previous page to create your own perfectly
optimized webpage.
TARGETED KEYWORD
HEADLINE
PAGE TITLE
IMAGE NAMES
META DESCRIPTION
URL
BODY COPY

22. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Use the clues below to find the most important aspects of on-page SEO.
4
2
1
1
3
4
2
3
5
CLUES
DOWN
1. Text supporting the keyword focus for
the page
2. Google uses these to understand
what your webpage is about
3. What shows up in Google SERPs
4. _______ is king
ACROSS
1. The explanation of a webpage;
also shown in SERPs
2. Direct path to a webpage
3. Abbreviation for a link
4. Time it takes to open a page
5. Synonymous with picture

23. SOCIAL MEDIA &
LEAD GENERATION
Using social media to brand your business isn’t groundbreaking anymore.
Been there, done that. Although social is still important for branding and
generating buzz, it’s also increasingly used for lead generation.

24. FACEBOOK
Facebook ads provide highly targeted opportunities to reach your audience.
They appear on the right side of a user’s screen and are similar to traditional PPC ads:
you place a bid on how much you want to pay per click, or you can pay per thousand
people who see your ad.
TAKE SOME TIME TO CREATE 3 DIFFERENT FACEBOOK
ADS FOR VARIOUS ASPECTS OF YOUR BUSINESS.
AD TITLE:
BRIEF BODY COPY:
CALL-TO-ACTION:
AD TITLE:
BRIEF BODY COPY:
CALL-TO-ACTION:
AD TITLE:
BRIEF BODY COPY:
CALL-TO-ACTION:

25. TWITTER
We’ve had great success placing Promoted Tweets in user feeds, targeted to followers
and users who fit our criteria. We use Promoted Tweets to create demand for new content
assets, upcoming events, or demos. Every Promoted Tweet that we run leads to a form,
which improves our chances of gaining user data.
CREATE 3 PROMOTED TWEETS THAT YOU CAN USE ON YOUR
COMPANY’S TWITTER ACCOUNT. REMEMBER, ONLY 140 CHARACTERS.
PROMOTED TWEET:
PROMOTED TWEET:
PROMOTED TWEET:

26. LINKEDIN
LinkedIn ads give companies the chance to target their audiences in powerful, unique
ways. The information found on a user’s LinkedIn profile is different from other social
networks, and it’s particularly helpful for businesses.
CREATE 3 LINKEDIN ADS, AND REMEMBER LINKEDIN’S AUDIENCE
IS MORE PROFESSIONAL. MAKE SURE THESE ADS ARE DIFFERENT
FROM YOUR FACEBOOK AND TWITTER ADS.
AD TITLE:
BRIEF BODY COPY:
CALL-TO-ACTION:
AD TITLE:
BRIEF BODY COPY:
CALL-TO-ACTION:
AD TITLE:
BRIEF BODY COPY:
CALL-TO-ACTION:

27. EMAIL MARKETING
Email is a cornerstone and key component of many marketing campaigns.
Whether you’re hosting an event, publicizing a new piece of content, or
promoting a new service offering, email can deliver relationship-building
communication at every stage of the funnel, especially to those leads already
in your database.

28. EMAIL MARKETING
Follow these pro tips to write the perfect subject line for your email.
1
FRAME YOUR SUBJECT LINE AS A QUESTION.
Questions compel readers to open your emails as they pause to consider the answer.
2
TRY A LIST.
This is where your “Top 10”, “5 Tips”, etc., subject lines come in. People gravitate
toward short, easily digestible information.
3
MAKE A PSYCHOLOGICAL APPEAL.
According to Copyblogger, the subject line “You are not alone” gets
an average open rate of 90%. As you write your subject lines, keep basic
human psychology in mind.
4
BE CONVERSATIONAL.
Don’t be afraid to use conversational language in a subject line.
TRY WRITING A FEW SAMPLE SUBJECT LINES FOR YOUR NEXT EMAIL SEND HERE:

29. PAID PROGRAMS
Inbound marketing has been getting a lot of buzz lately, but a well-rounded marketing
mix should include both inbound and paid techniques. Inbound marketing alone can’t
always drive people to buy, so smart marketers use outbound and paid techniques to
introduce their businesses, amplify their messaging, and expose their content to leads.

30. PAID PROGRAMS
Use the table below to create 5 pay-per-click (PPC) ads. You only have
25 characters for your headlines, and 70 characters for your copy.
Remember to research keywords and track conversion rate regularly.
KEYWORD OR
PHRASE
AD COPY
URL

31. TELEPHONE-BASED
LEAD GENERATION
Telesales, or inside sales reps, can contribute greatly to successful lead generation.
Your sales team qualifies your leads and adds a personal touch.
An important distinction here: Telephone-based lead generation isn’t the same as
telemarketing. Telesales provides the human interaction needed to turn your marketing
leads into opportunities and sales.

32. TELEPHONE-BASED LEAD GENERATION
Use the worksheet below to help set expectations within your sales team.
A
How many meaningful activities (email, calls, etc.) do you want each sales rep to perform per day?
B
How many business days, on average, does your sales team work?
C
What percentage of the day does your sales team work on their inbound queue?
Figure out how many meaningful activities each inside sales rep should complete every month.
A
B
C
The number of activities an inside sales rep should complete every month:
Now, divide that number by 2.6 (the number of times, on average, an inside sales rep will call each lead).
(A x B x C) / 2.6 = The number of quality leads an inside sales rep can work per month:

33. LEAD NURTURING
Once you’ve invested in your lead generation strategy, you’ll want to get the most out of
every lead. Many companies do a great job of generating Top-of-Funnel (TOFU) leads,
but most new leads aren’t yet ready to buy. That’s where a solid Middle-of-Funnel
(MOFU) strategy comes in.

34. CREATE A STAY-IN-TOUCH LEAD
NURTURING CAMPAIGN
Check the boxes after you complete each step and begin to
strategically think about nurturing leads through the sales funnel.
DAY 1: INTRODUCTORY EMAIL
Draft an email that provides an interesting look into your business.
DAY 10
Draft an email offering new content related to first download and Web activity.
DAY 15
Draft a sales email that explains your products and services.
DAY 30
Draft an email offering a best practices ebook or video.
DAY 45
Call from your sales rep to “check in”.
DAY 75
Draft a personal email from sales rep offering a demo.

35. TESTING & OPTIMIZATION
When it comes to lead generation, the more you test, the more you know. You can’t
optimize your lead generation without first testing it, but many marketers don’t know
where to start testing. You need a clear plan of attack.

36. TESTING & OPTIMIZATION
Use the 5 steps below to identify a testing strategy relevant to your
business in order to increase the success of your campaigns.
STEP 1: DEFINE SUCCESS.
What are your ultimate success metrics? List 3 macro-conversions (end goals like clicks, conversions, and leads)
and 3 micro-conversions (smaller steps you want leads to take, like watching a video or sharing a blog post).
1
2
3
1
2
3
STEP 2: IDENTIFY BOTTLENECKS.
Identify what isn’t working. Perhaps you’re getting a lot of traffic to a key website page, but people
aren’t actually converting or downloading your gated ebook. Ultimately, it’s the bottleneck that you
will want to test.
STEP 3: CONSTRUCT A HYPOTHESIS.
If no one’s filling out your form, maybe you need to shorten the number of fields, move the form to a
different part of the page, or change the download button color. Your first hypothesis might be that
your forms will work better with 3 fields instead of 5.
STEP 4: PRIORITIZE.
Prioritize your hypotheses based on predicted impact. For instance, you might predict that moving your
form will have more impact than shortening it, so test the new form location first. Depending on your
resources, you can always run multiple tests.
STEP 5: TEST.
Testing is crucial! Turn to the next section to decide what type of tests you'll perform.

37. TESTING & OPTIMIZATION
Now that you know the steps to take before you test, choose one of these
types of tests for a few of your current campaigns.
TYPES OF TESTING:
A/B TESTING
MULTIVARIATE TESTING
Compares the conversion
rates of two assets by
splitting the traffic or
email sends.
WHAT YOU WANT
TO TEST
Compares a much larger number of
variables to show a statistical significance.
TESTING TYPE

38. METRICS
If you can confidently identify how your lead generation campaigns truly deliver
financial returns, you’ll lift your marketing team’s influence and credibility even
further. If you understand how your campaigns perform, you can also make the
right strategic investments to improve results over time.

39. METRICS
Below are some common metrics used when tracking lead generation.
Check all below that could apply to your marketing campaigns.
Marketing % of contribution to sales pipeline: The % of revenue in the
sales pipeline (opportunities) that originated from marketing efforts
Marketing % of contribution to closed revenue: The % of revenue in
closed won deals that originated from marketing efforts
Quantity of Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs): The number of SQLs
passed on to your sales teams
Quality of SQLs: The % of SQLs not rejected by sales
Investment per Inquiry: Total lead acquisition investment,
divided by the total number of inquiries
Cost per Lead: Total campaign costs, divided by quantity of leads
Inquiry to Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL): Conversion of initial
inquiry to MQL
MQL to Sales Accepted Lead (SAL): Conversion from MQL to SAL
SAL to SQL: Conversion from SAL to SQL
SQL to Opportunity: Conversion from SQL to Opportunity

40. We know that marketing is a tough job—after all, we’re marketers ourselves. Marketing
to marketers is no easy task, but it’s one we love. That’s why we’re happy to share our
knowledge about lead generation via both inbound and outbound marketing. There’s
no perfect, one-size-fits-all approach to lead generation. Just use the channels and
tactics that help you reach and engage your target audience. Keep their challenges,
goals, and concerns top of mind; deliver information and content that solves their pain
points; nurture those relationships, and engage them over time. You’ll soon be filling
your funnel with high-quality leads.

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www.marketo.com. Marketo, the Marketo logo, Marketing Nation and LaunchPoint are
trademarks of Marketo, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.