Are you having trouble with lead generation for your marketplace? If so look no further, as I will be sharing these 4 tips to help you do just that. The competition is fierce especially in the Silicon Valley. Startups are everywhere and companies are looking to build the next big thing or provide the best services. This guide will show you the steps you must take to take your marketplace to the next level.

Build an audience

Without a fan base, who will see your content? It is important to fully optimize your company’s social media pages to make it easy for people to find you. Be sure to list contact information: website URL, phone number, email, and address if there is a designated office. This will make you appear more credible to your customers -- you aren’t just running a business out of your bedroom or garage.

As your marketplace gets on its feet, create value for your audience that will keep them coming back for more. If the budget allows, use Facebook ads to increase your page likes (fans) and drive traffic to your website.

People are naturally attracted to visuals and more importantly, react to emotions. As you spark emotions within your audience, they are more likely to engage with your content. Credible content will lead to more qualified leads and drive sales.

Optimize inbound traffic to your website

After you have built an audience, keep that momentum going! Create call-to-actions and landing pages to your website to drive traffic your way. This is your opportunity to show potential users the great things your marketplace is doing. Make your page enticing to your visitors so it will keep them scrolling around for more than 5 seconds. The longer they stay on your page, the higher your chances of conversion.

Provide free content such as eBooks, whitepapers, or webinars for people to download. We all love free things, especially valuable content. If you have provided value to a new visitor, it may change the way they view your marketplace.

Personally, I love to scroll around and visit new resources but it is even better when an eBook is available to download. My perspective changes when credibility is instantly communicated. Leverage free content through your social media platforms to drive traffic back to your page. The power of social media is amazing and is essentially free marketing (unless you pay for ads).     

Turn traffic into qualified leads

Now people have come to your website, scrolled around, and if you are lucky, they’ve submitted forms. An optimized landing page is essential for visitors to avoid any confusion. Make it easy and accessible for others to find links and other information they may be searching for.

There is nothing more frustrating than having to search through multiple pages just to find one piece of information. You will sure lose business if people can’t find the answers on your landing pages. Share a sample but be sure not to give away all the details. They are more likely to submit their email if there is evident value being offered.

Within your landing pages, be sure to include fields for basic information such as name, company and contact information. Don’t ask too many questions, as that will deter people from filling out the form. Make it no more than 5 fields to fill in and during your follow-up, more information can be discussed.

Nurture those leads into customers

Create drip email campaigns. Once a visitor has filled out your talk to sales form, they should receive a simple email acknowledging their interest and someone will be in contact within a certain time period. This simple recognition shows you care about them and also takes away the curiosity of when they will hear back.

As you continue to nurture the leads, be sure your sales team responds and interacts in a timely manner. Respond to emails as soon as possible and make customers feel special. We all love that feeling, so that’s what your team must do to be successful. Not everyone will turn into a happy customer or even a customer at all. It is all a numbers game, so make sure you are ready to put in the effort.

Generating Leads is a long process, so don’t expect this to just happen over night once you have read this article. Be patient and understand that great things take time, especially if you are a startup and going up against big corporations. Trust your company's process and enjoy the ride.