Getting leads on your email list and nurturing them is just the beginning. How do you know who on your list remains cold, is now lukewarm with interest, or is red hot and ready to purchase? Well, you have to evaluate the quality of the leads. Tech Guru Laticia Austin of The Mobile Sophisticate talks about lead scoring and how important it is to the lead lifecycle. The shift I got from being introduced to the concept of qualifying leads is what made me do a deeper dive into just how powerful a strategy it is for email marketing. Understanding the significance of identifying leads more likely to purchase can revolutionize how small businesses engage with their audience. Let’s talk about 4 pivotal categories of scoring to streamline your email marketing efforts, ensuring your messages resonate with those most likely to convert.
Email Engagement. The more a contact from your email list engages with your emails the higher their lead score should be. Here are some engagements to watch out for:
- Opens: Assign points for each email opened, with higher weight for recent opens.
- Clicks: Score based on clicked links, more points for relevant clicks.
- Forwards & Shares: Reward sharing valuable content within your audience.
- Frequency of Email Interactions: Score leads based on how frequently they interact with your emails. Regular interaction suggests higher engagement.
- Length of Time Spent on Email: Monitor how long a lead spends reading an email. A longer read time can indicate a warm lead.
- Email Reading Depth: Score based on the depth of email content viewed, differentiating between skimming and full reading.
- Engagement with Personalized Content: Assign higher points for engaging with content personalized to the lead’s interests or behavior.
Website Activity. How much traffic is going to your website from a contact following calls to action from your emails? Here are some website activities to watch out for:
- Visits to Specific Pages: Track visits to product/service pages, higher score for deeper exploration.
- Time Spent on Site: Longer engagement indicates higher interest.
- Interaction with Online Chat or Bots: Points for engaging with customer service or sales bots.
- Participation in Online Quizzes or Tools: Engagement with interactive elements like quizzes or tools signals strong interest.
- Account Creation or Login: Assign points for creating an account or logging into an existing account.
Form Submissions. How many times are they signing up for the value that you offer? Here are some opt-in activities to watch out for:
- Lead Magnet Downloads: Higher points for relevant magnet downloads.
- Registration for Webinars or Events: Shows active participation and intent.
- Additional Information Provided: Extra points for giving details beyond basic contact info.
- Feedback Form Submission: Reward points for submitting feedback through forms.
- Update Preferences: Points for updating email or communication preferences.
Email Interactions. Action is the name of the game and if a contact is taking multiple actions then they could be ripe for the sale. Here are some interactive things to watch out for:
- Replies to Specific Emails: Shows engagement with your message and topic.
- Book-a-Call Usage: Indicates immediate interest and communication preference.
- Engagement with Dynamic or Interactive Email Content: Interactive elements within emails, like polls or sliders, indicate higher interest.
- Subscription to Additional Email Lists or Topics: Points for opting into more specific email lists or topics.
Needs support infusing these new strategies into your email marketing, let’s talk. It’s FREE. ShaCannon.info/talk