Lead management and lead tracking have recently jumped to the top of many companies’ priority lists. Modern sales processes rely more on digital tools, automation software, and multi-channel efforts, so it’s no surprise that managing and tracking leads has taken center stage.
Online Customer Relationship Management tools (CRM systems) have helped organizations adjust to these changes by creating closed-loop systems by offering tools like marketing automation, email campaigns, lead generation, landing page designs, and workflow automation, but the challenge to qualify, distribute, and track leads persists.
Innovative business owners and company leaders have found a solution to this problem by adopting lead management software that streamlines their sales process and get leads all the way through the sales pipeline. The best lead management tools make it easy for companies to schedule follow-up meetings and organize their leads so sales teams can spend more time converting leads and less time managing them.
Learning about lead management software can be a bit overwhelming, though. That’s why we’ve put together this complete guide to lead management software – so you can get all the information you need to make an educated buying decision.
Here’s what we will cover in this guide:
● What is Lead Management?
● What’s the Difference Between a Lead Management Software and a CRM Software?
● Benefits of Lead Management Software
○ How does lead management software help with revenue?
○ How does lead management software help with pipeline management and forecasting?
○ How does lead management software help with lead assignment, routing, and distribution?
○ How does lead management software help with attribution and reporting?
● Best Lead Management Software Features
● Lead Management Software for Small Business
○ What should small businesses consider when selecting lead management
software?
● Popular SMB lead management solutions
● Lead Management Software for Mid-Market and Enterprise
○ What should MM and enterprise businesses consider when selecting lead
management software?
● Popular MM and Enterprise lead management solutions
● How to Select the Best Lead Management Solution
What is Lead Management?
Lead Management is the process of acquiring, tracking, and managing prospects in order to more efficiently convert them into customers.
The whole process involves multiple phases:
● Lead Capture: Visitors become leads by offering contact information, filling out a web form, or by establishing their interest another way
● Lead Scoring: Leads receive ratings based on their involvement or perceived interest level
● Lead Filtering: Leads get sorted into various categories including unqualified or qualified leads
● Lead Distribution: Quality leads get sent to the appropriate sales rep who then initiates further contact
● Lead nurturing: Leads, both contacted and uncontacted, get put into some sort of follow-up strategy that may include an email marketing campaign, phone calls, or other means of reaching out
You might also hear people refer to this process as “contact management” or “customer
acquisition management.” No matter the name, though, the goal remains the same:
guide the lead through the sales funnel and have them come out as a customer.
Managing 10 leads has challenges. Managing 1,000 has even more.
As the number of leads grows, so too does the need for efficient lead management
practices so that teams can efficiently and effectively close sales. What’s the Difference Between a Lead Management Software and a CRM Software?
Most sales leaders and reps are familiar with some sort of CRM platform at this point.
Big brands like Salesforce or Hubspot dominate this field, and pretty much any google
search around sales will likely bring about some article or LinkedIn post about CRMs.
That’s all great. CRMs bring a ton of value to companies, and on the surface, a lead
management software might not look much different. When you dig a little deeper,
though, you can start to see some major differences between the two.
For starters, a CRM platform focuses on existing customers. This sounds obvious,
right? It is a customer relationship management tool, after all. You use it to provide
customer support, nurture relationships, and maximize lifetime values.
There’s just one little shortcoming, though. You need to have those customers in order
to foster those relationships. Some CRM tools have stretched a bit to include some
focus on acquisition, but it’s hardly their specialty.
That’s where lead management software comes in.
Lead Management focuses entirely on getting you new leads and helping you turn those
leads into customers. Think of it as the vehicle that brings customers to your CRM.
While CRMs serve a great purpose, they primarily exist to manage customers, not
convert leads. Lead Management software fills that gap, and the best lead management
tools will actually work alongside your CRM so that you get the best of both resources.
Benefits of Lead Management Software
Lead management has a lot to offer organizations of various sizes including increasing
revenue, pipeline management, lead assignment, and reporting.How does lead management software help with revenue?
A lead management software enables your company to grow revenue in multiple ways.
● More efficient sales process: By developing an optimized lead generation and
lead tracing strategy, companies can make sure their reps only target the
customers most interested in buying. This reduces wasted time and increases
the number of closeable deals your teams work with.
● Improved lead filtering and matching: Lead matching is all about highlighting
the specific skills in each member of your sales team so that they only get the
leads that fit them. The best lead management solutions ensure that you get the
right lead to the right rep every time, leading to higher conversion rates and a
more successful team.
● Automate workflows: Many lead management tools enable you to automate
processes. When a lead scores lower than others, for example, that doesn’t
mean that lead should be thrown out. It just means you have to figure out what to
do with it. Automating these processes means you take the burden of that lower
quality lead away from the reps until the lead is further along the pipeline, freeing
those reps up to focus only on the most promising prospects.
How does lead management software help with pipeline management and forecasting?
The sales pipeline, also called a “sales funnel,” visually represents each stage of a
sales cycle. Each step requires certain actions from the lead that lead them further
along the pipe and closer to the sale.
Someone might show a little bit of interest at first – they visit a landing page or click on a
google ad. This places them on the pipeline, but it doesn’t necessarily make them a
high scoring lead. They might fill out a web form or subscribe to an email or something
similar to qualify them for a larger lead score. These are just examples. Companies
always have unique sales pipelines, but you hopefully get the picture.Managing the sales pipeline can get messy for sales leaders, especially as more and more customers start showing interest. CRMs try to solve for this, but most of them really just hold on to your contacts and allow you to add notes. This may cause them to adopt additional marketing tools to try to fill the gaps, but that usually doesn’t do the trick either. Most businesses need something a little more, something that creates scalable and repeatable practices for their sales teams.
That’s what a lead management software can offer. Through automated lead routing,
tracking, and distributing, you will know what part of the pipeline your leads fall into. The
most sophisticated tools offer real-time, in-depth analytics that enable you to create
repeatable plays and predict what leads will do next.
How does lead management software help with lead assignment, routing, and
distribution?
Whether you call it lead assignment, routing, or distribution, getting leads to the right
reps makes a huge difference when it comes to increasing efficiency and maximizing
revenue potential. The top lead management tools on the market utilize AI or other
technologies to make this happen.
Some software even allows you to customize the rules for routing so you can base them
on the unique skills and performance levels of your salespeople. Once these rules are
set, the lead will automatically get assigned to the first available rep that best fits them.
No need to sift through each lead before distributing; just set the criteria and let the
automated process take over.
How does lead management software help with attribution and reporting?
Any lead management software worth its price will include sophisticated lead tracking
and analytics that help you follow the journey each lead went through before converting.
This can do wonders for ROI because it takes the guesswork out of your marketing
efforts. You can easily see what works and what doesn’t and then target your efforts based on those findings. Landing pages drawing in tons of traffic? Build more. No one
opening your emails? Do some A/B testing to fix them.
The kind of data brings clarity to marketing strategies and helps salespeople see the
value brought by the marketing team which can create better sales and marketing
alignment.
Lead Management Software Features
Each company’s specific needs will influence their buying decision, but there are a few
features you should prioritize no matter your size or ultimate goals with lead
management.
The best lead management software will include…
● Lead Capturing: Add to your lead list
● Lead Mapping: Get leads to the right reps
● Lead Tracking: Know what happens to your leads once your sales team
contacts them
● Lead Modification: Edit lead’s information with ease when necessary
● Real-Time Analytics: See the data necessary to make more informed decisions
● Social Media Integration: Utilize data from LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook,
Twitter, and other social platforms to optimize your efforts through these
channels
● Software Integration: Align your tech stack with your Lead Management
Software if you’re already using tools like Hubspot CRM, Salesforce, or others
● Calendar Integration and/or Built-in Scheduling: Sync your meeting straight
into employee or company calendars with a software like Thryve calendar.
Lead Management Software for Small Business
While some lead management needs are universal, others do change slightly
depending on the size of a business. Let’s look at some of the unique things to consider
when small businesses want to adopt a lead management solution.
What should small businesses consider when selecting lead management software?
Some SMB companies may put lead management in the “nice-to-have” category. In
reality, each lead counts way more the smaller your business. Organizations with limited
resources want to optimize those resources and maximize their ROI, especially when it
comes to investing in any sort of digital solution.
Many lead management solutions will format their offerings to meet the needs of these
smaller companies. They understand that you may not want the all-in-one deal that
includes full-blown marketing automation, CRM, and website analytics, so they offer an
array of functionalities that meet the needs of that business. Some, like Hubspot, even
offer a low-cost version with just the essentials or a free, limited trial. All of these
offerings are more like a mile wide and an inch deep.
The best thing a small business can do would be knowing exactly what they want out of
their lead management software and look for a product that will meet those needs. No
matter the tightness of a budget, businesses can’t exist without sales, and sales can’t
exist without leads. A lead management solution might just be worth the cost.
Popular SMB Lead Management Solutions
Tons of options exist, but some of the most popular lead management solutions for
small businesses include:
● Lead Assign
● HubSpot CRM
● Pipedrive
● Keap
Most of these products have some sort of free demo available on their website where
you can meet with a sales rep who will give you a good feel for their product.
Lead Management Software for Mid-Market and Enterprise
Many similarities exist between a SMB and a mid-market or enterprise company when it
comes to lead management. Like small businesses, these companies can’t exist without
converting leads, and they can’t convert leads unless they manage them properly.
That’s why choosing the right lead management software is so crucial.
What should MM and enterprise businesses consider when selecting lead management
software?
The core needs of these larger companies will look similar to the needs of a smaller
business, but the desire for deeper functionality may start to arise. You might want
something that’s a mile wide and a mile deep. SMBs may not listen to a lead
management software sales rep talk about the robust, AI-driven routing functionality, but
a larger company’s ears might perk up.
Because of this, such companies will want to find a lead management software that can
meet their immediate needs and has room for growth and even some customization.
Analytics become a huge factor here as well since larger companies typically will have
the resources to optimize their efforts based on data-driven findings.
Popular MM and Enterprise lead management solutions.
Larger businesses require more from their Lead Management solutions, and the market has responded to this. Some companies focus only on these kinds of customers while
others prioritize smaller businesses. It helps to know the ones that bring the most value
to larger companies. These companies include
● Salesforce
● Lead Assign
● Marketo
● Pardot
● Eloqua
One thing worth noting here is that many of these –Salesforce Consulting Partner for instance– are
primarily CRMs that have dipped into the lead management space. This often leads to
some dissatisfaction amongst larger companies that want to focus on lead management
because certain issues arise from CRM based lead routing. Things like poor distribution
or a lack of automation become all too frequent and diminish efficiency instead of
adding to it. Because of this, larger companies should start looking at companies that
specialize in lead management. It’ll save a ton of headaches in the future.
Partner Lead Management Software
The last thing to consider when it comes to lead management software is how it relates
to your sales partners. More and more companies have started partnering with various
people in their sales processes, but there’s no reason those leads shouldn’t be
managed well, too.
What is partner lead management software?
Partner leads are those leads related to the companies or individuals selling your
product or service on your behalf. These may be distributors, affiliates, or others, but no
matter their specific role, maintaining positive relationships with your partners is crucial
for successful channel sales.
Just like your reps, though, your partners can only sell if they have quality leads. A lead
management software helps you provide these and enable your partners to succeed through appropriate routing, tracking, and nurturing. This not only helps you sell more; it
helps you sustain those partner relationships you worked so hard to cultivate.
What features and capabilities do companies need to consider when it comes to selecting lead management and distribution software for channel partners?
The unique nature of working with partners to sell a product leans itself towards some
unique considerations when it comes to selecting lead management software as well.
Companies should look for a tool that…
● Guarantees no lead overlap
● Tracks leads
● Distributes leads automatically
● Providers insightful analytics
● Simplifies the process for partners
● Integrates with a variety of digital tools
● Enables you to offer support to your partners
Selecting the Best Lead Management Software
This is ultimately why you’ve read this whole guide, right? You want to purchase the
best lead management solution for your team.
Maybe you’ve got complex lead routing requirements or a distributed sales network.
Maybe you’ve tried to get your sales team to adopt some CRM or other operations
software, but they just won’t do it. Or maybe you’re just lost without any insightful data to
make predictable, repeatable strategies.
No matter what led you to this guide, we know that everyone who made it this far has at
least one thing in common: you want to maximize your sales efficiency by optimizing
your lead management process. That’s excellent. We want that for you, too, so let’s briefly review.
The best lead management solution is one that
● Gives you control over the entire lead management process – from lead capture
to sale
● Assigns leads to the right rep or partner
● Allows you to track your leads once they’ve started in your sales pipeline
● Provides you with insightful analytics that you can use to better manage your
pipeline
● Integrates with your existing tech ecosystem
Lead Assign provides our customers with all of these in one easy to use platform that
limits the barrier to entry for the sales team. Our SMS and email offering means that you
don’t have to train everyone to adopt a whole new tech platform. Agents just receive a
little note every time a lead gets routed to them based on rules your sales leaders
created. Then they go do what they do best: convert leads.
