Why your leads don't respond to you

Every marketer is obsessed with the "funnel". We're told to find a lead, nurture them, and turn them into a "loyal, recurring customer".

Sounds like a dream.

Here’s the truth: Most businesses don't have loyal customers.

McDonald's has them. Apple has them. Starbucks has them. But for the remaining 99% of us, loyalty is an illusion.

What's the last car you've bought? You did months of research. You chose a brand that was reliable. But when do you buy again? 7 years? 10 years? By then, your life has changed. Your needs have changed. You're not loyal – you're just moving on to the next solution.

So if you rely on "loyalty" alone to run your business, you're dead. Most businesses (even the ones with loyal customers) focus on aggressively acquiring new customers.

That's why most businesses need a system that constantly drives new customers to them.

Now, if you're building a lead gen system, here are burning mistakes to avoid.

1 - Solving "Paper-Cut" problems

Most lead magnets are "nice-to-haves". People sign up for them because they're free, and then they never open them.

Why? Because the problem wasn't urgent.

If you have a paper cut, no problem. The issue can wait. But if you're bleeding from your neck, you'll do whatever it takes to get a bandage.

So the solution is to make sure your lead magnet solves a burning pain. So much so that people drop everything to care. Attention isn't just for social media. It's everywhere. And people only take action or buy when they pay attention.

2 - Fighting human behaviour

Marketers love email becuase it's easy for us. But marketing is about meeting people where they actually live.

In many markets, people don’t live in their email inbox. They live on Instagram, WhatsApp, or TikTok.

If you force a prospect to use a platform they ignore, you’ve created friction. Friction is the silent killer of conversions.

3 - The "everyone" trap

I remember consulting a creator platform. I asked who their dream customer was. They said: "Anyone who hires creators."

Oyyy vey... The single sentence that kills marketing campaigns.

If you speak to everyone, you speak to no one. When we drilled down deeper, we identified that their best customer segment was F&B brands. By being specific, we were then able to create a lead magnet that speaks to the dream customer, about their pain, challenges and what they want.

Specific problems get specific (and high-paying) leads.

4 - Drown prospects with too much information

Most people think lead magnets should be PDFs. But the average person today is bombarded with too much information. And they definitely don't need another 20-page PDF.

The best lead magnets are not guides, but tools.

• Don't give them a "guide to investing". Give them a 3-minute investment calculator.
• Don't give them a "guide to increasing your salary". Give them a script to get a raise at work.

If your lead doens't get a win within 5 minutes of meeting you, they'll forget you exist.

5 - You forgot the new problem you create

This is the "leaky bucket" I see in most lead generation systems.

You give people a freebie, they download (or consume) it, and then... silence.

• Someone buys a car, and they now have a "maintenance" problem.
• If you help someone start a diet, they now have a "grocery shopping" problem.

That's why you need to show them a bridge to the next step. Otherwise, they'll take your freebie and just walk away.

And prior to what most people think, you're not being salesy by offering a next step. Reframe sales. You're being helpful by solving the next problem they're about to have.

Stop reading. Start implementing.

You can read about lead-gen systems and driving customers all day, or you can spend a few hours actually building one that works.

From 3rd to 6th March, I'm hosting Implementation Week at the new INFINITY8 Reserve Sunway Square.

It's a literal workshop. I'll be running two 2-hour do-together workshop sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday. You'll have full access to the workspace from Tuesday to Friday.

For the price of a pro Daily CMO membership, you get:

• Two workshop sessions (Tues & Wed) to build a lead gen system.
• A 4-day pass to a world-class co-working facility (Coffee, sleep pods, workspace and fast internet)
• A seat at the table with other businesses & marketers doing the work.

We only have 25 spots in Implementation Week. Once they're gone, the doors close.