Really Want to Generate More Leads?

When it comes to B2B lead generation, direct marketing using databases is a strategy that comes with proven results. So, it would seem that a chance to acquire free access to a large volume of company info would be of great value. This is true in a sense, but as a B2B marketing professional, it may surprise you when you hear that this value is much less than it appears. This is because of a simple fact: companies don't purchase; people make purchases.

Here's some news: Jigsaw, the online business contact information directory, recently announced that they'll be offering free access to nearly a million company records from its database, including address info as well as size, geography, and industry category. This free access has a couple of strings attached: the users have to register, and the information cannot be re-sold.

To have best success in your direct marketing and lead generation campaigns, you need to concentrate on the business-people who are the ones actually recommending, purchasing, and using your kinds of products and services.

Trying to generate leads by cold-calling companies is wastefully expensive. Just calling and asking, "May I speak to the person in charge of..." requires too much time to be of much use. Also, sending mail addressed to "whom it may concern" is arguably better than nothing, but still this is a waste of effort as much of it will not make it past the mailroom - particularly at larger companies. It follows that sending e-mail addressed to: info@....com asking that it be forwarded to the correct person is up against the odds in its chances of ever reaching the right person.

So let's get back to Jigsaw. What's the reason behind their offer for free access to the database? The publishing, consulting and research company InfoCommerce Group recently reported that Jigsaw is not giving out the relevant names of the people at these companies. They have them, and they can help marketers with this information with their proprietary data cleansing application, but this service has a cost. If you're seeking on-going data updates including the removal of out-dated records, this is also possible - for a price.

Offering a loss leader (a product sold at or below cost to stimulate other more profitable sales) is a proven sales tactic. Maybe Jigsaw should give this strategy a try?