Guest Post by Straight North – Lead Validation in Internet Marketing

Word from the COO on The Critical Importance Of Lead Validation In Internet Marketing:

Aaron Wittersheim is Chief Operating Officer at Internet marketing agency Straight North. His focus is on Internet marketing and website services, and technology.

In a brick-and- mortar store, there’s often a bell that rings whenever a potential customer walks through the door, but none of these businesses would hear that bell and immediately mark it down as a sale. That person who just walked in might buy something, but he or she might also be coming in to return something, just browse or even ask to use the restroom. A sale isn’t a sale until the transaction is complete. On the Internet, however, far too many businesses hear the bell and immediately count it as a sale.

That’s why the raw analytics from lead generation websites shouldn’t be trusted as an accurate picture of a website’s success. Nearly half of all website conversions aren’t true sales leads — instead, they’re job applications, customer service requests, etc. Unless a campaign includes lead validation as part of its process, marketers will have no idea how many of its website visitors actually are customers.

The following presentation illustrates just how important lead validation is for Internet marketing campaigns. Don’t be fooled by the bell — it doesn’t tell the whole story.