Finding the right lead generation company in 2023 isn’t just about increasing your pool of potential leads—it’s about finding the right fit for your business. 

Carve out your niche online, and deliver a personal touch that makes your brand stand out. 

As a marketing director, you know that not all leads are created equal, and this also applies to lead generation companies. 

This comprehensive guide dives into the world of lead generation, offering insights to help you navigate the journey toward better, more exclusive leads for your business.

Whether you’re in the mortgage, senior living, or legal sector, we offer thoughtful strategies to find and engage your audience.

We’ll guide you through the intricacies of industry-specific lead generation, explore how technology is transforming the landscape, and help you master the art of measuring your success. 

We’ve also handpicked some of the top lead generation companies and software that cater to different needs and budgets. 

Because, at the end of the day, it’s not just about finding more leads—it’s about finding the right ones. And Kaleidico is here to help you do just that.

Skip ahead: Tell us about your project and goals for 2023.

What do lead generation companies do?

The top lead generation companies generate high-quality leads online to help businesses fuel their sales pipeline. 

When it comes to lead generation companies, there are essentially three types.

Lead generation agencies

These are marketing agencies that create customized lead generation websites for their clients and attract traffic to the website by writing blogs, using content marketing strategies, PPC ads, and building landing pages to generate leads.

Online lead generators aggregator sites

These are sites like NerdWallet and LendingTree that generate their own mortgage leads and sell them to multiple solicitors online. They don’t build custom websites for clients and only sell the leads they’ve generated themselves.

Data harvesters

There are other lead generation services and sites that have scraped, collected, and harvested tons of online profiles, data, and information to sell personal info for hundreds of millions of people.

Some of these sites work quite well, while others have questionable data, so buyer beware!

Is hiring a lead generation company worth the cost?

Hiring a lead generation agency will save you time and can supply your company with highly-qualified leads month after month.

According to one study, outsourcing your lead generation to another company can generate 43% better results than in-house lead generation.

In addition to generating leads, a lead generation agency such as Kaleidico will also build your company’s website, write your blogs, create PPC ads, run email marketing campaigns, and more.

For the cost of hiring an agency, you’re also gaining access to a dedicated management team that can handle all aspects of your digital marketing strategy, such as:

• Promoting your business online
• Branding and logos
• Writing high-quality blogs, and producing other forms of content
• Publishing blogs, and maintaining and updating the website
• Reporting on analytics from the client’s website
• Offering suggestions on how to improve conversion rates
• Improving search engine optimization (SEO) and visibility in online searches
• Establishing authority online
• Creating monthly qualified leads
• Building out revenue pipelines

Which methods do the best lead generation companies use?

Every lead generation strategy begins with an optimized lead generation website. 

From there, marketers should begin producing free, valuable content to be uploaded on the website, such as blogs, videos, infographics, and more. 

Additionally, this content can be shared online through social media, and across other channels to cast a wider net and attract more people to their client’s lead generation website.

Once on the website, the visitors will be encouraged to fill out their contact info either on a traditional contact form or more sophisticated “lead paths” or “progressive” style forms.

In addition to contact forms, exclusive content upgrades, or “lead magnets” such as free eBooks can also encourage readers to submit their email addresses to access this higher tier of content on your website.

Lead generation agencies also use a combination of PPC ads, SEO tactics, and email marketing to drive more traffic to their client’s websites.

How do you choose a lead generation company?

The best lead generation companies know they must stand out above their competition. 

This is why the most competent companies will provide case studies, testimonials, and long-form strategy guides on their websites for prospective clients to look through.

This information is a great starting point, but you’ll need to talk to the company directly. Schedule some form of interview or a “Discovery Session.”

During your session, ask these questions to determine if the lead generation agency is right for you:

• How many years have you been generating leads online?
• What industries do you have experience working in?
• What are your qualifications?
• What are your success stories?
• Who are your former clients?
• How many monthly leads can you expect to bring us?
• Who will we be working with? Who will be the main point of contact, or our account manager?
• What is your lead generation process? 
• What experience do you have with PPC campaigns?

You focus on the clients. We’ll focus on filling your pipeline with qualified leads. Start here.

Industry-specific lead generation for law firms, mortgage lenders, and senior living communities

Different industries have different lead generation needs and tactics. 

It’s vital to understand the nuances of your industry when devising a lead generation strategy. 

Let’s dive into three distinct industries and explore the specifics of their lead generation approaches.

Lead generation for law firms

Law firms often face the challenge of generating quality leads while building trust and showcasing their expertise. Some potential strategies can include:

• Content Marketing: Provide useful content to your audience to build credibility. This might include blog posts on legal issues, ‘how-to’ guides on legal processes, or explainer videos on legal topics.
• Thought Leadership: Publish whitepapers or opinion pieces on topical legal matters. Participate in legal forums and contribute to legal journals to build reputation and visibility.
• Local SEO: Optimizing your law firm’s website for local search can help you appear in local directory listings and ‘near me’ searches, bringing in more local leads.

Related Reading: Ultimate Legal Marketing Guide. 

Lead generation for mortgage lenders

Mortgage lenders often rely on a range of tools and strategies to generate leads:

• Rate comparison tools: These are interactive tools on your mortgage website where potential clients can compare various mortgage rates. They engage visitors and provide them with useful information, often leading to higher conversion rates.
• Mortgage calculators: Tools like repayment calculators or mortgage affordability calculators can help visitors make informed decisions, and can often result in lead generation.
• High-value content: Content that demystifies the mortgage process, such as guides on home buying, blog posts on mortgage tips, and email newsletters featuring market trends, can attract and retain potential leads.

Lead generation for senior living communities

For senior living communities looking to boost occupancy rates, the approach is more empathetic and understanding, as your primary audience is older daughters of a parent with dementia or Alzheimer’s:

• Educational content: Provide information to help potential residents and their families understand the transition to senior living. Webinars, blog posts, and downloadable guides can provide useful advice while generating leads.
• Virtual tours: In the wake of COVID-19, virtual tours have become a powerful tool to showcase facilities and services, offering a personalized experience that can be instrumental in generating leads.
• Testimonials and success stories: Sharing the experiences of existing residents can reassure potential leads and their families.

Related Reading: 90-Day Senior Living Marketing Plan

Lead generation ethics and compliance considerations

Ethics and compliance aren’t just buzzwords—they’re critical to maintaining trust and safeguarding your brand’s reputation. 

Let’s navigate the essential legal and ethical aspects of lead generation that you definitely need to be aware of before it’s too late.

Understanding GDPR and CCPA 

Europe’s GDPR and California’s CCPA have transformed data protection. Understanding these regulations is key to ensuring your lead generation practices are lawful and respectful of user privacy.

Ethical considerations in lead generation

Beyond legal compliance, ethical considerations, such as transparency and respect for user choices, can contribute to building long-lasting relationships with leads.

For advertising legal services, lawyers must follow additional rules and regulations to avoid being penalized.

Evaluating the success of your lead generation efforts

Knowing how to measure the success of your lead generation efforts is essential. From KPIs to conversion rates to ROI, let’s dig into the metrics that matter.

Key performance indicators (KPIs) to track 

When evaluating success, knowing what to measure is crucial. Some relevant KPIs include:

• Click-through rates (CTR): This measures how many people clicked on a link in your marketing material versus how many saw it. High CTR often indicates compelling content.
• Conversion rates: This is the number of visitors who took a desired action (such as filling out a form, calling, or booking a tour) divided by the total number of visitors.
• Cost per lead (CPL): This measures how much it costs to acquire a lead. Keeping CPL low while ensuring quality can improve ROI.

Understanding conversion rates 

Conversion rates can give key insights into the effectiveness of a lead generation strategy. To boost conversion rates, consider:

• Improving landing page design: A well-designed landing page can reduce bounce rates and increase conversions. For example, the average bounce rate for law firm websites is between 41-55%, not bad, but a 25% bounce rate is much better.
• A/B Testing: Test different elements (like CTAs, headlines, layouts) to see what works best for your audience.
• Personalization: Customized content and offerings can result in higher conversion rates.

ROI of Lead generation

Calculating the return on investment of your lead generation efforts is the ultimate measure of success:

• Track lead lifecycles: Understand how many leads turn into paying customers and the revenue they bring in.
• Measure campaign-specific ROI: If you’re running multiple campaigns, measure the ROI for each to see which ones are most effective.
• Account for time and resources: The cost of your lead generation efforts should account for the time and resources invested, not just the direct costs.

Future trends in lead generation for 2023 and beyond

The lead generation landscape is continually evolving, with technological innovations such as machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI), and marketing automation driving many of the changes. 

Here’s a look at some of the trends set to shape the future of lead generation.

Rise of chatbots and virtual assistants

As AI becomes more sophisticated, chatbots and virtual assistants are becoming increasingly central to lead generation, providing instant responses and personalized service on a 24/7 basis.

Predictive analytics and big data 

Harnessing the power of big data and predictive analytics can enable hyper-targeted lead generation, turning raw data into actionable insights.

Personalization and hyper-targeting 

Personalization is king in the digital world. Customized messaging and hyper-targeting can dramatically enhance lead generation effectiveness by tracking user behavior across your website and your channels (opening up emails, pages visited, time spent on the website, etc.)

Frequently asked questions (FAQs) about lead generation companies 

Choosing a lead generation company can be a complex process, filled with lots of questions. 

What does a lead generation company do specifically?

A lead generation company helps businesses attract and convert potential customers.

They use various strategies, tools, and channels to identify and reach out to prospects, nurture them, and convert them into qualified leads, such as:

• Writing blogs to bring in organic search traffic from Google and Bing
• Creating landing pages optimized for lead capture
• Building PPC campaigns, such as Google Ads and Facebook Ads
• Send our email newsletters for lead nurturing
• Maintaining an active social media presence

Why should I hire a lead generation company instead of doing it in-house? 

Lead generation companies bring specialized knowledge, resources, and expertise, which can lead to more efficient and effective lead generation. 

They can save you time and effort, allowing you to focus on your core business. Instead of hiring and training a new employee, you can hire an entire team of marketing specialists and get started right away.

How do lead generation companies charge for their services? 

The cost of lead generation services can vary widely depending on the company and the specific services you require. Some companies charge a set monthly fee, while others might charge on a per-lead basis or offer customizable packages.

How can I ensure a lead generation company is reliable and trustworthy? 

Look for companies with a solid track record, positive customer reviews, and clear, transparent processes. Asking for case studies or references can also be helpful.

What kind of ROI can I expect from a lead generation company? 

The ROI from a lead generation company can depend on many factors, including your industry, target audience, and the specific strategies used. A good lead generation company should be able to provide estimates based on your unique situation and goals.

What are some key factors to consider when choosing a lead generation company? 

Consider factors such as the company’s expertise in your industry, its approach to lead generation, its pricing model, and its track record of success. Also, consider how well they communicate and whether their values align with yours.

How can I track the success of a lead generation company? 

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) like the number of leads generated, the cost per lead, conversion rates, and overall ROI can help track the success of a lead generation company. Regular reporting and communication are also essential.

Ready to start generating leads? Kaleidico can help.

The best lead generation software, services, and agencies in 2023

As we mentioned before, many lead generation companies are either an aggregator, meaning they collect people’s contact info and sell it, are marketing agencies that build out high-performing lead generation websites, or are software companies with platforms that allow you to do it all yourself.

To fuel your company’s pipeline, you may opt for both options—generating your own exclusive leads and buying leads from lead aggregators or data harvesters.

In this list, we’ll include marketing agencies that can build custom lead generation websites, as well as lead aggregators that collect and sell contact info.

Kaleidico

Kaleidico is a full-service marketing agency and lead generation company for mortgage brokers, lawyers, healthcare providers, and financial tech companies.

We have over 15 years of experience in lead generation and have recently expanded our content studio to produce high-quality blogs that generate serious traffic and leads for our clients. 

Cleverly

Cleverly is a lead generation website used for finding real estate leads, using LinkedIn as the primary source of collecting leads.

They offer LinkedIn lead generation services, LinkedIn paid ad generation, and white-label lead generation.

However, Cleverly does not produce websites or content, but simply sends thousands of messages across LinkedIn using specific lists and criteria to find the right audience.

Cognism

Cognism labels itself as a leader in “internal sales intelligence” and a B2B lead generation solution with its revolutionary lead generation platform.

With over 5.6 billion data points, 400 million business profiles, and 10 million companies on file, Cognism gives marketers and salespeople access to millions of potential leads and offers a platform that tracks sales, marketing, and outreach metrics. 

However, Cognism does not offer content marketing, website building, or any other features that full-service marketing agencies offer. With Cognism, all you get are leads.

leadPops

leadPops is a lead generation site for the mortgage, real estate, and insurance industries.

They offer several plans, which include setting up a Conversion Pro Website, conversion funnels, local SEO, integrations, and more.

Unlike Cleverly and Cognism, which only sell leads, leadPops helps attract and generate qualified exclusive leads for their clients.

WebFX 

WebFX is a full-service digital marketing agency offering lead generation services alongside SEO, PPC, social media marketing, and more. 

Their team focuses on driving results for your business with tailor-made strategies.

CIENCE

CIENCE is a lead generation agency specializing in managed services for outbound campaigns. They combine human intelligence and machine learning to provide targeted prospect lists, helping your business grow.

Marketo

Marketo, an Adobe company, is a powerful marketing automation software that aids businesses in attracting, nurturing, and managing leads. 

It’s an excellent tool for creating personalized, automated marketing campaigns.

Unbounce

Unbounce is a platform that allows you to create, launch, and analyze custom landing pages, pop-ups, and sticky bars that people won’t “bounce” from. 

These features can greatly enhance lead generation and conversion efforts.

HubSpot

HubSpot provides an all-in-one platform with robust tools for content marketing, social media marketing, SEO, and lead generation. 

Its CRM integrates seamlessly with its marketing tools, making lead management a breeze.

Mailchimp

Mailchimp is primarily an email marketing tool, but it offers a range of features for lead generation and management. 

It allows businesses to create personalized emails, landing pages, and signup forms to attract and retain leads.

Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM is a customer relationship management platform that includes lead generation tools, analytics, and integration with popular third-party services. 

It aids in managing and nurturing leads effectively.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator

LinkedIn Sales Navigator takes advantage of LinkedIn’s extensive professional network to help businesses find and nurture leads. 

Its advanced search and personalized algorithms make it a powerful tool for B2B lead generation.

Work with one of the best lead generation companies—Kaleidico 

Kaleidico is a lead generation company excelling at producing qualified leads for the real estate industry, lawyers and law firms, and financial technology companies.

We’ll not only generate leads for your company, but we’ll create a proven digital marketing ecosystem that will improve your company’s visibility in Google searches, create high-quality blog content, build a world-class website, and extend your digital reach.

Let Kaleidico handle your lead generation—schedule a free discovery call today!

Photo by Kindel Media