Tips for Successful Lead Nurture Programs

By Lisa Heay, Marketing Planning Manager at Heinz Marketing
Lead nurturing tends to be a misunderstood tactic. We often see companies whose nurture programs are filled with product and company-centric messaging, and the cadence may last 4 weeks, yet their average sales cycle is 9 months long. These emails are sent to cold prospects, and companies wonder why response rates are low—their nurture programs “just aren’t performing”. But are they building them intentionally and in the right way?
The purpose of lead nurturing—at least at the top of the funnel—is to build relationships with your prospects. It’s to slowly build credibility with that prospect and educate them on problems they may not even realize they have. And when the time comes to address that problem, they know exactly who to call because you’ve established yourself as a credible expert over that time.
Product and company focused messaging in a top funnel nurture sent