There's a lot to be learned by studying your online B2B leads. Software Advice did just that when they tracked and analyzed over 6,000,000 unique visitors. Review their findings and determine what can be applied to your business.
Conversion rates for B2B online leads are highest at the beginning of the year. In part because companies are starting a new fiscal year, budgets are unspent and focus is put on new initiatives according to a recent analysis by Software Advice.
Conversion rates drop in the summer during prime vacation season. And again in December as the holidays roll around.
How This Applies To Your Business: Put special emphasis on responding quickly to leads generated online during the beginning of the year as your chances of success are statistically much greater!
*This analysis was based on information gathered on the Software Advice website since 2008. More than 6,000,000 unique visitor data was collected and analyzed for these results. If your company responds to leads generated on the web, you need to review this report.
Conversion rates are highest during business days of the week.
Software Advice found B2B buyer activity peaks on Tuesday while conversions were highest on Wednesday. When you start tracking your leads, you may find you have a particular day of the week with best results.
How This Applies To Your Business: While any day can produce success, mid week seems best for closing sales. Schedule any in-house meetings on Monday or Friday so your team can focus for the best converting days of the week. If you are like me, I don't normally contact leads on the weekend but a focus on responding to them over the weekend could result in additional sales.
Buyer Activity By Time of Day
Visitors are more active during business hours as opposed to pre and post business times. Activity peaks from noon to 1pm. And trails quickly after 2pm.
How This Applies To Your Business: Mornings are important as site traffic ramps up, so be in early and ready to respond. Traffic is highest just before and during lunch time suggesting that even more buyers research during their lunch break.
Holidays and How They Affect Your Sales
You should stay at home on many holidays throughout the year. Traffic sees steep declines and qualification rates drop significantly on the following days: Memorial Day (-30%), Independence Day (-21%), Labor Day (-22%), Thanksgiving (-20%) and Day after Thanksgiving (-18%) and Christmas (-69%).
Although, you might want to consider responding to leads on these days: Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Day before July 4th, Day after July 4th, Columbus Day and Day before Thanksgiving as conversion rates are above average on some.
The Impact of First-To-Call on Qualification Rates
After a buyer converts on the Software Advice site, their chance of qualifying them drops with each second they wait to call.
Conclusion: Being quick to reply to online conversions could produce higher qualification rates for you.
Knowing your customer's online behavior can improve your bottom line. Put the processes in place today to track your leads and conversions. Take steps based on your findings to make small improvements which can produce large gains.