Getting b2b leads doesn’t have to be hard.
In fact, nailing down the low-hanging fruit is pretty easy (and potentially almost free) once you have a good rhythm going.
I managed to grow and scale a 10-person marketing agency in the games industry using many of these tactics.
26 ways to gain b2b leads on a tight budget
Here are some of the best strategies to gain b2b leads for traction:
1. Participate and answer questions on relevant industry forums, sprinkling backlinks
In the game development (gamedev) space, I found a lot of success on Reddit, as well as gamedev tools forums such as Unity and GMS.
2. Locate relevant YouTube videos that may have buyer-intent.
Then contact content creators at scale to insert a sponsored link above the fold.
The more niche the audience, the higher the conversions.
3. Create a “calculator” web app or Google Sheet that solves a common calculation that your target buyer persona has to perform manually.
Make your prospect’s lives a lot easier, and you’ll build up that trust.
4. Create a web tool that your target buyer persona desires, and/or clone features of a paid tool of your competitors’ and offer it for free.
In the gamedev space, a fellow developer created a tool for creating “Press Kits” which went viral since it solved a major pain point for so many other developers.
5. Answer relevant questions on Quora in a conversational style, while having a branded handle and bio with a proper CTA.
I’m not sure how well this works nowadays, but this strategy used to work extremely well in many verticals.
Answer questions, and sprinkle in relevant links.
6. Audit your website copy to use your prospect’s voice and directly address their pain points.
Make sure that every page has an appropriate call to action (CTA) and goal for site visitor (no dead ends).
Ensure that every page has a main call to action to move the prospect closer towards their desired result and/or to contact you.
7. Create a streamlined quiz funnel to pique curiosity to drive traffic and nurture target audience.
In the game dev space, I’ve driven thousands of leads to my email list using this strategy.
People love taking quizzes that help them discover something about themselves or their needs.
Create a hyper-targeted relevant quiz and then collect their email to send them the results.
8. Continually find reviews or lists of similar offerings and ask to be added.
There are a lot of directories looking for service-providers online, as well as platforms. Get on as many of them as you can.
9. Identify the best-performing blog posts, then double up on the content as well as add a relevant lead magnet content upgrade.
If you’re actively blogging on a regular basis (as you should be), identify your best posts and double down on them.
10. Grow a network of tangential accounts for organic growth on all main social media platforms.
Make sure that you’re actually capable of driving traffic with these social platforms before attempting this strategy. Skip the vanity metrics.
11. If you’re using dedicated landing pages, implement website social proof popups (such as
12. Engage in outbound email outreach to get relevant speaking engagements, podcasts, and get on panels at in-person and digital conferences.
These are great for PR as well as backlinks.
13. Reach out to highly-trafficked blogs in the space for partnerships and/or potential acquisitions.
Sometimes the fastest way to get traction is to acquire a digital property that already has traction, then build upon it.
14. Identify PDFs that your buyer persona might search for, then create a PDF containing the lead magnet.
And run a Google Ads PPC campaign to deliver that as a lead magnet.
15. Participate in AMAs on websites such as Reddit, or in Facebook groups.
This is a good way to demonstrate expertise.
16. Run, maintain, and optimize re-targeted Facebook ads campaigns with dedicated landing pages.
Offer lead magnets to people who have bounced from your website.
17. Schedule regular social media content on main platforms.
This can be behind the scenes, offers, news, advice, memes, quotes, books, questions, tools.
Anything that provides real value to your prospective client, really.
18. Set up and continually optimize and A/B test welcome and exit-intent popups.
Capturing leads on your website should be one of your main priorities.
Set it up with an appropriate lead magnet and provide quick and relevant transformation.
19. Sponsor local meetups or conferences.
If you can swing it, request access to their attendee email lists or ask for an opportunity to get a direct mention plus a call to action within their email blast to attendees.
20. Scope out Facebook Groups relevant to your vertical, then drop as much value as you can on a consistent basis.
I did this in the game development niche for about six months and ended up driving around 5,000 to 6,000 visitors per month by just dropping links to articles on my website alongside a few paragraphs of curiosity-provoking copy.
21. Sponsor relevant podcasts which cater to your target prospects.
If you have an audience or email list of your own, consider engaging in some kind of bartering or trade.
22. Standardize profile image, links, and CTAs across all social channels and keep your branding consistent.
Make sure that people know your value proposition as well as keep things looking professional and on-brand.
23. Write guest posts on relevant industry blogs.
Get in touch with editors to pitch blog post ideas with a title and short summary.
24. Make regular posts of trending content on LinkedIn statuses/pulse, Facebook groups/wall with your own personal perspective.
LinkedIn organic reach is going pretty crazy right now, so it’s probably good to jump on as well with your own spin.
25. Reach out to companies who are looking for that particular skill set, service, or product (Angelist, UpWork, etc.).
For example, if you’re a web development agency, try connecting with companies who are looking for an in-house web developer and figure out how you can deliver even more value at less cost.
26. Locate Slack groups where your core prospect hangs out, then participate in the discussion and continually give value.
Referral partnerships can also be built with peers in groups like this as well.
There you have it. Apply these to your business and see the b2b leads pour in.
Award-winning growth marketing consultant and digital strategist with over half a decade of experience building brands, growing communities, and directing marketing strategy for hundreds of venture-backed startups, creatives, and companies worldwide. I help tech and ecom companies scale with growth strategy, copywriting, and CRO.
