Have you ever pulled a report, looked at your B2B lead database, and said to yourself, “Well, that doesn’t look right”?

 

If so, you can’t leave it alone. Will you? 

 

The famous concept “garbage in, garbage out” applies to all the fields and models of this present world. The cleaner and more informative details we feed into our database, the better results they offer.

 

Sometimes there’s room for human error, and other times its just negligence. Whatever the case, you always need to ensure that your B2B lead database is up to scratch and ready for data analysis. 

 

In this article, we will give a quick rundown of tips and tricks to make sure you have a good hygiene B2B lead database so that you can step up your marketing efforts:

 

1. Use forms as your first line of defense

 

 

To create a culture around quality data decision-making, you need to aim for a clean lead database. Such a database will ensure you have the highest quality data and allow you to make decisions. 

 

So what steps will you take to create a clean database? There are several data-cleaning techniques that you can put to use to ensure your data is adequately prepared for your decision-making strategy.

 

Related: Why Is Database Cleaning Important? You Need To Read This First

 

One method is “lead qualification.” The lead qualification will allow you to preserve qualified leads in your lead database and eliminate unqualified leads, keeping your database organized and effective. So, here arises the question of how to qualify your leads. Forms can serve as a solution to this query. 

 

Your forms can make for an effective lead qualification process. How? They enable you to qualify your lead’s information, which aids you in locating your potential sales prospects. So, therefore, you can strive to maintain only qualified leads within your lead database and keep it as clean as possible!

 

2. Get rid of unqualified leads

 

 

What do you do after your potential lead fills out a form on your website? Typically, you keep tabs on their email address and record them in your database. 

 

Unfortunately, your task doesn’t end there. You might have to refine the leads in your database so that you’re left with only highly qualified leads. Here are two ways to achieve that:

 

• List creation

Creating “smart lists” helps you update your database based on specific criteria. For instance, you can set certain standards in your lists, such as the types of businesses you are targeting and the location you are looking for. 

 

The smart list then weeds out the ineligible leads that are unfit for your criteria and helps you segment only qualified leads that are quite suitable for your criteria.

 

• Manual trimming

Although your smart list identifies and tracks unqualified leads, manual work is still required from your end to obtain an accurate, clean database. Form submissions that include names, email addresses, or phone numbers are excellent ways to determine whether your lead is eligible. 

 

So, therefore, once the form submission details get entered into your database, take some time to review it so that you can eliminate any phony leads and strive for accurate data.

 

3. Keep an eye on your lead engagement

 

 

Customer engagement bridges the gap between buyers and suppliers. Therefore, all sales and marketing executives strive to have it. However, it’s equally important to realize that not all engagements result in positive action. To put it another way, not all leads who engage with your brands are qualified leads.

 

Some leads might interact with your brand but not necessarily get converted into prospects. So, how will you track down those leads to discard them from your database?

 

For instance, try to look into your email subscriber list and find people who are unsubscribing from your list or are dumping your emails in their junk folders. This can help you analyze the list of people who are not qualified to be in your database, allowing you to preserve only qualified leads within your database.

 

4. Be prudent when deciding to eliminate “unqualified leads”

 

Today’s marketers are not surprised by how quickly their prospects fade away. As a sales leader, you might also be aware of the fleeting nature of your prospects. Customers’ objectives and perceptions are constantly shifting. You can never predict when they will exit your funnel. 

 

For instance, they might have completed the first half of your sales process but opted to “go dark.” So, what will you do with such leads, then? Are you going to preserve them in your database or discard them? Having such unengaged leads in your database can waste much of your time. So, what will you do now? 

 

Try to create nurturing campaigns or customized content for leads who have entered the “dark mode.” The main goal here is to get them back into your sales funnel. If your leads exhibit interest, you can retain them in your database, but if they show no interest, it is not worthwhile to keep them there. 

 

Doing this will not only help you maintain a well-organized lead database with quality leads but can also help you recheck your leads’ decisions toward your brand.

 

Misleading details or unqualified leads in your B2B lead database can hinder your data analysis strategy. That’s why formulating and organizing your database is essential. This will not only save you hours of busy work but will also ensure your database is trustworthy. That means any insights you gain from your database are more beneficial for your business.

 

Have you maintained a clean B2B lead database in your system? If not, it’s time for a major spring cleaning process! Follow the above tips and tricks and make your B2B lead database work as hard as possible!