Good lead generation has always been a cornerstone of any effective digital marketing strategy. However, in the past, most methods were old-school: forms, email campaigns, and other outbound marketing efforts aimed at persuading people to willingly provide their information. Nowadays, consumers are more informed, value their privacy, and are selective about the brands with which they engage. Consequently, marketers have had to adopt more sophisticated and customized approaches to establish connections between individuals and valuable opportunities.

Most of the website traffic, in fact, comes from anonymous leads – people browsing, rarely interacting, and almost never filling out a form or submitting their contact info. According to lead-gen estimates in the industry, 98% of visitors to websites are anonymous, representing a vast pool of potential leads. These potential buyers are at the very beginning of their buyer’s journey, in the discovery and evaluation phase. To remain competitive, businesses should make every effort to capture interest and convert anonymous leads into phone calls or form submissions.

There are several reasons why it is important to identify anonymous visitors, including the following:

1. Increased Personalization: Identifying anonymous visitors means businesses can provide a personalized experience based on individuals’ interests and behaviors. When businesses begin to know the things that interest their visitors, or what they might be struggling with, they can provide custom content and offers to match the individual needs and goals of their visitors, increasing the chances that they convert or do the specific action you want them to take.
2. Improved Engagement: Establishing a better understanding and trust with potential customers because early engagement helps the anonymous visitor solve a problem, while also establishing a more personal relationship with the business. B2Bs also benefit from using anonymous visitors as leads.
3. Data-Driven Insights: Identifying anonymous visitors provides valuable data that can inform marketing strategies. Analyzing the behavior and preferences of these visitors helps businesses understand their target audience better, refine their messaging, and optimize their marketing efforts.
4. Competitive Advantage: In a highly competitive digital marketplace, setting your company apart from your competition can be hard. If businesses continue to rely on generic lead generation, using technology to help identify and engage anonymous website traffic can give you an edge.

Technologies are coming together to turn anonymous visitors into identifiable prospects, which will unlock lead generation’s potential. There are several tools and tactics that make this possible:

• Visitor tracking software: Visitor IQ helps firms track and analyze the anonymous behavior of their website visitors in real-time through live tracking of page views, click patterns, time on site, level of intent, and visitor preferences.
• AI and Machine Learning: Algorithmic modeling and analysis of large amounts of behavioral data help detect converting and unconverted visitor behavior and predict leads. Automation can also strategically deliver and push personalized content to the right visitor at the right time.
• IP Address Identification: IP addresses allow you to find out where your anonymous visitors are located, identify which companies and industries they are in, and tailor your marketing to their segment and industry.
• Behavioral Analytics: Analyzing the movements of anonymous visitors through a website allows you to gauge their inclinations and requirements. Visitor profiles can be built with sophisticated tools that track a mouse’s movements around a site, the point at which it stops scrolling, and the links a visitor clicks on.

Over time, the ability to identify anonymous visitors will become a vital use-case for a successful lead generation approach, all made possible through a combination of new technologies, along with a focus on personalization, engagement, and actionable data. It’s a recipe that will deliver huge benefits for businesses willing to tap into the current mindset and will deliver a major competitive advantage in the marketing mix. The future of lead generation is here, and now is the time to convert the anonymous visitor – the new generation of leads – into the next generation of successful businesses.