Justin Rees

Twitter’s good intentions: generating ROI from social media

While there are already many companies doing great things with social media around customer service and analytics, the elephant in the room is still whether social can generate material ROI in the form of leads and sales.

As the recent Econsultancy Modern Marketing Manifesto makes clear, ‘social’ is not a choice, it’s a fundamental part of doing business in the 21st century.

It seems that Twitter at least is pretty certain that social can become a true performance channel and that it can start to eat away at the ‘bottom of the funnel’ budget that mostly finds its way to Google.

by Justin Rees 24 April 2013 10:23am 0 comments

Google and Yahoo confirm that lead generation has hit the big time

As a general rule in digital, it seems that when Google and Yahoo get involved in something it is a pretty good sign that it is important.

After many years of skirting around the fringes of performance marketing, recent product launches from these two online advertising behemoths leave no doubt that Online lead generation is finally ready to step out of the shadows and into the limelight.

by Justin Rees 20 December 2012 09:41am 3 comments

Is Google selling leads in the UK?

Every so often a simple Google search reveals a hint at a new Google initiative.

In recent months we've seen various different types of ad extension formats and it seems that selling leads rather than clicks could be the next big push in Google's continuing search for revenue streams away from the simple click.

Peter Bell from Fuse Lead Marketing (@fuselead) recently alerted me to an interesting discovery which seems to have appeared over the last few weeks in the UK.

If you are signed into one of Google’s services (LeadPoint uses Google for email) you might stumble across a new type of ad extension in the top ranked ads – namely a way for the advertiser to capture your contact information and permission to contact you without clicking through.

by Justin Rees 17 May 2012 10:04am 6 comments

Are digital marketing shows a waste of time?

We all attend in droves but in 2012 is there still a need for the big generalist digital marketing shows?

Is the industry ready to say goodbye to these shows that helped put digital on the map and usher in a new wave of more niche and focused shows that embrace the latest developments within digital marketing?

by Justin Rees 02 May 2012 09:32am 20 comments

20 lead generation tips: part two

I was recently invited to speak on a panel about lead generation which covered everything from the state of the current market, the issues faced by lead buyers and sellers and a sneak peak into what the future holds for the fledgling UK industry.

As part of the panel we were tasked to come up with a series of lead generation tips for the audience and myself, Andy Purbrick from Dennis Publishing and Sean Sewell from Performance Horizon Group put our heads together to come up with a top 20.

Last week we covered the first 10 lead generation tips, and this week we bring you tips 11 to 20.

by Justin Rees 02 November 2011 10:11am 3 comments

20 lead generation tips: part one

In the latest IAB/PwC adspend study, online lead generation registered an impressive 20% growth rate over the year which shows the continuing interest in lead generation.

However, while spend is certainly increasing, there is still a lack of understanding about the industry.

The title of this post could have been 100 lead generation tips, but with the help of a few other lead generation experts I have managed to narrow the list down to the top 20 most important.

by Justin Rees 26 October 2011 12:04pm 8 comments

Google wants to help you with your finances

After announcing the launch of Google Advisor in the US in May, is Google already planning to replicate the service in the UK?

by Justin Rees 16 June 2011 12:02pm 4 comments

Value based pricing: the holy grail of online lead generation

Value based pricing is the new buzz term in online lead generation, but what does it take to sort your Rolls Royces from your Robin Reliants?

by Justin Rees 17 February 2011 09:50am 6 comments

Is online lead generation right for your brand?

An increasing number of brands are starting to take Online Lead Generation (OLG) seriously and making it a central part of their online customer acquisition strategy and it’s not hard to see why.

If you sell widgets and you can capture leads where the consumers are all interested in buying widgets then you can put a process in place to turn those interested customers into sales and therefore revenue. Simple right?

For many brands it is pretty simple but before you decide to allocate thousands of pounds to a lead gen campaign it pays to take a step back and ask yourself a few questions to work out whether OLG is right for your brand.

by Justin Rees 07 September 2010 09:39am 3 comments

Lead generation: four questions to ask your provider

When it comes to choosing a lead provider, advertisers are spoilt for choice. There are plenty of companies offering lead generation services from digital agencies, specialist lead generation companies, vertical specific suppliers to lead marketplaces and platforms.

So how do you cut through all the marketing spin and work out which one is right for you?

by Justin Rees 13 July 2010 10:11am 5 comments