Without a healthy sales pipeline, most companies would collapse sooner rather than later. That's why I'm devoting this special focus issue to Sales Lead Generation.

    WDFM is sponsored by...

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With the economy bouncing back, more marketers are spending money on feeding leads to waiting sales people. Below you will find 12 sites that are the best picks for helping you do exactly that.

Coming Attractions: Upcoming Special Focus Issues for this newsletter include Viral Marketing, Best of Google Tools & Tips and Email Marketing.

Subscribe to This Newsletter Now: There's no charge and you get a bonus. It's Larry Chase's "Essential Search Engine Marketing Resource Guide." Go to http://wdfm.com.

"The Making of Larry Chase's Search Engine for Marketers" is the title of this week's Publisher's Note, which can be found after the 12 must-read site reviews.

Now, without further ado, here's WDFM's Co-Editor Gayle Kerley with the must-know websites for Sales Lead Generation. Take it awaaaaay, GK...

No-Cost Tools

Marketing Renaissance ROI Calculator
http://marketingrenaissance.com

Looking for some direct marketing insight? At this site you will find selected resources on how to improve your direct mail and email marketing ROI. Created by DM industry consultant Susan Allocco, the site features classic direct marketing how-to tutorials by industry legends like Robert Bly and Stevan Roberts, President of Edith Roman Associates. You'll also find a step-by-step guide to creating a marketing strategy. Once that is in place, you'll be able to profit from the site's no-cost Marketing ROI Calculator. It enables you to manipulate the numbers associated with prospecting, response, conversion rate and revenue to estimate your return on investment on any marketing campaign.

Entrepreneur.com Market Research Tools
http://www.thirdwaveresearch.com/mrtfz/homefz.asp?starttool=mktsizefst&refcode=channel_list

The Entrepreneur.com website offers self-serve market research tools from Third Wave Research, which is a spin-off of the Applied Population Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Utilizing US Census data, these tools deliver stats on demographics, demographic trends, household spending, business profiling and product spending for the entire US in real-time, at no cost. Want to know just how cool these tools are? Go to Tool Demo, enter your zip code, and receive a demographic profile of your neighborhood, projected to the year 2008. Eye opening!

You can use the tools at no cost as long as you view the entire US as your selected geographical base. If you want to conduct segmented marketing (arguably the real power of this software), you can either subscribe to the Research Tools on an annual basis, or purchase single reports. See the Tools Overview page for pricing.

Email Marketing

MaraStar SaleZmail ToonUps
http://www.marastar.com/szm.asp

MaraStar brings you ToonUps, which are humorous, animated business cartoons with a sales theme that your sales team can email to customers. What can this editor say about ToonUps? Not my taste, but they have a lot of big clients - from Coca-Cola to Kimberly-Clark to the US Bankruptcy Court, the list goes on and on - so obviously some people must appreciate their approach. ToonUp's cartoon packages are targeted to call centers, HR departments and salespeople. The SaleZmail package is targeted to the sales force, with emails featuring the proverbial "foot in the door" and other humorous messaging. You can customize ToonUps with employee name, company name and logo and specific company messages. The SaleZmail email package includes 70 animated messages, an email blaster tool, tracking and reporting functions and starts at $299(US) per user per year. A no-cost 15-day trial is available at the site.

Webinars

Bulldog Solutions
http://www.bulldogsolutions.com

Bulldog Solutions' mission is to "help businesses meet their sales and marketing potential by delivering the strategy, tools and implementation for successful Webcasts." So, how do they do this? The company offers end-to-end Webinar services, including event planning, training, budgeting, developing content and creative, list procurement to drive an audience to the event and post-event analysis. Basically, they provide whatever you need for your Webinar - including the technology - offering a choice of Microsoft Live Meeting, WebEx, MShow or Raindance.

If you've never put together a Webcast or Webinar, and you're responsible for generating warm leads, you may want some help above and beyond procuring the right technology. Bulldog Solutions is one option. In terms of cost, think ad or PR agency fees.

    WDFM is also sponsored by...

RELEVANCE: BUILD IT AND YOUR CUSTOMERS WILL COME... Rather than target consumers by traditional demographics like age, gender, or income, you can find people whose behavior demonstrates an interest in your product or service. Behavioral marketing allows you to reach just the right audience at just the right time. Claria's latest Online Advertising Series article shows you what's possible through relevant advertising. Click here to read the entire story. http://www.claria.com

List Research

zapdata.com
http://www.zapdata.com

zapdata, an Internet service from D&B Sales & Marketing Solutions, provides online access to business data and analysis for the B2B market. The company's products include prospect lists, industry reports and company lookups. Using zapdata's database, a company can build prospect lists by location, industry or demographics. A premium subscription adds job function and specialty data options. If you're looking for industry stats, you can choose specific industry segments by SIC code.

No-cost registration gives you a taste of the available information. Sort lists by company name, size, industry or location. A List Builder subscription, which runs $450(US) annually, allows you to preview, sort and analyze your list. Compare a suppression list against your list for an additional $350(US). More advanced services naturally cost more money.

Outsourcing

LeadMasters
http://www.leadmasters.com/outsourcing-leads.html

LeadMasters specializes in lead generation services for the B2B market, with the goal of getting the tough appointments with the decision makers - CEOs, COOs, CFOs, CIOs, EVPs and SVPs. Operating as a seamless resource, the company provides prospecting, lead generation, appointment setting and account management services to their clients. LeadMasters' account executives generally have over 20 years' experience in strategic planning and campaign development. Account executives represent the client through the calling and appointment-setting process. They establish the initial relationship, and then turn the process over to the client's internal sales team for the close. LeadMasters specializes in the consulting, technology and financial service markets, targeting companies that sell products and services for $50,000(US) or more.

Directories

SalesVantage.com
http://www.SalesVantage.com

Here's a vendor directory service for sales, marketing and advertising folks that also features the latest industry newsfeeds and expert articles. The directory lists vendors in 12 categories, from ad and PR agencies to sales management and Chambers of Commerce. All directory listings include company name, headquarters location and phone number. Sponsored listings get prime location, company logo, description and a link to company websites. Why visit this site? You can quickly find a list of vendors in a specific subject area, like List Brokers, which serves up a list of the industry's list houses. At the site you'll also find articles on marketing topics such as DM, negotiating, sales strategies and selling tactics, which are contributed on a regular basis by more than two dozen industry experts. While this is a paid directory, our research has shown that the results per category are robust enough to make it worth your while.

Newsletters

justsell.com
http://www.justsell.com

justsell.com is a sales and marketing portal that provides users with no-cost "just published" sales leads plus articles, templates and checklists. You'll need to register in order to be able to view the basic information on the site. You will also have to sign up again for individual modules. In addition to the complimentary information, there are fee-based ebooks for sales teams available from parent company MaxPitch Media with titles like "50 Ways and Places to Find New Business."

Be sure to check out Sales Leads, the no-cost newsletter which is sent out to subscribers every Monday. It includes 50 B2B sales leads targeting companies that have recently conducted important business moves. The leads include decision-maker names, contact details, recent business event description and specific sales opportunity information. View a recent sample on the site. Subscribers Beware: Once you sign up for the newsletter, you do start receiving email ads.

    WDFM is also sponsored by...

Expert Advice for Your E-mail and Search Marketing Campaigns Want to know what the experts know about b-to-b e-mail marketing and search marketing? Now you can with BtoB Magazine's weekly E-Mail Marketer Insight and bi-weekly Hands-On (with every other issue dedicated to search). Each e-mail newsletter is filled with expert advice and best practice case studies that can be put to use in your b-to-b marketing campaigns. Sign up now! It's free! http://www.btobonline.com/mybtob/

Marketing Automation

MarketingPilot
http://www.marketingpilot.com

How to justify the expenditures on a marketing campaign? Not so difficult if it's a success, not so easy if it flops. MarketingPilot's online application automates the details of campaign and project management: media buying; budget tracking; brand, product and document management; production and direct marketing campaign processes; and planning and reporting. Team members can pinpoint the details of a campaign's progress by viewing the associated online screens. Data and information is cross-populated, so it doesn't need to be re-entered. As an analytical tool for the entire marketing team, it takes the concept of sales or campaign accountability to the department level.

Networking

orkut
http://www.orkut.com

The online scene of business and social networking is becoming a big-time trend. With Friendster, LinkedIn, Tribe, Meetup (where Dean got his grassroots campaign rolling) and others quickly popping into the market, where does one start? Enter Google. Not officially a Google product (yet), orkut was developed on Google personal time by Orkut Buyukkokten (a true dot-com, Google encourages engineers to work on personal passions at work at designated times). orkut resides on servers outside of the official Google server base, but it's a Google property. Launched in January 2004 with exclusive invitations sent primarily to Google employees and friends, orkut is the place to be in the technorati community.

Once you get your invitation to become one of the "members" in this ring, you're in the geek social circle. Follow the directions to complete your profile - how much you want to reveal is up to you. Join a community, create your own, invite friends or just enjoy looking around. By the way, if you decide it's too much to take, you can always opt out.

Bob Burg
http://www.burg.com

Bob Burg, a motivational speaker, teaches and coaches companies and individuals about how to apply and perfect business networking and positive persuasion skills. His book, Endless Referrals, shows you how to turn every contact you have into a sales opportunity. Burg believes that the key to effective networking is being a giver, without worrying about what you get back. Connect good people with other good people and positive karma will come back to you. To check out his philosophy, view a sample of his newsletter on his site.

    WDFM is also sponsored by...

Email Marketing Is Dead www.komunik.biz

Publisher's Note

The Making of Larry Chase's Search Engine For Marketers
www.searchengineformarketers.com

Months in the making, this free service offers marketers 10-35 reviews in each of 40 marketing categories, including: Email Marketing, PR, Direct Marketing, Brand Advertising, Affiliate Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Increasing Website Traffic and Link Popularity.

>From concept to reality, this project took seven months. When it formally launched, site traffic more than doubled and has sustained itself at the increased levels. In fact, traffic levels continue to rise steadily. I wanted the site to be a "go and do" site rather than a "go and read some more stuff on a website" site.

People to Thank

This site is a breeze to use. Someone on the Web for the first time could get around easily and confidently. Getting the site to look that easy wasn't easy. I had input and help from many people.

Bryan Eisenberg: Co-Founder, FutureNow
Last August Bryan and I talked about how to optimize the Web Digest For Marketers site. Having reviews in so many marketing categories was the key. Creating 40 categories, each loaded with 10-35 site reviews and links, was the answer. The value to the marketer who is searching for something is that it brings order to what can otherwise be chaotic.

Eileen Shulock: Managing Editor, Web Digest For Marketers
Eileen went through each and every single review in the WDFM database. She updated, deleted where necessary and rewrote most of what is now housed at this site. Huge amounts of fact-checking were involved. It is a never-ending task, in fact. She did it quietly and with great determination. Gayle Kerley deserves mention here as she is a WDFM Co-Editor and has written numerous reviews in this database too.

Mary Gillen: IdeaSiteforBusiness.com
Many of you know Mary from her own newsletter, which has been publishing almost as long as this one. It's called Marketing Ideas by Email (formerly known as A-Marketing-Idea-a-Day-by-Email). In addition to publishing her own newsletter, she is a diligent webmaster/producer. She built and battle-tested the database and executed the interface design set down by Bryan Eisenberg's designers.

Industry Experts:
Most of the reviews in this new service are reviews that originally appeared first right here in Web Digest For Marketers. Many of those reviews were written by industry experts. They include: Mike Grehan, Andrew Goodman, Heather Lloyd Martin, Detlev Johnson, Ruth Stevens, Eric Ward and Ken McGaffin.

Sounding Boards and Pipe Organs:
When you ask someone's opinion, it is easy for the person asked not to challenge you and to simply say, "It's a wonderful idea, congratulations." But Mac Ross, David Garfinkel and Jim Edwards would "pipe up" and challenge me whenever they thought something wasn't quite right with this project. Moreover, instead of just criticizing, they would bring constructive solutions to the table, nearly all of which were employed by me. Thank you, guys.

You: The Reader
A few weeks ago I put out an FYI to all subscribers inviting you to be the first to see this new service and kick the tires. Many of you did and were kind enough to write in and give me your feedback, 95% of which we incorporated into the site. Thank you for your input. It makes this a better service all the way 'round. LC

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