I read a recent study on the Marketing Charts Web site that addressed the effectiveness and efficiency of companies’ on-line lead generation efforts. The results revealed that: the proportion of company respondents who believe that their organizations are effectively exploiting online lead generation to grow their business-to-consumer (B2C) customer base has decreased from 44% in 2007 to 41% this year.

A multi-channel lead generation strategy is essential to achieving maximum return on investment. And, well-designed “on-line’ component can be integral to delivering more qualified and cost-effective leads.

High Beam Research has an excellent article about “the mix” you can download as part of a free trial. It addresses the basics and even for seasoned direct marketers it is a good reminder of what’s important to a successful lead gen strategy.

It’s time to fully leverage on-line lead generation and use it to drive your overall CPl dowward.