To many advisors, lead generation is something of a mystery.

So how do you create new leads consistently and predictably?

The answer is in your lead generation funnel.

Today, we're going to cover the sevencomponents that need to be in play, and really playing at theirbest, for you to get the most out of the marketing dollars you'respending. Let's jump right in.

1. Define your target market.

Do you know who your ideal client is? You may think it breaksdown to age, income, asset level or zip code, but if you want tooptimize this part of your funnel, you'll need to get even morespecific by knowing your targeted client's gender; marital status;occupation; ethnicity; political leaning; and interests. If you'rein a niche market, you may need other details as well.

Related: 6 myths about choosing an insurance targetmarket

Once you've defined your market with categories such as these,you'll be prepared to craft a better message, one that will attractyour ideal client, while repelling others you don't want to workwith.

2. Choose the right traffic source.

All traffic sources have their place, but which is right? Hereare four metrics you can use to answer that for yourself.

• Impressions versus conversions. Inimpression-based marketing, you pay to get your message in front ofa certain number of people. In conversion-based marketing, you payonly when someone responds to your message. Rather than making aninvestment that puts all the risk on you, we've found it's betterto pay for the result. That way you can control your cost per leadand track exactly what you're getting from the marketing dollarsyou spend.
• Lead volume. Referrals may be the bestand cheapest source of leads, but the volume they generate is verylow. If you were to rely on referrals alone, you'd probablystruggle to get the volume you need. Volume is a critical metric toanalyze when choosing your traffic source.
• Lead quality. We like to talk about leadquality in terms of buying temperature. Are your leads at the topof the scale, ready to make decisions today? Those are hot leads.Or are they relatively cold, in need of a lot of education andselling to get them to that point? Think about this when evaluatinghow well a given traffic source will work for you.
• Cost per lead. When you divide how muchyou spend on a campaign by how many leads that campaign brings in,you can see how much each lead costs. This is an important metricyou should definitely be watching. Sometimes, the results aresurprising.

3. Craft a message that converts.

When prospects come across your message, does itresonate with them? If you've taken the time to understand theirgoals, fears, opportunities and beliefs, you can tap into theemotional drivers that compel them. These are the factors that setyou — and your message — apart from the competition.Psychographic information is much more powerful than demographicinformation.

An on-point message is only as good as its audienceis well-suited for that message. (Photo: iStock)

4. Create a high-value lead magnet.

An on-point message is only so good. To generate an exceptionalresponse, it has to be paired with a high-value lead magnet. Thereare eight points to check off your list here. Let's look at thefirst four.

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    • High perceived value. To increase theperception of value, make sure your offering is professionallydesigned and written. If it's a video, it should be professionallyfilmed. An offering with a low perceived value just won't generatethe leads you're looking for.
    • Real ralue. Don't make the mistake ofthinking that all you need is a pretty package. Nothing could befurther from the truth. Your lead magnet is the first transactionyou have with your prospect, and it has to deliver real value;otherwise, you may actually drive them away. Instead, impress themwith a substantive offering right out of the gate.
    • Ease of consumption. Prospects want todigest your lead magnet quickly, in five minutes or less. Itshouldn't feel like work or require too much of an investment.Think of it as a sample of what you can do, an appetizer before themain course.
    • Specificity. Your lead magnet shouldsolve a specific problem. For example, “Ten things to know aboutfinancial security” is way too broad. On the other hand, “Threethings you need to understand about low interest rates” or “Eightthings you can do to protect your portfolio” are targeted tospecific hot buttons – and they're going to generate a much higherresponse as a result.

Again, there are eight elements to creating a high value leadmagnet; these are the first four. At the end of this post we'lltell you where you you can get the rest.

5. Design your lead capture page.

A poorly-designed landing page isn't going to generate the volumeof leads you should be getting, even if your lead magnet is off thecharts. Let's look at how you can optimize that.

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    • Not home. Your lead page should not beyour home page. A corporate home page offers so many options,prospects can get lost or distracted. That kills conversions.Instead, drive people to a page that allows them to do one thing,and one thing only: opt in and get your lead magnet.
    • Limit navigation. It's okay to link yourlogo back to your home page, but that's it. Don't include your toptop-level navigation bar as it could tempt your prospects to gosomewhere else.
    • Exit pop. If prospects try to leave thepage without opting in, you can trigger a message to pop up sayingwait, you forgot to get your lead magnet. We used to think thesewere cheesy — before we saw the results. Twenty to 30 percentof leads that would have bounced will opt in after seeing an exitpop.

Those are just three out of 18 tips for dialing in your leadcapture page; we'll link you to the rest at the end of thispost.

Related: 4 ways to improve your digitalpresence

Be prepared for the fact that less than 2 percent ofweb visitors are sold on a new product or service the first timethey're exposed to it. (Photo: iStock)

6. Deploy your retargetingstrategy.

If retargeting is a foreign concept, this may be your mostimportant takeaway. Less than 2 percent of web visitors convert thefirst time they're exposed to a new product or service; this bearsout across all kinds of websites. How can you ensure they'll comeback after they bounce? That's where tracking pixels andretargeting come in.

Related: Why companies can't get marketingright

Retargeting is a way to continue marketing to people you knoware interested. When a prospect visits your lead capture page, butdoesn't opt in, you can drop a tracking pixel on their browser sothat, as they browse the web, your ads will continue to showup.

The statistics on this are incredible. When done correctly,retargeting can boost response by as much as 400 percent. And 25 to30 percent of consumers said they have positive feelings aboutthese ads, because what's marketed is something they're genuinelyinterested in.

7. Build in long-term nurture.

We all know that follow-up is crucial, yet less than half of usactually follow up even one time. Once is better than nothing, butonly 2 percent of deals close after the first follow-up. Twelvepercent of us follow up three times; even so, only 4 percent ofdeals happen there. Ten percent of advisors follow up five or moretimes — and that's where 81 percent of the deals arehappening.

If you want to put yourself among the top 10 percent of advisorsin the country, get an automated system in place to follow up withevery lead at least five times.

Related: 5 strategic approaches to generatingleads