Getting likes, shares and saves on social is one factor. However turning all that consciousness and engagement into leads is an entire different problem.
The excellent news? Social media does affect buy choices. Our 2025 Q2 Pulse Survey revealed that 76% of social customers say social media (together with adverts, influencer content material, model posts, and so on.) has swayed their buying choices up to now six months. That quantity jumps to 90% for Gen Z and 84% for Millennials.
So, how do you construct the bridge between content material and conversion? Your social technique must seize consideration, but it surely additionally must drive leads and income.
On this submit, you’ll study all about social media lead technology, why you want it and our favourite techniques for producing gross sales leads via social media. We’ve additionally included some real-life examples to encourage your subsequent marketing campaign.
Let’s dive in.
What’s social media lead technology?
Social media lead technology is the method of amassing new leads utilizing social media. A lead is any data that identifies somebody concerned with your services or products. This data will be something from their title and electronic mail tackle to their occupation and employer particulars.
Why you want social media lead technology
It doesn’t matter whether or not you’re B2B or B2C. Social media is the place at present’s customers uncover, analysis and store. And with 86% of customers planning to extend or keep their social media utilization this 12 months, in keeping with our Q2 Pulse Survey, there’s a rising alternative to attach with and convert your viewers.
Listed here are 5 explanation why a social media lead technology technique is important for all sorts of manufacturers and companies.
- Broaden your attain and increase viewers engagement. With billions of lively customers, social media stays one of the highly effective platforms for constructing consciousness and attracting new audiences. Plus, in keeping with our Q2 2025 Pulse Survey, practically half of worldwide social media customers plan to spend extra time on rising networks like Substack, Patreon, Bluesky and Reddit. This pattern implies that manufacturers may have extra alternatives than ever to fulfill potential prospects the place they already are.
- Goal your ultimate prospects. Do you know that, in keeping with our 2025 Sprout Social Index, most customers begin researching services or products one to 6 months earlier than they purchase? Social media will get your model in entrance of these high-intent goal audiences with well timed, related content material that strikes them nearer to buy.
- Optimize your advertising and marketing spend. Social media stays one of the environment friendly and versatile advertising and marketing channels. It permits groups to set versatile budgets and rapidly pivot based mostly on outcomes. In keeping with the 2025 Sprout Social Index, practically three-quarters of selling leaders now rank natural and paid social as prime priorities, second solely to content material and web site advertising and marketing.
- Entry in-depth viewers information and analytics. Each built-in and third-party social media analytics instruments present deep insights into viewers habits, marketing campaign efficiency and content material engagement. Use these insights to trace social media ROI and refine your lead technology technique over time.
- Nurture your leads. As customers browse, save and analysis, your content material will help information their journey. Share precious content material, reply questions and construct belief to show passive followers into lively leads, and ultimately, loyal prospects.
Finest social media platforms for lead technology: What’s proper to your model?
There are numerous platforms to select from. To make your lead technology technique efficient, align it with the place your viewers spends time and the content material they’re almost certainly to interact with.
Right here’s how lead gen techniques range throughout at present’s prime social networks, in keeping with information from The 2024 Content material Technique Report and Sprout’s Q2 2025 Pulse Survey.
Fb lead technology
Fb’s sturdy advert platform and intensive person base make it a go-to selection for manufacturers focusing on Gen X, Millennials and Child Boomers.
Lead adverts, giveaways and reductions work nicely for B2C manufacturers trying to drive quick sign-ups. B2B manufacturers, however, might concentrate on academic content material like webinars or lead magnets to construct belief and nurture consumers via longer decision-making processes.
Instagram lead technology
Instagram is the #1 platform for product discovery and Gen Z’s prime social app, in keeping with our findings.
Its visible nature makes eye-catching artistic and clear CTAs a should for lead technology. For B2C, that may imply utilizing UGC or influencer content material to advertise downloads or purchases, early entry or contests. B2B manufacturers can use short-form academic posts, like Reels or carousels, to spark curiosity and information followers towards gated content material.
LinkedIn lead technology
LinkedIn is constructed for B2B lead technology, however B2C manufacturers can nonetheless profit. In keeping with our analysis, customers need academic product data from manufacturers on this community above all else.
With this in thoughts, each B2B and B2C manufacturers can drive LinkedIn lead technology via webinars, how-to content material, downloadable guides—something that teaches and captures lead information within the course of.
TikTok lead technology
TikTok continues to dominate with Gen Z and youthful Millennials. It’s additionally their prime channel for product discovery. The platform favors enjoyable, quick and relatable short-form video content material. B2C manufacturers providing demos, creator collabs or freebies with sturdy CTAs actually thrive right here.
B2B lead gen is much less direct right here however nonetheless efficient. Sharing fast suggestions or insights helps construct belief and drive site visitors to guide magnets, like guides or checklists.
YouTube lead technology
YouTube stays a prime world platform, particularly amongst Gen Z and Millennials. It’s a robust area for each B2C and B2B lead technology due to its mixture of leisure and academic content material.
B2C manufacturers can use YouTube Shorts to share fast promos or product highlights. B2B manufacturers profit from long-form movies that specify advanced matters or share buyer tales. Pair all of it with sturdy CTAs and constant posting to drive high quality leads over time.
Social media lead technology methods
Now that you already know the advantages of utilizing social media to generate leads, how do you go about it? Genuine, participating content material that establishes your model ethos and character will seize potential prospects’ consideration and develop your platform. Then, following up with extra sales-focused content material will convert them into prospects.
Simply understand that counting on natural techniques alone might not be sufficient to achieve a wider viewers. Incorporate paid techniques, like social media adverts, to focus on particular teams of individuals and get extra visibility.
The next ten techniques will show you how to attain the fitting folks on the proper time with the fitting content material and messaging to seize their curiosity and generate high-quality social media leads to your group.
B2B social media lead technology methods
B2B lead technology is much less about impulse buys and extra about constructing belief and guiding longer resolution cycles.
Listed here are a number of strategic methods to seize B2B leads from social:
Launch compelling lead magnet gives
The precise incentive compels folks to share their data with you. This could possibly be something from a analysis report back to a free instrument. You could possibly additionally provide low cost codes, case research, webinars, whitepapers and extra.
LinkedIn, utilizing its personal platform to advertise a LinkedIn Adverts ROI information, is an ideal instance.
Take advantage of lead technology adverts
Take your social media promoting one step additional with lead-gen adverts. These adverts help you collect leads on a social platform quite than pushing prospects to a touchdown web page. They arrive with pre-populated varieties, making it simple for leads to enroll with out spending an excessive amount of time coming into their private data.
This method hurries up the lead technology course of, considerably boosting engagement. In keeping with a Wordstream research, Fb lead adverts have a median click-through charge of two.53%, in comparison with 1.57% for site visitors campaigns.
Notion makes use of Fb Lead Adverts to advertise its three-month trial provide. The shape fields are pre-filled utilizing particulars that the prospect has already included of their LinkedIn profile, making it frictionless to your result in entry your content material and so that you can gather their data.
Share testimonials as social proof
Buyer tales, evaluations and testimonials present the social proof you should entice new leads. Showcase how purchasers profit out of your services and products to display your model worth. In keeping with a 2025 BrightLocal survey, 42% of respondents belief client evaluations as a lot as private suggestions.
On this model partnership (extra on these later!), creator Oren John shared how he makes use of premium inventory picture library Dying to Inventory in his work, and its advantages.
Host a digital occasion or social media convention
Digital conferences and occasions are an effective way to draw a extremely related viewers whereas establishing your experience and authority within the discipline. They’re additionally nice for producing leads on social media, as folks should present their data to enroll or be a part of the convention.
Host a digital convention on matters that intrigue your audience and relate to your model’s experience. Use the occasion to debate trending trade matters, present actionable suggestions and invite influential audio system. Plus, generate loads of content material by posting on social media whereas the occasion is dwell or repurposing content material into lead magnets later.
For example, Canva just lately partnered with Deloitte and Omdia to host a webinar on the state of selling and AI.
Use advocacy to let your staff unfold the phrase
Every of your staff has a social community. Now, think about the influence tapping into these audiences might have in your development efforts. That is the ability of worker advocacy.
Worker Advocacy by Sprout Social simplifies the method by enabling staff to rapidly share firm posts, customise their feeds to indicate matters related to their roles and counsel content material for others to share.
Vizient, the US’s largest healthcare efficiency enchancment group, created an advocacy useful resource hub with Sprout. It accommodates product demos, tutorial movies and on-demand webinars, making it simple for Vizient staff to develop into social media model advocates.
B2C social media lead technology methods
B2C consumers usually tend to take motion within the second, particularly when a proposal or message speaks on to their wants.
Listed here are a number of techniques to seize their consideration and switch it into significant actions:
Create focused adverts with particular gives
A paid social media promoting technique is extremely efficient for producing leads as a result of exact focusing on choices and potential attain. These options help you personalize gives and develop your viewers past that of your present social media followers.
To drive engagement and conversions, promote particular reductions and limited-time gives to your services and products via these adverts. Dairy Farmers of Canada used Instagram adverts to advertise a grocery reward card giveaway. They captured leads by requiring customers to subscribe to their Extra Goodness e-newsletter for the possibility to win.
Arrange sequential retargeting adverts
Retargeting amplifies your social promoting and lead technology technique by re-engaging misplaced prospects. Say somebody clicked in your first advert and scrolled via the touchdown web page however by no means submitted a type. That is your cue to retarget them with adverts, encouraging them to complete the signup course of.
Take into account additionally retargeting individuals who’ve landed in your web site via search or different referral websites. Or individuals who usually learn your weblog posts however haven’t subscribed to your e-newsletter.
Strive establishing your retargeting adverts sequentially to get even higher outcomes. For example, use an awareness-stage advert to handle widespread ache factors and objections or a consideration-stage advert with testimonials to present social proof and win folks’s belief. Hold the client journey transferring ahead by serving up essentially the most related messaging relying in your audience’s previous habits.
Cirque Du Soleil makes use of retargeting adverts to re-engage its earlier viewers and encourage them to purchase tickets. These dynamic product adverts embrace a reduction to assist drive gross sales.
Leverage influencer partnerships
Partnering with influencers attracts leads from the social media content material your audience is already consuming. And in keeping with our 2025 State of Influencer Advertising report, influencer content material will get 92% extra attain, 90% extra engagement and converts 83% higher than natural content material from manufacturers.
The hot button is to work with respected content material creators who’re already in style along with your audience. For instance, PGYTECH partnered with content material creator Tom Calton to advertise their OneGo2 bag, designed particularly for photographers and videographers. Since Tom is a photographer and videographer himself, the collaboration is a pure match.
Content material creators and influencers additionally present a type of social proof. They seamlessly combine your sponsored message into their content material, serving to it attain audiences who may in any other case actively click on away from an advert.
Launch a referral marketing campaign
Referral campaigns are extremely efficient in doubling your gross sales leads. These campaigns incentivize your results in refer their mates or colleagues. The referred folks will find out about your services or products and doubtlessly develop into extra leads.
To make this work, present a horny incentive comparable to a present card or a reduction in change for the referral.
For instance, the web journey comparability and reserving web site Omio gives a referral program the place prospects obtain and provides €10 once they refer a pal.
Take advantage of social listening
Search for lead technology alternatives with efficient social listening. Monitor social media conversations and see what folks say a few matter or competitor model. This step will show you how to establish any alternatives to generate high-quality leads for your online business.
McDonald’s bringing again the Snack Wrap is a superb instance of social listening performed proper. The social staff noticed the demand throughout platforms and pulled the receipts. They made a powerful case internally, and it labored.
Connecting your social lead gen technique again to income
Social media performs a job at each stage of the client journey. However for those who solely concentrate on the ultimate step, you’ll miss how social helps drive curiosity and strikes folks nearer to that buying resolution.
That’s why a social media administration instrument like Sprout Social is important. It helps groups floor the significant insights that help a stronger social media ROI story.
Sprout’s reporting options and integrations with CRMs like Salesforce assist groups perceive how social, influencer advertising and marketing and worker advocacy contribute to pipeline development via multi-touch reporting.
Crush your social media lead technology targets
Social media is a lead technology powerhouse as a result of it means that you can attain and have interaction with broad and area of interest audiences. Simply do not forget that social media is meant to be social.
Use the techniques we’ve outlined above to construct a powerful relationship along with your viewers. Deal with offering precious and informative content material that addresses your viewers’s wants and pursuits. You’ll entice leads genuinely concerned with what you provide, fueling your total enterprise development in the long term.
Lastly, don’t overlook to measure the influence of your lead gen efforts and search for alternatives to enhance. Learn our social media reporting information to study extra about the way to hold observe of your efficiency.
