Sean Hakes » lead generators http://blog.seanhakes.com Straight Talk From a Local Online Marketer Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:23:16 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 The Future of lead aggregators http://blog.seanhakes.com/2009/10/23/the-future-of-lead-aggregators/ http://blog.seanhakes.com/2009/10/23/the-future-of-lead-aggregators/#comments Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:52:02 +0000 admin http://www.seanhakes.com/blog/?p=258 Companies like ServiceMagic.com are pushing sales harder than ever, and rightfully so. Millions  of people go online and fill out an online form in hopes to be connected with a ‘pre-screened’ home improvement contractor. ServiceMagic.com (SM) takes these service  requests for any number of services including plumbing calls, duct cleaning, home remodels, flooring etc… Once  the lead has  officially be submitted they do some minor qualification and in return sell the lead multiple times over to vendors or Service PROs that provide the requested services. It’s a great model for the simple fact that it seems to work for almost everyone. Consumers feel good about their choice because SM markets this as a pre-screened service giving home and business owners peace of mind. It also works out for Service Professionals because they can in most cases accept or deny leads based upon their budget and needs.

How does the future look for lead aggregators?

I predict there will always be a market for lead aggregators but the market share is sure to slim down significantly and the reason is this…

Local Internet Advertising companies like iClick Websites and Yodle who offer a unrepresented search marketing and lead generation services provide custom lead aggregators that are branded to their advertisers, deliver exclusive leads at no additional cost, offer a low cost flat fee that in most cases cost  significantly less than aggregators like ServiceMagic and deliver similar technology in lead generation and delivery.

Many business owners  are burnt out on lead aggregators that seem to do less and cost more – therefore they have educated themselves and found that it’s not to difficult to run their own self lead generation campaigns.

Companies like ReachLocal and Yodle have helped small business owners significantly with their own online lead campaigns with affordable 100% managed search engine marketing services. Combine this with powerful SEO or throw in a CWD MicroSite and you have no reason to keep paying high cost-per-lead fees that offer little to no exclusive value.

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