Generating leads is the backbone of digital marketing, which can be an expensive investment. As a result, companies are on the lookout for free lead generation tools that can help them generate quality leads at little or no cost to their budget. This article is all about the best free lead generation tools in 2021 and will help you find the right ones for your business.
Lead generation and lead management are very much about marketing, but there is also a sales aspect to it. When we talk about leads, salespeople always say that the right leads can make all the difference. So in business there is really no talk of keeping something for free. Because frankly, the value you are going to get in return will be high enough to keep you busy and ensure moneymaking.
It’s clear to me no matter who you are and what type of job you have there will be on occasion where you need to generate leads. Whether that is through ads, content, or other methods. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and even Google+ have helped many businesses do this for FREE!
Lead generation tools can range from a simple contact form, to databases of leads in various industries. These can be used for various types of sales, including for businesses and home-based businesses. Some lead generation tools are free and others pay for the leads you receive. In this article, we’ll cover some of the top free lead generation tools.
What is a lead generation system?
Lead generation software is a time-saving marketing and sales app that lets you automatically generate more leads and route them to the proper team. It helps you increase brand awareness, attract more qualified leads, and close more sales deals.
Lead generation focuses on the top of the sales funnel, typically pulling leads from online channels like email, social media, and landing pages. From these channels, it collects contact information from people who have expressed interest in your product or service.
So you can market to them with better insight. More targeted marketing tactics mean more qualified leads, which ultimately translates to more profitable deals.
1. Zendesk Sell
Zendesk Sell offers built-in sales engagement tools including lead gen, prospecting, and enrichment solutions. These features let your sales people ditch the tedious tasks and bet back to crushing their quotas. Sell lets you create targeted prospect lists for multiple channels and build custom templates so you can create a surplus of leads and engage contacts with a personalized touch.
Features
- Lead qualification
- Sales pipeline
- Custom templates
- Lead capture
- Lead distribution
2. Unbounce
Unbounce is a lead landing page platform for ecommerce, SaaS, and agencies, with features for building landing pages, pop-ups, and sticky bars.
Features
- Customizable templates
- Form builder
- Real-time editing
- Reporting/analytics
- SEO management
3. Leadpages
Leadpages is a landing page builder program for small businesses that hosts features for creating landing pages, pop-ups, alert bars, and includes 40+ integrations.
Features
- Form builder
- Pre-built templates
- SEO management
- AB testing
- Data import/export
4. Pipedrive
Pipedrive is a lead management and CRM platform for sales teams that included pipeline management and code-free development.
Features
- Call recording
- Lead capture
- Content delivery
- Customer segmentation
- Calendar/reminder system
5. HubSpot
HubSpot is a CRM for growing teams. It offers lead management features as well as contact and campaign management functions.
Features
- Performance metrics
- Pipeline management
- Prospecting tools
- Lead qualification
- Lead nurturing
6. Agile CRM
AgileCRM is a customer relations and auto-dialer program for small to mid-sized sales and marketing teams.
Features
- A/B testing
- Automated routing
- Appointment management
- Blended call center
- Call logging
7. CallPage
Callpage is a sales call platform for B2B, B2C, and ecommerce companies with outbound lead management features including auto-dialer and live chat.
Features
- Lead distribution
- Dashboard
- Call list management
- Contact database
- Lead capture
8. AeroLeads
AeroLeads is a prospect generation program for finding individual and business contact information.
Features
- Pipeline management
- Prospecting tools
- Lead qualification
- Lead capture
- Lead database integration
9. Vainu
Vainu is a European-based lead generation platform with sales intelligence and prospecting tools for businesses across all industries.
Features
- Lead verification/validation
- Pipeline management
- Contact database
- Lead capture
- Data import/export
10. LeadFuze
LeadFuze is a contact-finder for salespeople, recruiters, and marketers, and includes features like lead verification and segmentation.
Features
- Prospecting tools
- Contact database
- Lead distribution
- Lead nurturing
- Lead qualification
11. LinkeLead
LinkeLead is a lead generation platform specifically built to search through LinkedIn Sales Navigator for clients, partners, and businesses.
Features
- Contact database
- Data import/export
- Lead nurturing
- Lead segmentation
- Prospecting tools
12. LeadsBridge
LeadsBridge is a lead generation program for advertising agencies, retailers, financial services, and real estate businesses. It includes social media marketing tools, and offers 350+ integrations.
Features
- Lead capture
- Lead nurturing
- Data import/export
- Lead management
- Lead segmentation
13. OptinMonster
OptinMonster is a lead generation tool for small businesses, bloggers, marketing agencies, and eCommerce websites.
Features
- Prospecting tools
- Lead capture
- Lead segmentation
- Email integration
14. MaxTraffic
MaxTraffic is a marketing platform that includes features for customer profiling, exit intent, promotional overlays, and analytics.
Features
- A/B testing
- Customizable CTAs
- Drip campaigns
- Lead capture
- Geotargeting
15. LeadFeeder
LeadFeeder is a lead generation platform for B2B businesses that lets your salespeople track website visits and see where they came from.
Features
- Engagement tracking
- Source tracking
- Lead notifications
- Prospecting tools
- CRM
16. Sumo
Sumo is an email marketing tool for eCommerce businesses that offers multiple integrations including MailChimp, Shopify, and Campaign Monitor.
Features
- A/B testing
- Subscriber management
- Templates
- Conversion tracking
- Campaign management
17. LeadBoxer
Designed for B2B companies with a prominent online presence, LeadBoxer is a lead generation tool offering features such as behavioral analytics and GDPR compliance.
Features
- Data integration
- Engagement tracking
- Customer profiles
- Campaign management
- Audience targeting
18. Extole
Extole is a referral software platform used by businesses for building engagement and advocacy among your existing customers.
Features
- Advocate management
- Gamification
- Lead engagement
- Analytics/ROI tracking
- Bonus management
- Multi-channel marketing
19. Rollworks
Designed for information technology and service industry B2B companies, Rollworks is an accounts-based lead generation platform that offers audience segmentation and campaign personalization tools.
Features
- Collaboration tools
- Engagement tracking
- Data extraction
- Contact management
- Lead qualification
20. RightHello
RightHello is a B2B lead generation tool for marketing agencies, software developers, and tech start-ups.
Features
- Prospecting tools
- Lead capture
- Lead segmentation
- Campaign management
21. OutreachPlus
Pricing: Free for one user, one email address, and up to 100 contacts and 100 emails; paid plans start at $19 per month.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars from G2
Tired of sending cold emails that don’t convert? OutreachPlus is an email integration tool that helps you create, personalize, and schedule follow-up emails.
This makes it easier to build relationships through cold emailing. It also detects changes in replies, such as if your contact responds from a different email address, forwards your message, or has an autoresponder.
Lead generation tools: landing page creation & capture
These lead generation software tools will allow you to create custom landing pages and lead capture forms on your website. These are useful when trying to get visitors to sign up for an ebook, a demo request, or a sales call.
22. Unbounce
Pricing: Paid plans start at $80/month for up to 20,000 visitors and 500 conversions
Rating: 5/5 stars on GetApp (Based on 48 reviews)
Unbounce is a tool used to create custom landing pages. The platform features a drag-and-drop landing page builder as well as many pre-built templates. Opt-in popups and A/B testing are also available. A 30-day free trial is available with paid plans starting at $80/month.
23. Instapage
Pricing: Paid plans start at $499/month
Rating: 4.5/5 stars on GetApp (Based on 144 reviews)
Another popular landing page builder, Instapage integrates with popular email marketing and CRM platforms like Zapier, Hubspot, MailChimp, and Salesforce. The tool offers a drag-and-drop landing page and other handy features such as A/B testing, lead capture forms, conversion analytics, and heat maps.
24. Leadpages
Pricing: Paid plans start at $27/month
Rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars via Capterra
Leadpages claims to be the “#1 Landing Page Builder”. While we can’t necessarily say it’s the best, it does have a very well-designed drag-and-drop builder that is super easy to use. Additionally, the platform enables you to build Facebook ads directly inside the tool, and it even features built-in payment functionality for forms.
25. ClickFunnels
Pricing: Paid plans start at $97/month
Rating: 4.5/5 stars on GetApp (Based on 11 reviews)
Clickfunnels is a sales funnel and landing page builder all-in-one solution. With the tool, you can select from various sales funnels, and build the process out from there, including adding subscribers to your email list and collecting payments. A 14-day free trial is available with paid plans starting at $97/month after that.
What are the features of lead generation software?
When it comes to shopping for a lead generation system, here are the five key features you should look out for.
Intuitive interface
Even the most powerful software will be ineffective in your hands if you can’t use it. Marketing teams are experts in marketing, not web development. Look for lead generation programs with an intuitive interface and multiple options for training. Then anyone on your team can use it without suffering technical headaches.
Integrations
You’re probably already using business apps, so any lead generation software you decide on should include integrations. This will allow you to share data between your lead generation system and your CRM, email apps, and other business-related platforms you’re currently using.
Integrating your lead generation software with your other platforms eliminates the need to constantly switch browsers. Or double-check your data between platforms to make sure it’s accurate.
Analytics
Having accurate and up-to-date data is vital to strategizing better business practices. Any lead generation software you invest in should have a comprehensive analytics and reporting feature. That way you can always have an eye on the numbers. This lets you make data-driven decisions for improvement, and identify where you’re falling short of your goals.
Automation
Automation saves huge amounts of time by responding to leads, analyzing data, and prioritizing leads. You don’t have to automate every task on your to-do list. But having the option means more control over how your teams are spending their time.
Customer relationship management
In your search for lead gen software, you’ll probably come across something called CRM software — customer relationship management. Lead generation is often included as a feature of CRM. Because it all falls under the umbrella of nurturing customers in your sales pipeline and building a loyal customer base.
If you’re worried that CRM sounds too big for you at the moment, don’t be. CRM for small businesses is specifically designed to scale with you. While still providing all the benefits of lead generation, contact management, and sales tracking.
Most CRM platforms will let you add on features as you grow. Meaning you can pick and choose which features you can afford to invest in at any given time.
Conclusion
B2B marketers are always on the lookout for tools that can help them with generating leads. Lead generation websites, content marketing software and social media, are not enough. Marketers today want lead generation tools that provide data-driven insights and actionable sales strategies.
There are a few ways to generate leads online, but there’s little as effective as using lead generation tools. These tools will let you collect and leverage contact data, helping you better connect with your prospects. Here are some of the best free lead generation tools that are actually worth your time.