Leadpile’s Blog

As you may know, I’ve written a few recent articles about the economy.  Today I heard a new marketing technique that sneaky gas stations are doing. 

Apparently, a few gas stations attract the public by promoting a lesser price per gas.  However, with the price of gas increase this year, gas stations are aware that most consumers are paying with their credit cards, considering it takes a lot more money to fill up.  Did you know that some gas stations are charging extra when using a credit card? Doesn’t surprise me one bit! For example, if you use a Visa you might have an increase of 2%.  So as an example, if you thought you were paying $4.11 you would actually be charged $4.19.  Hey, that .08 cent difference starts adding up, also consider the monthly fee your credit card is charging on top of that.  Pretty expensive gas, I must say.

How to prevent this well, make sure that one, you check that the price match up on the screen when you swipe your card, and secondly check your receipt.  This sounds tricky but it certainly real.  Many gas stations lure the consumer that are paying with cash  to come inside, instead of the little window.  Many gas stations have a mini mart with yummy treats.  Yes, I know each time I walk in I don’t only pay for gas but I grab a few goodies on the way as well, I’m sure I’m not the only one.  But its a marketing technique.  

How does this reflect a lead exchange?  It’s related in an awkward way.  We already know that a large number of consumers are in some serious credit card debt, well with the gas stations new marketing techniques this will increase consumers debt.  Meaning, more consumers will be seeking help online to clear their unsecured debt.  In addition, it reflects how marketing is not only done online, but everywhere you go.  Driving a consumer in, will get them to spend.  With our lead exchange we don’t mislead our prospects.   The consumers are driven to our websites through extensive PPC campaigns and they are knowingly submitting a request to be contacted for a specific service.

I must admit, this was news to me when I first learned that some gas stations charge higher prices for gas when paying with a credit card. 

I will like to complete one of the previous posts (Lead Generation and Keyword Tracking), when I discussed Leadpile’s Search Engine Tracking as a tool for our Publishers – for those using our MicroClick Form (previously known as the “I-SaveNow Form”).

• Detailed report which provides the Publisher with the Search Engine and the “Keyword” used by the visitor to find their website.
• Displays only the visits that resulted in a transaction.
• This report is based on the “referrer” and for that reason, you don’t need to add anything in the tracking URL.
• A sample snapshot report is provided below:

One of the other features that our Publishers are enjoying, and we are excited to let you know that it has come to a mature state, is the Adwords API integration. The Publishers can create the tracking right from the account and upload it into their Adwords campaign. It will track the “client” (Adwords Account), the Campaign, the AdGroup, the Keywords and whether or not the traffic is coming from Content Network or not.

Fast, simple and terrific tracking available for every Publisher has made our Marketplace an attraction to the PPC Advertisers. With just few clicks you can control your Profit and set the appropriate bids that will lead you to your financial goals.

Please check the following link for a snapshot of the report:

How much are your keywords worth? Being involved in the PPC or SEO, you will be constantly challenged to find the right keywords to use. One way to track which keywords are giving you conversions  is to place a tracking pixel in your confirmation pages. Leadpile has made this process easier than ever before.  For those using the MicroClick Form, Leadpile provides a detailed report that will display the Search Engine and the “Keyword” used by the visitor to find the website. Only the visits that resulted in a transaction are displayed. This report is based on the “referrer” and for that reason, you don’t need to add anything in the tracking URL. Once you take the MicroClick Form and you add it to you page you are done. All the stats are being gathered and displayed for you in the account. A snapshot of one of our Publishers’ report is provided below.

It’s the only time when such tools are made available to the publishers. We believe that the affiliate marketing is changing, and the current publishers are looking for more than just ways of sending traffic to “offers”, they are looking for ways to become part of the lead-gen space.

Lead buyers – reallocating their advertising budgets from PPC into the lead-gen… because it works. 

You can have your money spent on PPC and try to compete with the big budget companies over the first 10 or 15 placements, or you can choose a lead-gen company that will send you the leads you desire for a lower price. If you will start working with a Lead-gen company, ask them if they produce their own leads. The value and power of a lead-gen company resides in its knowledge of generating their own leads and the ability to increase their CVR while improving the lead quality.

Spending less for a quality lead it’s just one of the advantages of choosing to work with a lead-gen company. Another tremendous advantage will be the option you have in filtering your leads. A Debt Settlement company, for example, can filter your leads by the consumer’s debt amount, or a mortgage company can filter the leads by LTV, loan amount and even credit score. If you choose to advertise on the paid search, the same lead could cost you 3 times or more, and unfortunately, you will also be paying for leads you can’t use. 

Why a lead-gen company can deliver you the same quality leads for a lower price than producing the leads yourself? It’s all about the supply. The webmasters are choosing working with a network or a lead exchange due to the fact that they have a higher acceptance rate for their leads. This brings to the Lead Exchange a larger supply of leads for the buyers (advertisers) and more money for the sellers (publishers). 

Leadpile, producing leads in over 30 verticals for the last 7 years, has improved constantly the process from a click to a complete application, resulting in an increased CVR and a lower price per acquisition for its buyers. We wouldn’t be here if our work wouldn’t have been valuable, considering that Leadpile had no outside funds and the Lead Exchange was built entirely on the profit from producing its own leads.

Since we opened up the Lead Exchange, our publishers can use the same technology that makes the lead-gen a better alternative to the traditional affiliate networks. Instead of crowding their pages with banners, they choose to place a form on their site that will give them an instant access to the entire network of buyers. 

The lead-gen space its just in its infancy, and it’s here to stay.