According to the “2010 Lead Generation Optimization Key Trends Analysis” from CSO Insights, more than 91% of companies worldwide reported increasing new customer acquisition was one of their top strategic marketing objectives for 2010.

Email Marketing was the best lead generation program followed by live events, website design and content. The effectiveness of using multiple online channels combined with the fact that the majority of people are now using the internet as the first place to look for more information. This is why companies are investing money into online and offline channels to gain leads depending on your industry. In some industries there are laws regulating the use of e-mails or direct mail.

The best approach is to test multiple channels and find which ones work the best for you without spending a lot of money. There is a lot of misinformation and beliefs that you have to spend a minimum of $10,000 to have success for an online advertising campaign or website design. That is not true as more local businesses have shifted to advertising to online using internet advertising, social media or blogs to target local people or people that have a similar interest instead of spending $150 in the Penny Saver or local newspaper or radio station.

Although direct mail is last on the list. There is a growing concept that is allowing direct mail to have social network features as a way to increase the overall reach and gain new leads from consumers. Did you also notice TV, Radio and Newspapers were not even listed.

However, the internet was the area companies were most likely to say needed improvement in its ability to execute lead campaigns. For many marketers, there has already been significant improvement: 51% said the web did not meet expectations in 2010, compared with 68% who said the same in 2009.

Although there is improvement in this number,"the ability to measure their own success affected whether they thought the web was an effective channel. Among those companies that had not adopted a lead generation management system, 65% were dissatisfied with the performance of web-based lead generation efforts. But among marketers that did have a system in place to track leads, only 37% agreed—putting the web on par in effectiveness with traditional media advertising and ahead of direct mail or telemarketing" According to CSO Studies.

I would say to try different advertising mediums and see what works best and what you feel most comfortable doing with your lead generation advertising budget.Tools and reporting to develop, execute, and track campaign effectiveness is a must and you want to ensure that whatever advertising medium, program, company or agency you decide to use can provide you with this information to a satisfactory level.