It has been a long time coming, but 2007 is seeing the explosion (in a bad way) of third-party hosted lead generation. I predict, however, that later this year and in 2008 we will see an explosion (in a good way) of this type of lead generation. Hopefully, marketers won't be so snake-bit by a previous bad experience that they avoid jumping back into the market when the best opportunities in hosted lead generation begin to avail themselves shortly down the road.

Affiliate marketers have long discussed the possibilities that could be opened up by being able to access offline ad budgets. Using a lead generation exchange, affiliate marketers can use any number of techniques to capture leads from any medium -- print, radio, TV or online -- and sell those leads to the highest bidder.

Just when I thought I had seen every convoluted lead generation scheme on the planet, along came ConsumerTestGroup.com, telling me I could get test the iPhone for free. I envisioned Steve Jobs waiting anxiously for my personal feedback on his new creation, since he probably hadn't done any product testing of his own before unleashing the iPhone on an unsuspecting populace. Glad to help out, Steve.

According to a previous Performance Insider column, "We already know that online lead generation is one of the fastest growing advertising vehicles today." Well, now add a television and radio lead generation component to that, and we see that pay-for-performance lead generation, as a whole, is the fastest growing advertising vehicle today.

Developing an effective online lead generation offer can be a daunting task. Specifically, you must not only grab the consumer's attention with enticing graphics and text, you must also convey enough value in your offer -- and enough trust in your company -- to convince him or her to take the larger step of sharing information and consenting to be contacted. To help marketers overcome these barriers, I've compiled the following best practices...

Marketing sophisticated services and products would be great if it weren't for the prospects. These people are difficult. They don't read. They have short attention spans. They ignore ads. They only want to be entertained. For marketers, this presents a catch-22: People don't always respect those who entertain -- so while you may be noticed, you may not be trusted. And when what you're selling is your expertise, or a product requiring a significant investment, that's a problem.

When advertisers choose to engage in CPA (cost per action or acquisition) advertising online, there are several key areas that require specific focus to protect their brand and to acquire the highest quality of new leads through these channels. Although advertisers are often tempted to jump in head-first, they should not do so without careful planning and due diligence to understand the space and players in it.

Marketers, if you want to reach out and grab the elusive, ad-weary Generation Y, you'll have to fire up techno-rich lead generation campaigns and toss your old marketing tricks aside.

As you've probably seen, recent industry reports have pointed both government and media attention to online lead generation providers who violate consumer privacy and trust by not following industry best practices. Many unethical and irresponsible practices are being discussed and scrutinized, including the selling of consumer data to third parties, misleading promotions, disrespectful use of email and forced registration.

According to a recent OnlineMediaDaily story, some people on Capitol Hill are burning the midnight oil probing the incentivized lead-generation business, with an eye toward legislating things they aren't particularly fond of. One site mentioned in the story is http://www.pinkphone4free.com, which sounded pretty harmless. What could congressmen and senators have against free pink phones?