What Type of Lead is Worth Your Time?
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Happy Wednesday,
Is your team having calls with each and every one of their clients despite major spend discrepancies? Are you shooting the same pickup line to everyone on a dating app and wondering why no one’s replying? Do less. No literally, less is more for both situations. Let’s dive into how can you focus your efforts on leads where you’re most likely to get the best results.
Dissecting the anatomy of a good lead:
They're engaged in the partnership and responsive. They don't reach out for support and disappear. They answer your questions, are open to discussing their objectives, participate in demos, and show genuine interest in moving forward.
They have a burning need. A good lead has a specific problem your product or service solves. They're actively seeking a solution, and even more ideally, your offering is on their radar.
They fit your ideal customer profile. Remember your buyer persona? A good lead ticks the boxes – budget, authority, industry, etc. They're a perfect match for what you offer.
The red flags of a bad lead:
They have vague or irrelevant needs. "I just need something better" isn't a good sign. They lack a clear problem or don't align with your value proposition.
They’re the wrong stakeholder(s). “Yeah, that’s not really in scope/I’m not sure about the objective on that project/I honestly have no idea why I’m even here.” Are you sure you’re talking to the right person?
A major contingency prevents progress. “Once we get this new VP hired, we’re good to go / We can’t move forward until we get this tech stack integrated / This can only move forward with Jose’s approval but he’s on sabbatical.”
Unrealistic expectations. They expect miracles at bargain-basement prices or at expedited speeds. This often leads to frustration and wasted time for both sides.
Prioritizing customers / qualifying leads isn't about saying "no." It's about saying "yes" to the right opportunities. By understanding the difference between a good lead and a bad one, you'll save time, energy, and your sanity. And most importantly, you'll have significantly higher quality conversations and drive stronger outcomes.
Implement a lead scoring system. Assign points based on criteria like budget fit, industry relevance, and engagement level, etc. And even if what I’m saying is obvious to you, if you’re being honest with yourself, did you actually focus on the 20% of tasks that will actually move the needle forward last week?
2:53
The average employee is only productive for 2 hours and 53 minutes per day (source). Congrats, you’re probably above that number because you’re a type-A individual reading a sales leadership newsletter. That means that getting an extra hour of genuinely productive work means you can get +30% more done.