What is Speed to Lead and How Can I Improve it?

Speed to lead, or lead response time, is the time it takes a sales agent to respond to a lead or prospect after they have expressed interest in a product or service. Having a fast speed to lead increases the chances of converting a lead into a customer. The faster you respond to a lead, the more sales-ready they will be. The longer you take to respond, the colder the lead becomes.

How quickly leads go cold varies depending on the specifics of the sale. In general, sales leads can go cold very quickly. Leads can lose interest or find alternatives within minutes or hours if they are not promptly contacted.

It's important to engage with sales leads as quickly as possible to increase the chances of converting them into customers. The longer it takes to respond, the more likely a lead will contact a competitor, decreasing your chance to close.

The average B2C lead response time can vary widely depending on the industry and company. However, research has shown that responding to leads quickly is crucial for converting them into customers. In fact, according to a study by the Harvard Business Review, companies that respond to leads within an hour are 7 times more likely to qualify the lead than those that respond after an hour, and companies that respond within 5 minutes are 100 times more likely to qualify the lead than those that respond after 30 minutes.

Therefore, the best practice for B2C lead response time is to respond as quickly as possible, ideally within minutes. This can be achieved through automation, such as lead management software, and by having a dedicated team for lead follow-up.

An example of fast speed to lead might look like this: A lead fills out a form on a landing page. Then, real-time data is sent to lead management software, a salesperson is notified and immediately sends an email and calls or texts the lead.

These stages of lead management, when integrated into your sales process, ensure maximum speed to lead:

Lead Qualification

Pre-qualifying leads with lead management software reduces response time and allows sales agents to rapidly reply to the best leads.

Lead management software can automatically qualify leads based on criteria such as demographics, behavior, and other data. This saves time and ensures that the sales team gives priority to the most promising leads.

Without a clear lead qualification strategy, you'll never get your response time as low as possible. Your sales and marketing teams should get together to determine the best criteria for marketing (MQL) and sales (SQL) qualifications. Your qualification process will become more refined as you accumulate conversion data.

Lead Assignment

Automated lead assignment, or lead routing, is the process of assigning new leads to specific salespeople or sales teams. Proper lead assignment ensures that leads are responded to quickly and efficiently and that the most appropriate salesperson handles each lead.

Lead assignment can originate from internal lead management software or from an external lead distribution system. If your company runs its own internal lead generation programs, lead management software assigns, qualifies, and manages the engagement of leads. If you purchase leads from a lead provider, your leads will be assigned and delivered by lead distribution software. External lead delivery can be direct, as in the case of call routing, or through internal lead management.

Lead assignment criteria can vary depending on the organization and the specific sales process.

• Leads can be assigned based on the geographic location of the prospect. For example, a salesperson may be responsible for a specific region or territory.
• Leads can be assigned based on origination. For example, leads generated through trade shows or events may be assigned to a salesperson who was present at the event.
• Leads can be assigned based on high lead scores to more experienced salespeople.
• Leads can be assigned based on their stage in the sales cycle. For example, leads showing a high level of interest may be assigned to a closer.
• Leads can be assigned based on the specific product or service they are interested in. Leads interested in a specific product may be assigned to the salesperson specializing in that product.
• Leads can be assigned based on the volume of leads generated. For example, a salesperson may be assigned to manage a set number of leads per week or month.

These are common criteria for lead assignment, but other criteria may be more effective for specific organizations. Proper lead assignment ensures that each lead is handled by the best salesperson to convert it into a sale.

Sales Engagement

Establish a clear process for responding to new leads, including who responds, what information is gathered, and follow-up. Rapid lead response is only effective if your sales team has a strong process and can engage effectively with leads.

Train your sales and marketing teams on speed to lead and provide them with the tools and resources to respond quickly.

Regularly monitoring your speed to lead helps you to find ways to improve. Lead management software allows you to track response time and see where there are bottlenecks in your process. It will also tell you if your sales engagement process is working when leads are reached.

By improving your speed to lead, you increase your lead conversion and improve the efficiency of your sales and marketing processes.

Effective Follow-Up

In addition to rapid lead response, lead follow-up must be sales optimized to turn contacts into conversions.

The easier it is for leads to engage with you, the more effective your nurture and sales process will be. Using a combination of touchpoints, such as email, text, and calling will make it easier for prospects to engage with you. It will also increase your chances of reaching them.

Some prospects may be more likely to respond to a text message or phone call than an email. Using multiple channels can increase your overall response rates because each lead will have a different preference.

Using multiple channels to communicate with prospects can help you build stronger relationships. Being flexible with your contact method shows that you are willing to make the sales process as easy as possible for them.

Different channels are also better suited for different types of information. For example, email may be better for providing detailed information or attachments. A phone call may be better for establishing a personal connection or addressing questions or concerns.

Using multiple channels to allows you to communicate with prospects in whatever manner is most convenient for them. This increases your chances of getting a response and ultimately closing a sale.

Whatever contact method is used, best practices should be followed. Here are a few tips on sales engagement best practices:

• Personalize your messages and reference the specific needs or interests of the prospect. Follow up with the lead consistently but avoid being too pushy or aggressive.
• Share helpful information or resources and establish your credibility and expertise.
• Clearly communicate what the lead should expect regarding communication, next steps, and timelines.
• Use automated tools and workflows to streamline the follow-up process and ensure no leads fall through the cracks.
• Continuously measure and evaluate the success of your lead follow-up process and improve as needed.

How does lead management software help with speed to lead?

Lead management software, such as ClickPoint LeadManager, helps businesses manage and track their leads throughout the sales process. By automating many of the manual tasks involved in lead management, lead management software improves speed to lead in several ways:

1. Lead management software can automatically qualify leads based on criteria such as demographics, behavior, and other data. This saves time and ensures that sales reps only focus on the most promising leads.
2. A centralized database of all leads, including contact information and activity history, increases fast and efficient lead response.
3. Automated lead distribution distributes leads to the appropriate salesperson, ensuring that the lead is responded to as soon as possible.
4. Real-time tracking and reporting allow businesses to monitor their speed to lead and identify areas for improvement.
5. Integration with marketing automation software, customer relationship management software and others creates a seamless and efficient lead management process.

By automating manual lead management tasks and providing real-time tracking and reporting, lead management software significantly improves speed to lead.

To optimize speed to lead, businesses can use a lead management platform with automated lead qualification and distribution features. Response time is improved by quickly identifying and distributing qualified leads to the appropriate team members. Prospects are critically engaged at the beginning of their customer journey. Calling, texting, and email marketing tools can create personalized and targeted communications that enhance the customer experience and increase conversion rates.