The Ultimate Lead Gen Audit: Where You’re Losing Leads and How to Plug the Leaks

• Audit Your Lead Sources: If your list is weak, your outreach will fail. Validate the sources you’re gathering leads from and eliminate irrelevant or unverified channels.
• Perfect Your Follow-Up System: The majority of sales go to those who follow up promptly. If your follow-up is delayed, you’re losing out on sales. Set automated reminders or sequences to follow up consistently.
• Optimize Lead Scoring: Not all leads are created equal. Start scoring leads based on engagement, not just information, and prioritize high-value targets.
• Clean Your Data Regularly: Lead databases degrade over time. Clean your database monthly to remove duplicates and invalid entries, and enrich missing data.
• Automate, Automate, Automate: Manual processes slow you down. Integrate automation tools to handle repetitive tasks like outreach, follow-ups, and data enrichment.

Lead generation isn’t just about bringing in as many leads as possible. It’s about bringing in quality leads and ensuring none slip through the cracks. If you’re not regularly auditing your process, chances are high that you’re losing valuable leads. But don’t worry — we’ve got you covered. In this article, we’ll walk you through the lead generation audit process and show you exactly where you could be losing leads and how to fix it.

The first place to start your audit is with your lead sources. If you’re pulling leads from the wrong channels, you’re wasting your time. It’s crucial to assess whether the channels you use are providing valuable, qualified leads. For example:

• Social media: Are you targeting the right industry, job titles, and decision-makers?
• Referrals: Are your existing customers sending in leads that are qualified and interested in your service?
• Lead lists: Are you buying lists from reputable sources, and do they offer up-to-date contact details?

Take a deep dive into the performance of your lead sources. Eliminate channels that aren't producing the right leads or high-quality opportunities.

It’s said that 80% of sales require 5 follow-ups, but most sales teams give up after just one or two. Are you following up enough and at the right intervals?

When auditing your lead gen process, assess your follow-up sequences:

• Are follow-ups automated? Manual follow-ups often get delayed and forgotten.
• Are you setting reminders for important follow-ups that may have fallen through the cracks?
• Is there a clear and consistent follow-up schedule after a prospect shows interest?

To fix this, set up automated follow-up sequences or reminders to ensure no lead is left without attention.

Not all leads are created equal. Without proper lead scoring, you might be wasting time on leads that are unlikely to convert. Effective lead scoring prioritizes leads based on their level of engagement with your content or outreach.

Review the following:

• Are you scoring leads based on their actions (e.g., opening emails, clicking links, or downloading content)?
• Are you scoring based on their potential value (e.g., company size, budget)?

By scoring your leads, you can ensure your team focuses its energy on the leads that are most likely to convert.

Your lead database is only as good as the data it holds. Over time, contact information can become outdated, and your leads may change jobs or companies. Performing regular data cleaning is crucial.

Here’s what you should do:

• Check for duplicate entries in your database.
• Remove leads with invalid or missing contact details (e.g., incorrect emails, phone numbers, etc.).
• Enrich missing data by adding key information, like company size or industry.

Cleaning your data regularly ensures your sales team isn’t wasting time chasing leads that no longer exist.

Automation isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s a must in today’s fast-paced world. If you’re still doing things like lead capturing, outreach, and follow-ups manually, you’re leaving a lot on the table. Automating these tasks ensures no lead is overlooked and can drastically increase your efficiency.

Audit your current processes and ask yourself:

• Are you using automation tools for email sequences and follow-up reminders?
• Is data enrichment automated, or do you manually search for additional lead information?
• Are your lead capture forms integrated with your CRM, so no lead is lost?

Implementing automation for repetitive tasks frees up your team to focus on building relationships and closing deals.

Finally, your audit isn’t complete without looking at your conversion rates. Are you measuring the right metrics to understand where your leads are getting stuck in your funnel?

• Open rate: Are your emails being opened? If not, your subject lines might need work.
• Click-through rate (CTR): Are your leads taking action after reading your emails? If not, your call-to-action needs refining.
• Response rate: Are your follow-ups getting replies? If not, you need to adjust your approach.

By tracking these metrics, you’ll be able to identify exactly where your funnel is breaking down and make the necessary adjustments.

A lead generation audit is an ongoing process. Regularly check and re-check your tactics, tools, and team’s performance. If you’re proactive about spotting leaks and plugging them, you’ll ensure that no leads fall through the cracks. By tightening up your sources, follow-ups, lead scoring, data hygiene, and automation, you’ll have a lead gen system that’s both efficient and effective.

Ready to plug the leaks in your lead generation? Start with a simple audit today, and watch your pipeline grow.

Written by: Reid Mosieur