What is Lead?
TL;DR
A lead is a potential customer who has shown interest in your product or service, typically by sharing their contact information.
Example
How leads are captured:
- Someone fills out your "Contact us" form
- A person downloads your free guide in exchange for their email
- A visitor signs up for your newsletter
- Someone requests a demo or quote
Lead quality varies:
| Lead Type | Description | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| Cold lead | Just gave email, no engagement | Low |
| Warm lead | Visited pricing page, opened emails | Medium |
| Hot lead | Requested demo, asked questions | High |
| SQL (Sales Qualified) | Sales team verified they're ready | Very high |
Example lead capture: Leep offers a free "Website ROI Calculator". You enter your email to access it. Now you're a lead in Leep's system.
Explanation
The Lead Lifecycle
- Visitor: Anonymous person on your website
- Lead: Gave you contact info
- MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead): Shows buying signals
- SQL (Sales Qualified Lead): Sales confirms they're a real opportunity
- Opportunity: In active sales discussions
- Customer: Closed the deal
Not every lead becomes a customer. That's normal. The goal is to capture many leads and nurture the best ones.
Lead Scoring
Many companies assign points to lead activities:
- Visited pricing page: +10 points
- Downloaded whitepaper: +5 points
- Opened 5 emails: +15 points
- Company has 100+ employees: +20 points
- Requested demo: +50 points
Leads with high scores get priority from sales.
Why It Matters
For Business Owners
Leads are your pipeline. Without a consistent flow of leads, sales will dry up. Tracking lead volume and quality is essential.
Lead generation costs money. Content marketing, ads, events all cost resources. You need to know which channels bring the best leads for the lowest cost.
Not all leads are equal. A lead from a referral might convert 5x better than one from a cold ad. Quality matters as much as quantity.
Lead response time matters. Studies show contacting a lead within 5 minutes increases conversion by 9x compared to waiting 30 minutes.
Common Lead Metrics
- Lead volume: How many leads per month
- Conversion rate: What % become customers
- Cost per lead (CPL): Marketing spend ÷ leads
- Lead velocity: Is lead volume growing month-over-month
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