I just got off the phone with a business bogged with sluggish sales. The exec, suffering with low new business numbers, decided to cut marketing. His marketing budget, already in the basement, is now gone. I am not sure if this is wise. Good marketing leads to good leads and new business and this is the his goal. When queried about google adwords, and lead systems the exec was blank. This type of person will fall by the wayside to internet marketing savvy upstarts. They are cutting there teeth on pay per click and how pay per click can built strategy.

Leads are expensive and good ones are hard to find. Companies with strong lead generation systems and smooth lead routing and lead tracking work flow will win more business than companies that do not have this. This just makes sense. Lead routing or lead distribution to salespeople when done fast will increase the close rate. This is true. Automating the lead feedback by creating a feedback loop to the lead system, will increase the sales lead closing percentage too.

The lead conversion to customer can be measured carefully by tracking leads per lead source and by close rate. Close rate can be mapped per partner and per sales person. The highest close rates, data tells you this, can be replicated, the higher closing sales methods can be learned and distributed, with sales lead data. With out data, sales execs are just wandering along aimlessly a member of the old school club, the club whose by-laws have not changed in decades.