Attracting too many inbound leads through your website or other digital channels seems like the perfect problem for a company. Unfortunately, these leads can quickly dissipate if there is no one to follow up with them leads quickly and effectively.

B2B companies are especially vulnerable to this problem, however, B2C companies are certainly not immune. The problem usually stems from spending too much on acquisition marketing and not enough on follow up. This is especially true in cases where an unexpectedly large number of leads come in all at once.

So how can a company deal with this issue? The answer is to outsource lead management duties. It is important to remember that no one is willing to wait these days. Instant gratification is the name of the game. Therefore, the longer it takes you to respond to leads, the more likely it is that those leads will have moved on. Studies show that responding to an inbound lead within five minutes makes a company seven times more likely to qualify that lead. There is absolutely no question that the faster the response time the better.

Many companies will tell you that responding quickly to leads is its forte. However, what happens when they are unable to reach that lead? Often, after a few failed attempts, the person trying to contact the lead will give up. Giving up too fast means missed leads. Further, even if a company is doing a good job of responding to leads quickly, without a strategic, clearly defined process that extends across the company, leads can slip through the cracks.

A clearly defined process should map out everything from lead response time to number of follow-ups required. Leads also need to be ranked and qualified before being handed over to the sales team. This needs to be a formal, documented process, as well, or it will do little good.

Finally, companies are usually best at what they are selling, whether that be boats or software. A lack of experience in following up with leads doesn’t mean they are not qualified to do their job, only that they have a different area of expertise. By outsourcing these tasks you can be sure that leads are completely qualified before they are put into the sales pipeline.

You spend a great deal of money acquiring leads. Losing them after they have shown an interest is like throwing that money down the drain.