Master Lead Gen with These Must-Know Metrics!

Kasra Dash: So, James, what metrics do you actually measure when it comes to lead-generation success? Let’s say you’ve been working with multiple lead-gen companies and you're trying to get to the bottom of which one is performing the best. James Dooley: In my opinion, the only metric you really should be looking at is return on investment. What profit are you making? It should be as simple as profit and loss. Too many people obsess over cost per lead instead of cost per conversion — and not just cost per conversion, but profit per conversion. For example, if I get a conservatory enquiry and convert it into a £4,000 job, and I make £1,000 profit, that’s decent. But if another job converts into a £15,000 conservatory and makes £6,000 profit, obviously that conversion is worth far more. So it's not just the cost per acquisition in isolation. Someone might say, “I’m getting conversions at £400.” Okay — but if you're only making £400, you're breaking even. If you’re paying £400 and making £2,000 profit, then that’s good business. The main thing is: know your KPIs. Know your standard conversion rate — which is usually around 10% from lead to sale. If you're paying £50 per lead and the conversion rate is 10%, your cost per acquisition becomes £500. As long as you're making more than £500 profit per job, it might be worth it. If you only make £600–£700 per job, maybe it isn’t. You’ve got to know your numbers. ROI is the core metric. Kasra Dash: We speak to a lot of business owners who don’t understand vanity metrics. They look at cost per click or cost per view — but you can get a million views tomorrow if you spend enough. It doesn’t mean you’ll generate enquiries. So, yes — ROI and cost per acquisition are the key metrics. Is it costing £50? £300? £1,000? The number itself doesn’t matter — the profit does. If you're selling conservatories and a single job is worth £13,000, spending £1,000 to acquire it could still be extremely profitable. James Dooley: Yeah, and to expand on that: you also need to look at average transactional value and lifetime value. Because as you said, it's not just about the first sale. If you know your lifetime value — say, £200 per email subscriber — you might willingly pay £20 to acquire a subscriber. That’s still a good ROI. There are many metrics: lifetime value average transactional value cost per acquisition cost per lead cost per click impressions-to-click ratio click-to-subscriber ratio subscriber-to-customer ratio If you know all of these, you can judge whether cost per lead or cost per click is even relevant for you. This is why understanding your numbers is essential. We speak to so many business owners who don’t know their KPIs, then want to blindly buy leads. You need to know your numbers — it’s the foundation of any successful business. Kasra Dash: A great example is mechanics in the UK. An MOT is £30–£40 and they might only make £1 profit on it. But they're betting on the upsell — tyres, brakes, an oil change. The MOT is a loss-leader because the lifetime value is £600+. So losing £1 to make £500 later is a win. James Dooley: Exactly. Metrics matter. If you're evaluating lead-generation companies and want something risk-free, visit FatRank.com. We run a no-win-no-fee lead-generation service — meaning you don’t pay for leads at all. You only pay after you’ve won the job, completed the work, and been paid by the client. There’s no worrying about impressions, clicks, CPL, CPA — we take all the risk. All you need to do is: respond to enquiries quickly convert jobs effectively have strong testimonials and case studies We handle everything else. So head over to FatRank.com, fill in the form, and see if you qualify.