Lead Generation Statistics

Generating leads is crucial for the survival and prosperity of many businesses, and new trends in technology, artificial intelligence, automation are only amplifying this. Identifying and converting potential customers occurs through multiple marketing channels, and some of them might be underused. That’s why we prepared these essential lead generation statistics, which will hopefully give you some useful insight into this field and boost your lead count in the future. So, read on to learn more.

Lead Generation Statistics (Editor’s Choice)

• Around 61% of marketers are struggling with lead generation.
• About 79% of leads don’t convert into sales.
• Companies that nurture leads get 50% more sales-ready leads than companies that don’t.
• The lead generation industry is projected to reach $295.1 billion at a CAGR of 17% by 2027.
• Email marketing is one of the most prevalent B2B lead gen strategies used by 78% of marketers.
• Roughly 80% of the automation software users think it helps them generate more leads.
• For 75% of marketers, content marketing managed to generate leads in 2019.
• About 89% of B2B professionals use LinkedIn to generate leads.

General Lead Generation Stats

1. 61% of marketers are struggling with traffic lead generation.

A lot of marketers aren’t that comfortable with their lead generation process, and HubSpot’s recent report shows that most of them consider it their number one challenge. Other marketing issues worth mentioning include proving the ROI of their marketing activities (39%) and securing enough budget (27%).

(HubSpot)

2. Some 53% of marketers spend over 50% of their budget on lead generation.

According to lead generation stats, over half of all marketers are keen on spending a large deal of their budget to generate leads. In fact, the number of those who spend less than 50% of their budget on lead generation stands at 34%.

(Startup Bonsai)

3. Approximately 63% of people that request info on your company won’t purchase anything for the next three months.

A customer asking for the company today won’t be a buyer tomorrow. Stats on lead generation marketing show that contacting your potential and existing customers every three months will help nourish the connection you have with them and raise brand awareness. Note that 20% of potential customers might even take up to a year to make a purchase.

(Marketing Donut)

4. Outbound leads cost 39% more on average than inbound.

Both types of lead generation are equally significant. However, each has advantages over the other. For instance, inbound leads cost less. In fact, some types of inbound leads are more cost-effective, according to the lead generation stats.

(ZoomInfo)

5. About 79% of leads don’t convert into sales.

Sales lead generating is not as easy as it sounds — fewer than a quarter of leads actually result in a purchase. The main reason why so many leads fail is nurturing, or lack thereof. Nurturing the potential leads until they are ready to complete the purchase is an essential element of the sales process. Lead nurturing statistics show that nurtured leads lift sales opportunities by 20%.

(Next Leap Strategy)

6. Around 96% of website visitors aren’t ready to buy.

According to lead generation statistics, B2C, as well as B2B customers, are for the most part not ready to purchase when they visit a website. They, however, might be willing to leave some contact details, particularly their email, if offered interesting and valuable content.

(Marketo)

7. Companies that nurture leads get 50% more sales-ready leads than companies that don’t.

It’s not sufficient to only generate leads, as most of them never become purchases. Those companies that excel at nurturing not only generate 50% more sales-ready leads but also at a 33% lower cost.

(Marketo)

Lead Generation Industry Stats

8. In the US, digital lead generation advertising spending was estimated at $2.6 billion in 2019.

This figure is projected to reach $3.24 billion by the end of 2023. The total digital advertising spending, including leads, email, display search, mobile messaging, and so on, is set to reach $201 billion over the same period.

(Statista)

9. The lead generation industry is projected to reach $295.1 billion at a CAGR of 17% by 2027.

The global market for lead generation keeps growing, without signs of slowing down in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, lead generation statistics show. Content marketing meanwhile was estimated to reach $300.7 billion in 2020, while projections for 2027 hover around $829.6 billion.

(Business Wire)

10. The lead generation market comprises 310,015 companies worldwide.

This points to a fairly large lead generation market size. Then, 111 of these companies produce lead generation technologies, the most notable ones being Blitzen (24.79% market share), HubSpot Marketing Free (19.11%), Web.com Lead Stream (12.71%), MailMunch (10.33%), and Sumo (5.16%), according to lead generation industry stats.

(Datanyze)

11. Around 92% of marketing agencies are investing both time and money into marketing automation.

Email automation campaigns are seen as one of the top three sales lead generation tools marketers use to improve performance. Of those using marketing automation, 23% are trying to automate their content delivery.

(HubSpot)

Lead Generation Strategies

12. B2B companies with a blog generate 67% more leads as opposed to those that don’t.

Blogs help generate traffic, and that’s great for leads, lead generation facts confirm. There are over 600 million blogs on the internet, and people read them for specific information or interesting content, which adds something to the brand image. As many as 81% of companies claimed that their blogs were useful or crucial for B2B lead generation.

(Marketo)

13. Email marketing is the most prevailing B2B lead gen strategy used by 78% of marketers.

Using different lead generation methods with the right sales tools could make a marketer’s life easier. B2B marketers also commonly use event marketing (73%) and content marketing (67%).

(Medium)

14. Leads are more likely to convert if you follow up in five minutes after collecting them.

The faster you do the business follow-up, the more efficient the road toward converting a lead is. Lead generation facts confirm that a five-minute follow-up is nine times more likely to create paying customers. This is where smart CRM systems and artificial intelligence-based chatbots come in.

(Startup Bonsai)

15. Social media is the most popular marketing strategy, with 83% of B2B marketers using it.

For B2B marketing lead generation, the majority of professionals agree that social media is one of the most efficient strategies. Lead generation statistics show that this tactic helped 66% of marketers bring in new leads.

(Articulate Marketing)

16. Sending ads on Facebook Messenger could get real estate companies 242% higher open rates than email.

According to some tips for lead generation for real estate, Messenger offers ample opportunities to obtain quality leads. Although many marketers use Facebook and Instagram, these platforms aren’t as beneficial as Messenger as far as lead generation for real estate agents goes.

(The Close)

17. 40% of leads in insurance sales convert with a long-term relationship.

Lead generation for insurance agents is paying off, but agents have to be persistent. For instance, 25% of insurance agents make two attempts to contact a lead and stop. Even if the lead answers, only 2% of calls are successful on the first call and 3% on the third contact, lead generation stats suggest. While only 10% of agents call a third time, 80% of sales happen on the fifth call.

(Conventus)

18. For contractors, 65% of all high-intent searches result in someone clicking on a PPC ad.

Launching a pay-per-click campaign or hiring the leading PPC advertising companies to help with that seems to be one of the best strategies for lead generation for contractors. It attracts high-intent searchers, which works well for the contractors. Research shows that those who click on these ads are 50% more likely to purchase than organic visitors.

(WebFX)

Lead Generation Channels

19. Content marketing generates three times as many prospective leads as outbound marketing.

Some types of lead generation drive more leads at a smaller price. Content marketing costs 62% less than outbound marketing, lead generation stats show. Meanwhile, 16% of marketers agree that outbound lead generation practices provide the highest quality leads.

(Medium)

20. 80% of automation software users think it helps them generate more leads.

Automated lead generation has been on the rise — 51% of companies are using some kind of marketing automation software. Then, as many as 77% of marketing automation users said their conversion numbers increased.

(Startup Bonsai, Emailmonday)

21. For 16% of marketers, webinars and online events are the best strategies for lead generation.

It seems that marketers are turning toward different tactics when it comes to lead generation. The number one strategy is using live events (19%), followed by webinars, lead generation statistics confirm. In addition to these two, ebooks and guides are valuable for 13% of marketers.

(FinancesOnline)

22. For 75% of marketers, content marketing managed to generate leads in 2019.

Content marketing has become a top lead generation source for a number of marketers. 60% of marketers claim that thanks to their content marketing strategies, they nurtured leads during 2019. The effectiveness of this lead generation technique explains the increased demand for content marketing professionals among businesses of all sizes.

(FinancesOnline)

23. Companies with automated lead management see at least a 10% increase in revenue in six to nine months.

Lead nurturing is important for every lead gen funnel. Yet, it’s often too time-consuming to be handled manually. Therefore, some of the nurturing and lead generation best practices include lead management software that automates the process.

(HubSpot)

24. Outsourcing lead generation is 43% more effective than the in-house version.

Modifying and handling lead generation campaigns is a tiresome job, taking up a lot of time and energy and consuming resources you might need elsewhere. When it comes to the outsourced version of lead generation, it’s much easier, lead generation statistics confirm. Companies that deal with lead generation have handled multiple campaigns and have experience in the process.

(airisX)

25. Twitter accounts for 82% of social media leads.

Facebook is the biggest traffic driver (54%), compared to Twitter (32%) and LinkedIn (14%). Meanwhile, Twitter stats show that the company worth $52.05 billion accounts for an overwhelming 82% of social media leads, while LinkedIn’s and Facebook’s share of leads sits at a mere 9%.

(Print in the Mix)

26. Every dollar spent on email marketing returns $42.

Email lead generation stats show that the good old email still acts as one of the largest drivers of high ROI compared to other marketing tools. A well-devised email marketing strategy, therefore, could pay off a big time. It’s not a wonder it’s so popular then, with some companies betting on email marketing software to streamline what is often a time-consuming process.

(Oberlo)

B2B Lead Generation Statistics

27. Around 68% of B2B firms use strategic landing pages for new sales leads.

Well thought-through landing pages are a cornerstone of generating leads. They create the first impression and lure the customer in and to the next stop of the lead generation funnel. Great content is what attracts most customers, converting them into leads.

(Marketo)

28. About 89% of B2B professionals use LinkedIn to generate leads.

The latest LinkedIn statistics reveal the platform is hosting over 772 million professionals, among which 2.8 million decision-makers, making it an excellent avenue for B2B leads. According to the LinkedIn lead generation stats, 62% of professionals claimed that the platform helped them generate two times more leads than the next social media channel.

(LinkedIn)

29. 56% of B2B companies check valid leads before passing them to sales.

This number, however, is not nearly sufficient. Ensuring cohesion between marketing and sales departments should be a common objective, and it could greatly improve the sales and conversion process. B2B lead generation is essential to profits, but so is checking the leads before sending them over to the sales department.

(Lead Forensics)

30. Increasing the quality of leads is the number one mission for 68% of B2B marketers.

Marketers need to make sure that the sales funnel is starting with top-quality leads ready to convert. Lead generation statistics show that for 55% of marketers, quality is not the only goal but also increased lead volume. Further, for 75% of companies, the main priority is closing more deals, and for 48%, it’s improving the efficiency of the sales funnel.

(Lead Forensics)

31. B2B lead generation costs between $32 and $60 on average.

Typically, the cost of business lead generation varies depending on the industry. So in technology, brands pay the least to generate a lead, $31. Next on the list is marketing, where lead generation costs approximately $32 per lead. In human resources, it’s around $38, and finally, the most expensive leads are in healthcare — $60.

(Marketing Insider Group)

32. Roughly 59% of B2B marketers believe that SEO has a huge impact on lead generation goals.

SEO is crucial for B2B marketing. B2B lead generation facts show that apart from SEO, social media (21%) and pay-per-click (20%) are two other sources important for driving leads. Similarly, most B2C marketers (49%) also choose SEO as the number one lead generation factor.

(Marketing Charts)

Wrap-Up

Lead gen marketing keeps gaining momentum, with a growing number of businesses betting on this tactic to fuel profits. These lead generation statistics show that the only way for the industry is up, as new technologies emerge to automate and refine the process of both generating and then converting leads into paying customers.