What is Speed to Lead?
Speed to Lead is the time between when a prospect expresses interest and when they receive a first response from your business.
This concept has become the most important factor in converting prospects into customers. According to a Harvard Business Review study, companies that respond within the first 5 minutes are 100x more likely to qualify their lead.
The problem? Industry average is 42 hours. Yes, almost 2 days to respond to someone who raised their hand to talk to you.
The painful statistics
78% of leads buy from the first responder Source: Lead Response Management Study
It's not the best who wins. It's not the cheapest. It's the fastest. When a prospect fills out a form, they're in buying mode. Every minute that passes, this interest decreases.
391% more conversions with response < 5 minutes Source: InsideSales.com (XANT)
A study of 100,000+ qualification calls shows that companies that respond quickly convert almost 4x more than those who wait.
After 30 minutes, chances drop by 80% After an hour, your prospect has probably already contacted your competitors and maybe even booked an appointment with them.
Why businesses fail
The reasons are often the same:
1. No real-time notification - Leads arrive in an unmonitored inbox 2. Busy team - Your salespeople are in meetings or on calls 3. Off-hours - 40% of leads come in evenings and weekends 4. Manual processes - Someone has to see the lead, decide what to do, write a message 5. Unclear prioritization - All leads are treated the same way
The result? Thousands of dollars in advertising wasted because leads go cold before being contacted.
The solution: intelligent automation
The only way to guarantee a response in under 60 seconds, 24/7, is automation. But not just any automation.
What DOESN'T work: - Generic auto-responders ("Thanks, we'll get back to you") - Rigid script chatbots that frustrate users - Forms that ask for too much information
What works: - An AI agent capable of having a real conversation - Automatic qualification with relevant questions - Appointment booking directly in the calendar - Instant alerts for hot leads - Automated follow-up for leads who aren't ready
This is exactly what Capturia does. In under 60 seconds, your prospect is engaged in a conversation, qualified, and if relevant, an appointment is booked.