Lead Generation — Knowledge Base

v1 — verify/expand. B2B + ecommerce lead gen for 2026. Pairs with email-marketing.md (nurture flows), ads.md (paid acquisition), ../email_cta_playbook.md (form/CTA conversion), and google-analytics.md (tracking).

The 2026 reality

Quality > volume. A flood of low-intent MQLs that never convert wastes sales time and corrupts your scoring. Optimize for pipeline/revenue, not raw lead count.
Self-serve + buyer-led. B2B buyers do most research anonymously before talking to sales. Make it easy to learn, demo, and raise a hand without a forced call.
"Handraisers" beat "MQLs." Prioritize people who request a demo/quote/trial over those who merely downloaded a PDF. Shift gates toward high-intent actions.
First-party data is the moat — capture and enrich your own list; don't rely on third-party data or buying lists (kills deliverability — see email-marketing.md).

Lead magnets (offer something worth the email)

Match the magnet to funnel stage and intent:

B2B top-of-funnel: guides, benchmark reports, templates, calculators, webinars, free tools. Low friction, broad.
B2B mid/bottom: ROI calculator, assessment/audit, case study bundle, free trial, demo, consultation. Higher intent → can ask for more info.
Ecommerce: % off / free shipping for email+SMS signup, quiz (product-match), early access, giveaway, loyalty enrollment. The signup incentive is the magnet.

Rule: the higher the ask (sales call, long form) the higher-value the magnet must be, and the warmer the audience.

Forms

Fewer fields = more conversions for top-of-funnel. Ask only what you need now; enrich the rest (Clearbit/ZoomInfo-style enrichment, progressive profiling).
Progressive profiling: capture more over repeat visits instead of one long form.
Multi-step forms often outperform one long form (lower perceived effort, momentum).
Mobile-first, minimal typing, autofill-friendly, clear single CTA (see CTA playbook).
Match form length to intent: demo/quote forms can be longer (qualifies + sets expectation); newsletter signup should be 1 field.
Inline validation + instant confirmation; never make them guess if it worked.

MQL vs handraise vs SQL

Lead / subscriber: gave an email, low intent.
MQL (marketing-qualified): hit a scoring threshold (fit + behavior).
Handraiser: explicit high-intent action (demo/quote/trial/contact request) — route to sales fast (speed-to-lead matters: response within minutes beats hours).
SQL: sales-accepted, qualified opportunity.

Define these with sales, in writing, with the exact criteria and the SLA for follow-up. Misalignment here is the #1 lead-gen failure.

Lead scoring

Two dimensions: fit (firmographics/demographics: company size, role, industry, ICP match) + behavior/intent (pages viewed, content downloaded, email/site engagement, demo-page visits, pricing-page visits).
Weight high-intent behaviors heavily (pricing/demo views, repeat visits) and negative-score disqualifiers (student emails, competitors, wrong geo, unsubscribed).
Keep it simple to start; tune against actual conversion data. Over-engineered models that nobody trusts get ignored.
Where the CRM/ESP supports predictive scoring (HubSpot, etc.), validate it against closed-won before trusting it.
Decay: scores should age — engagement 90 days ago isn't intent today.

Nurture

Trigger on behavior + stage, not a fixed calendar drip for everyone (see email-marketing.md flows).
B2B nurture: educate → build trust → soft offer → demo/consult ask. Segment by topic affinity and funnel stage; align content to the problem they signaled.
Ecommerce: welcome → incentive → social proof → urgency; then post-purchase + replenishment.
Speed-to-lead: for handraisers, automate instant acknowledgment + fast human follow-up. Every hour of delay drops conversion sharply.
Re-engage / recycle: MQLs that don't convert go back to nurture, not the trash.

Common mistakes

Chasing lead volume; ignoring lead quality/pipeline.
No written MQL/SQL definition or follow-up SLA → marketing-sales finger-pointing.
Long forms on top-of-funnel offers → killed conversion.
Gating everything → low reach, low trust. Gate the high-value stuff; let the rest build trust ungated.
Buying lists / scraping → deliverability damage, GDPR/CAN-SPAM risk.
No speed-to-lead process for handraisers.
Scoring model nobody validated or trusts.
Tracking form fills but not downstream conversion → optimizing the wrong thing.

Quick checklist (per lead-gen play)

Magnet matched to funnel stage + audience intent
Form length matched to intent; mobile-first; minimal fields
Conversion + form tracking wired (GA4 events, see google-analytics.md), UTM'd
MQL/handraise/SQL defined with sales + follow-up SLA
Handraiser → instant ack + fast routing (speed-to-lead)
Scoring weights intent; negative-scores disqualifiers; decays
Nurture flow live, behavior-triggered, segmented
First-party capture + enrichment, no bought lists