Lead Follow-Up Audit Worksheet
cecil@ceciljonesmarketing.com • ceciljonesmarketing.net
Lead Follow-Up Audit
Most home service businesses lose 50–70% of leads to poor follow-up — not to competitors. Audit your current process against best practices and score every step.
Instructions
- 1. Pull your last 50 leads from your CRM or call log.
- 2. For each audit question, score your current process honestly (1 = nonexistent, 5 = systemized).
- 3. Compare your sequence against the ideal 7-touch follow-up at the bottom of the worksheet.
- 4. Build your improvement plan in the action section.
Follow-Up Audit Questions
Speed: What % of leads receive first contact within 5 minutes?
Industry benchmark: top performers respond in under 2 minutes. Most businesses average 30–90 minutes.
Persistence: How many follow-up attempts does the average lead receive before your team stops?
Research: 80% of sales require 5+ follow-ups. Most businesses stop after 1–2.
Channel Mix: Do you use SMS/text in your follow-up sequence?
SMS open rates are 98% vs. 20% for email. Text response rates are 45% vs. 6% for email.
Lead Routing: Are leads automatically routed to the right person based on service type, location, or urgency?
Manual routing adds 10–30 minutes to response time and creates dropped-lead risk.
After-Hours: What happens to leads that come in after 5pm or on weekends?
20–30% of home service leads come in after business hours. Most are never contacted until the next business day.
Nurture: Do unclosed leads enter an automated nurture sequence or are they abandoned?
Leads that don't close immediately represent 30–40% of pipeline — and most businesses have no system for them.
Audit Score
25–30: Excellent — your follow-up is a competitive advantage. Focus on optimization.
18–24: Good — you have a system but there are leaks. Prioritize speed and after-hours coverage.
10–17: At risk — you're losing leads to competitors who follow up faster. AI receptionist and automation are urgent.
0–9: Critical — most of your marketing spend is wasted on leads that die in the funnel. Book a Strategy Call immediately.
Ideal 7-Touch Follow-Up Sequence
Compare your current process against this best-practice sequence. Check off touches you already do.
Goal: Immediate acknowledgment
""Hi [Name], thanks for reaching out. [Name] here from [Company]. I can get you that quote — give me a few minutes to pull pricing. What's the best number to reach you?""
Goal: Personal connection, gather details
""Just wanted to follow up on the text — I've been looking at your project and had a couple questions to make sure I get the quote right.""
Goal: Deliver value, document the conversation
""Per our call, here's your estimate. I've included three options based on what we discussed. Happy to walk through any of them — just reply or call.""
Goal: Remove friction, answer objections
""Hey [Name], wanted to make sure my email with the estimate came through. Any questions I can answer? Happy to hop on a quick call.""
Goal: Address concerns, create urgency
""Following up on the estimate — totally understand if you're weighing options. Is there anything holding you back I can clarify?""
Goal: Stay top-of-mind with useful content
""Thought you might find this useful — here's a quick checklist for [their project type]. No pressure on the estimate, just wanted to share.""
Goal: Close the loop or move to nurture
""Hey [Name], just checking in one more time on the estimate. If the timing isn't right, no worries — I'll check back in a few months. Either way, I'm here when you're ready.""
Follow-Up Improvement Plan
Related Playbooks: 5-Minute Lead Response • Local Follow-Up • Email: cecil@ceciljonesmarketing.com
Use This Worksheet
Print or save as PDF. For a professional follow-up audit with your actual lead data, book a free Strategy Call.
Questions? cecil@ceciljonesmarketing.com