Just getting a lead is not everything; how things go immediately after the lead has been obtained will decide whether you will get a call back, a booking, or nothing at all.
The lead may contact your organization via a form submission, a request for quotation, calling your organization, or responding to a post in your ads. If no one quickly gets back, the lead may lose interest, contact a competing firm, or simply forget their purpose of contacting.
That is why a speed-to-lead solution that involves zero drop-off from GHL can be highly effective in such cases. This allows you not to wait for someone to see the lead, but to catch it with GoHighLevel, send the response right away, inform the person about it, and follow up in case of no response.
It should not be viewed as an alternative to your sales team. It should be viewed as a way to ensure that your sales team talks to every lead while it is still hot.
What Is a Speed-to-Lead System?
Speed-to-lead is defined as the effort put into responding to the newly created lead as soon as possible. For example, a potential client fills out a form at 2:15 PM. An effective speed-to-lead system could instantly:
- Add/update the lead/contact in the CRM
- Create an opportunity
- Send a text message
- Send an email (where necessary)
- Alert the sales rep
- Allocate the lead to the proper pipeline
- Begin the follow-up sequence
- Stop the automated messages if the prospect replies
This would be much more efficient than having to ask one of your team members to monitor the CRM periodically. A speed-to-lead software would be especially helpful if the company received leads from various sources. Otherwise, there will be leads that stay unattended for hours or even days.
Why Speed Matters More Than Most Businesses Realize
A lead that has contacted your company has already done something. Maybe he/she has looked for a service, compared various providers, visited your website, or clicked on an ad.
His/her interest has a certain amount of time during which it’s still there.
When you reply after several hours, it might be too late – the lead might have already started communicating with another firm. Even if what you offer is better, you might never get the opportunity to tell about it.
This is one of the reasons why using GoHighLevel’s automation system is so beneficial for lead generation. You can instantly communicate while giving yourself time to start dealing with the process yourself.
The first message doesn’t need to be complex. Often, it can be just a simple confirmation like this one:
‘Hello Chris, thank you for contacting us. Your request has been received, and someone from our team will contact you soon.’
How to Build a Zero-Drop-Off Speed-to-Lead System in GHL
A reliable process is not just an automated message. It requires full coverage of the whole path from the lead generation to the human follow-up.
Step 1: Integrate All the Lead Sources With GHL
First, determine what channels bring you leads.
These can be:
- Web forms
- Landing pages
- Facebook / Instagram lead forms
- Google Ads
- Phone calls
- Chat / Messaging
- External forms
- Lead entry manually
The GHL configuration must ensure that all those leads end up in the same CRM environment. When one lead channel is integrated with GHL, but others are kept in spreadsheets or email folders, there is a hole in your follow-up process.
The first goal is obvious: each new lead must get into the trackable process.
Step 2: Set up a Reliable Trigger
A reliable trigger should be used in the GoHighLevel workflow. For example, it can be triggered when the contact submits a certain form or creates an opportunity.
The trigger should be clear enough to exclude incorrect contacts’ appearance in the speed-to-lead process. In addition, consider what to do if the existing contact submits other forms. Sometimes you may want to update the current record, not to create duplicates.
It is a significant step while setting up reliable GoHighLevel workflows.
Step 3: Create/Update the Contact Record
When the trigger is activated, the contact record must have the data that the team needs.
At least it will include:
- Contact name
- Phone number
- E-mail address
- Lead source
- The type of service that is requested
- The date and time of inquiry
Having the proper information in the CRM record will facilitate further work. If the same person submits another form, the best option for the GoHighLevel automation workflow will be to identify the existing contact and update his/her record.
Step 4: Create the Opportunity and Put the Pipeline Stage to Work
At the next stage, make sure that your lead becomes available for your sales team.
Create an opportunity and put it in the proper pipeline stage, like:
New Lead ? Contacted ? Qualified ? Appointment Scheduled ? Won/Lost
Again, the particular stages will vary depending on your company. The most important thing is that your new lead will not get lost among your contacts. It will become clear to you right away that there is a new opportunity to work on.
Step 5: Send First Response Promptly
This is where the ‘speed-to-lead’ process comes to its full effect. Use automated responses to send your response immediately upon getting the new lead into the process.
Short Message Service (SMS) is usually helpful here because it will give the prospect an immediate means of response. You may use e-mail as well as a follow-up option.
Don’t use long sales pitches right away. After all, people filled the form to ask questions, not to hear the sales pitch immediately.
The idea is to respond to their needs and provide the next action step.
For example:
Hello, Chris! Thank you for reaching out. We received your request. Do you have time to make a quick phone call today?
Step 6: Immediate First Response
Here lies the essence of the speed-to-lead process. Generate an immediate automated response the moment the lead becomes part of the workflow.
SMS may prove to be useful since it provides the prospect with a means to respond right away. Email may follow when necessary.
Keep the initial response short. Avoid sending a long sales pitch immediately after the prospect submits his or her form. Rather, one should thank the prospect for the inquiry and provide the prospect with a next step.
For example:
Hi Chris, thank you for getting in touch with us. We have received your inquiry. Are you available for a quick call?
Step 7: Pause Automation Once the Lead Responds
It is very easy to neglect this step, and extremely important at the same time. Suppose you receive a reply from your prospect, but the system keeps sending automated messages to him. It will look weird.
There should be certain triggers in your workflow that would identify any kind of activity.
Once a lead responds, books an appointment, or moves forward to any other stage you need, you need to pause the corresponding automated workflow.
It is one of the most significant distinctions between the regular automation and the GoHighLevel automation.
Step 8: Include Appointment Booking
What is the final goal of the speed-to-lead process? Not only to send texts but also to drive qualified leads towards taking the next step. For many companies, this step is booking the appointment.
You can provide your workflow with the appointment link either immediately or after the first touchpoint with your potential client.
Once the appointment is set, you need to change the status of your opportunity and cease sending the extra nurture messages. You will be able to start another workflow for appointments.
Step 9: Include a Safety Net for When Leads Are Missed
Zero-drop off also requires that provisions be made in the event that things don’t go according to plan in your lead nurturing process.
Such examples may include when:
- The person fails to make a call to the lead.
- No response is received from the lead.
- An appointment is not made.
- The lead goes cold.
- Someone who was previously contacted recontacts after several weeks.
You can create separate provisions for each case. Here is where the use of GoHighLevel automations becomes much more valuable than a one-size-fits-all workflow. Different cases require different procedures.
Where AI Fits Into a GHL Speed-to-Lead System
The use of AI may also become another element in the process, especially if the leads come outside of regular work hours.
With properly programmed GoHighLevel workflow AI, the system will be able to deal with frequently asked questions, gather some basic information from leads, and direct them further.
For example, the AI chat may give a brief explanation regarding a certain service and guide a lead towards booking.
But the use of AI cannot be done only for the sake of using new technologies. The conversation requires rules, steps of escalation, and boundaries. If the question of a lead is more complex or the lead itself is more valuable, then transferring the conversation to a human is the preferred option.
Typical Mistakes Causing Leads To Fall Off
Even companies that use automation systems may end up losing their leads due to the poor workflow.
Sending Too Many Messages
Sending too many messages does not necessarily mean sending good messages. Being aggressive does not help either.
Being Too Salesy In The First Message
First, the message should confirm the inquiry and make it easier to take the next step.
Overlooking Business Hours
It is essential to have your processes adjusted to when your sales reps can be reached. A lead that reaches out to you at night time requires a distinct reaction compared to the one filling in forms within working hours.
Failure to Identify the Source of a Lead
Understanding where your leads come from – whether Google, Facebook, a landing page, etc. – will help you analyze what works.
Allowing Automation to Interfere With the Process After Human Interaction Occurred
When the salesperson starts interacting with the lead, any further automation messages need to be blocked.
How to Measure Your Speed-to-Lead System
With your zero drop-off speed-to-lead process in GHL up and running, you can now start measuring how it performs.
Measure parameters like:
- Response time average
- Percent of leads who received an immediate response
- Lead-to-contact ratio
- Lead-to-appointment ratio
- Rate of appointments that show up
- The number of untouched leads
- Conversion rate per lead source
- Time from inquiry to booked appointment
And what you are trying to accomplish with all this isn’t just to make the workflow faster. You should try to find out whether being faster with responses produces better results for your business.
Because it can happen that even though response time decreases, the number of appointments doesn’t change at all.
Build the System Around the Customer Journey
An effective zero-drop-off speed-to-lead process for GHL will be an example of the properly organized sales process rather than automated messages.
Consider the customer’s experience beginning with the moment when he/she submits his/her contact details. He/she will get confirmation. He/she needs to have somebody informed about the inquiry. Follow-ups should be made when needed. Responses should stop as soon as the communication begins. An appointment should result in the correct next action.
This is the true power of automation of workflows using GoHighLevel.
Businesses that require assistance in planning or deploying such processes can also consider GoHighLevel and automation services by Pintox.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: What is speed-to-lead in GHL?
Ans: A speed-to-lead process in GHL automates the process by responding to the new leads, notifying you, initiating follow-up, and driving leads towards an appointment.
Q2: How does GHL automation reduce lead response time?
Ans: GHL automation will automatically send a message either via SMS or email to the lead immediately once the lead fills out the form.
Q3: Is there a way to automate GHL when a lead does not respond?
Ans: Yes. You can use the GHL workflow to detect whether the lead has responded and then sends scheduled messages when there is no response.
Q4: How do I create speed-to-lead workflows in GHL?
Ans: Create workflows using lead triggers, updating contacts, creating opportunities, responding instantly, notifying your team, and scheduling follow-ups.
Q5: Can GoHighLevel stop workflows based on a lead response?
Ans: Yes. Conditions in the workflow can detect that the lead has responded and remove the lead from further automated follow-up process.
Final Thoughts
Zero drop-off speed-to-lead solution in GHL does not mean implementing automation for all sales processes. It means eliminating bottlenecks that lead to the loss of leads.
With the right GoHighLevel workflow, an inquiry can be caught, acknowledged almost instantly, sent to the appropriate place, followed up where required, and taken towards booking without relying on someone doing that manually.
The best GoHighLevel workflows are those which implement automation alongside human interaction. Automation takes care of speed, consistency, reminding, and routine work. You take care of conversations, relationships, objections, and closing deals.
When both components work together, you do not only respond faster. You create a more reliable process for converting new inquiries into opportunities.
