SolarSmart UK installs residential solar and battery storage systems (£5,000–£11,000). Their 4-person outbound team made 320–400 outbound calls per day (80–100 each) chasing leads generated via paid social campaigns, bought-in leads, and Google ads.

Over 3 years, they accumulated a database of 52,000 unconverted leads. Like most companies, their team made a few calls in the first 72 hours, then marked the lead as dead if no response. This is standard for many sales teams, who often stop after 2 – 3 days of no reply and label them as “dead”

After that, these leads were:

• Dumped into the CRM and never contacted again
• Not included in SMS or reactivation sequences
• Considered exhausted and low-value
• Written off as “bad leads” or “no money in them”

The result: hundreds of thousands spent on lead gen – and no follow-up beyond week one.