The Association of Strategic Marketing’s Lead Generation Benchmark Survey was conducted online, launched on June 21, 2012 and was accessible through July 31, 2012. The purpose of the survey was to gain valuable perspective and insight into the latest trends and best practices in lead generation. Over 400 marketing professionals responded to the survey, each sharing their unique experiences as well as how they plan to approach lead generation in 2013. As a result, this 24-page report will provide you with actionable data that you can use to maximize your own lead generation initiatives.

1. Association of Strategic Marketing
www.associationofmarketing.org
P.O. Box 509
Eau Claire, WI 54702-0509
866.226.0828
November 2012
© 2012 Association of Strategic Marketing, a division of Lorman Business Center. All Rights Reserved.
Lead Generation
Benchmark Report
This report has been compiled by the
Association of Strategic Marketing to further
our knowledge on the evolving trends within
mobile marketing strategies. This data relies
on the information provided by the
respondents of the survey. All opinions and
recommendations made in this report should
not be interpreted as professional advice.
YouTube is a registered trademark of Google,
Inc. LinkedIn is a registered trademark of
LinkedIn Corporation. Facebook is a registered
trademark of Facebook, Inc.

2. Table of Contents
www.associationofmarketing.org
Table of Contents
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………….1
Qualifying Question……………………………………………………………………2
Lead Generation Priority……………………………………………………………….3
Reasons for Not Pursing Lead Generation...…………………………………………...4
Lead Generation Methods in 2012 vs. 2013……………………………………….…...5
Social Media for Lead Generation………………………………………………….…..9
Lead Generation Budget………………………………………………………….……12
Cost Per Lead……………………………………………………………………….….14
Lead Quantity and Quality……………………………………………………………..16
Single vs. Double Opt-In………………………………………………………………18
Lead Scoring…………………………………………………………………………...19
Lead Nurturing…………………………………………………………………………20
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Tools……………………………………21
Converting Leads into Customers……………………………………………………...22
Lead Generation Challenges…………………………………………………………...23
Summary……………………………………………………………………………….24
ASM Membership……………………………………………………………………...25

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Introduction
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Introduction
The Association of Strategic Marketing’s Lead Generation Benchmark Report was
conducted online, launched on June 21, 2012 and was accessible through July 31, 2012.
The purpose of the survey was to gain valuable perspective and insight into the latest trends
and best practices in lead generation. Over 400 marketing professionals responded to the
survey, each sharing their unique experiences as well as how they plan to approach lead
generation in 2013. As a result, this report will provide you with actionable data that you
can use to maximize your own lead generation initiatives.
Survey Statistics: Total Survey Responses: 411
Top Responding Industries
15% Manufacturing
13% Technology
12% Marketing & Advertising Services
8% Professional Services
7% Healthcare
Organization Sizes
24% 10 or fewer employees
9% 11 - 20 employees
12% 21 - 50 employees
9% 51 - 100 employees
46% 100+ employees
Organization’s Target Market
34% Business to Customer
59% Business to Business
7% Other

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Q. Is your organization currently running a lead generation campaign?
All Organizations
When asked whether or not organizations are currently running a lead generation
campaign, nearly half (47%) indicated that they are not, while 53% indicated that they are.
The charts below show that there is a larger percentage of organizations currently running a
lead generation campaign in the B2B sector (60%) than in the B2C sector (47%). The B2B
buying cycle is typically much longer and involves more people than the B2C buying
cycle, which may be the reason that there are more B2B companies engaged in lead
generation.
Qualifying Question
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Q. Where does lead generation fall within your marketing initiatives?
71% of the organizations surveyed indicated that lead generation is considered a high
priority within their organization’s marketing initiatives. 26% of the organizations indicated
that lead generation is a moderate priority within their marketing initiatives and only 3%
indicated that it is a low priority for their organization.
Even though 71% of the organizations indicated that lead generation is a high priority for
their organization, only 53% of the total organizations are currently running a lead
generation campaign. In the healthcare industry in particular, 100% of the organizations
indicated that they place a high priority on lead generation, however only a third of those
organizations are actually running a lead generation campaign.
This suggests that lead generation can be an extremely important initiative for any
organization, but can also be challenging to plan and implement.
Lead Generation Priority
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Q. What is the biggest factor in your decision not to pursue lead
generation?
The organizations that indicated they are not currently running a lead generation campaign
were asked to identify the biggest factor in their decision not to pursue one.
Unsure where to start (29%), lack of budget (26%), and lack of staff to execute (23%) were
the top reasons organizations are not currently running a lead generation campaign. The
smaller organizations indicated that they are limited by their lack of budget, while many of
the larger organizations indicated that they simply struggle determining how to track their
leads.
Many organizations stated that they are in the process of developing a lead generation
campaign, while others indicated that a combination of all the factors listed above played a
roll in their decision not to pursue a lead generation campaign. With almost half of the
organizations surveyed not running a lead generation campaign, it is clear that there is a
high barrier to entry.
Reasons Organizations Are Not Running a Lead Generation Campaign
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Q. Please indicate which lead generation methods you are currently using.
Search engine optimization (77%) is the most common lead generation method being
utilized by organizations in 2012, followed by prospect email (71%), social media (70%),
and trade shows (65%). All of the other lead generation methods are being utilized by less
than half of the organizations surveyed.
People frequently use search engines such as Google® to find information, products and
services, so having a strong presence in the search results greatly increases your chances of
being found by potential customers. These leads are generally considered to be of high
quality, since they are coming to you and seeking some type of information about your
products or services.
Newsletters, white papers and webinars are some of the least utilized lead generation
methods in 2012, however heading into 2013 they are anticipated to see very significant
growth. (See next page.) Affiliate marketing is only being utilized by 22% of the
organizations surveyed, making it the least popular lead generation method.
A common answer among those who answered “Other” was cold calling. Print advertising
was also mentioned by many organizations.
Lead Generation Methods in 2012 vs. 2013
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The Association of Strategic Marketing’s Lead Generation Benchmark
Survey was conducted online, launched on June 21, 2012 and was
accessible through July 31, 2012. The purpose of the survey was to
gain valuable perspective and insight into the latest trends and best
practices in lead generation. Over 400 marketing professionals
responded to the survey, each sharing their unique experiences as
well as how they plan to approach lead generation in 2013. As a
result, this 24-page report will provide you with actionable data that
you can use to maximize your own lead generation initiatives.