Why small teams lose leads
Usually not from lack of interest on the client's side, but because the initial conversation stays in an email or a message, with no next step ever scheduled.
The four steps
- Add the lead right away, the moment you have the first conversation, even if it's just a name and a contact.
- Send the offer as a proforma, with a clear validity period.
- On acceptance, turn them into a client with a project attached, this automatically moves them from "potential" to "active".
- Issue the invoice and start work: the client gets portal access from day one.
The golden rule
Every lead should have exactly one place where it lives, not three. If you keep it in a spreadsheet separate from where you keep active clients, you're guaranteed to forget to move it at the right moment.
Bottom line
Start with one lead and one flow. Once it works for one, it works identically for ten.