Hey there,
We have two types of leads in our funnel right now.
Type 1: Fast to close, higher churn.
Type 2: Longer to close, significantly higher LTV.
For months, the team kept defaulting to optimizing for speed.
Chasing the faster closes. Reporting better weekly conversion numbers. Celebrating quick wins.
Then we looked at 90-day retention.
The picture flipped completely.
What we discovered
The leads that took longer to close stayed longer.
Franchise buyers had done the research before they ever got on a call.
They weren't impulse buyers.
They had mapped out the commitment. Compared the alternatives. Come in already sold on the category.
That's not a slow lead. That's a qualified one.
The mistake we were making
We were measuring both funnels on the same timeline.
A franchise buyer on day 14 of the sales cycle is not the same as a Business Academy buyer who ghosted on day 3.
One is still researching. The other is already gone.
But our reporting treated them the same: "unconverted after 14 days."
What we changed
We separated the reporting.
Different funnels. Different benchmarks. Different coaching.
Franchise leads: 30-45 day sales cycle expected. Measured on 90-day retention, not 7-day conversion.
Academy leads: 7-14 day sales cycle expected. Measured on speed to first payment.
Once we stopped comparing them, we stopped optimizing the wrong things.
The broader lesson
If you have multiple offers at different price points, make sure you're measuring each one against its own baseline - not against each other.
A $50K franchise sale and a $2K course sale don't move at the same speed.
A $10K consulting engagement and a $500 workshop have different buyer psychology.
Conversion speed is not the same as conversion quality.
The framework
Here's how to think about this:
Step 1: Separate your funnels by offer type
Don't lump all leads into one report. Group by price point, commitment level, or product type.
Step 2: Define normal timelines for each
What's the typical sales cycle for each offer? Use that as your baseline, not an arbitrary "7 days to convert."
Step 3: Match metrics to the funnel
Fast-close offers: optimize for conversion speed.
High-ticket offers: optimize for qualification and retention.
Don't use the same KPIs for both.
Step 4: Coach teams differently
Your sales team should handle a $50K franchise lead differently than a $2K course lead.
Different scripts. Different follow-up cadence. Different success metrics.
What this looks like in practice
We now run two completely separate reporting dashboards.
Dashboard 1: Fast-close offers
7-day conversion rate
Cost per acquisition
Speed to first payment
Dashboard 2: High-ticket offers
30-day pipeline health
Qualification score at intake
90-day retention rate
The team stopped comparing them. Started optimizing each for what actually matters.
The result
We're no longer pressuring franchise buyers to close faster just to hit weekly numbers.
We're no longer letting Academy buyers sit in the pipeline for 30 days hoping they'll convert.
Each funnel moves at its natural pace. And we measure what actually predicts success for that offer type.
What to do next
Look at your current leads.
Ask yourself:
Am I measuring all leads the same way?
Do I have different offer types moving through the same funnel?
Am I pressuring slow-close leads to move faster than they naturally would?
Am I giving up on fast-close leads too early because I'm waiting too long?
Then separate your reporting. Match your metrics to your offer type.
Conversion speed is not the same as conversion quality.
That's it for today.
Talk soon,
P.S. I read every email personally. Hit reply and tell me: How many different funnels are you running through the same reporting dashboard? You might be optimizing the wrong things without realizing it.