You cannot improve what you do not measure. In B2B lead generation, this principle is especially important because the investment is significant and the feedback loops are long. A lead generated today might not close for 6 to 12 months, which means you need robust measurement systems to understand what is working now so you can double down on the right strategies.
Yet most B2B companies measure lead generation poorly. They track vanity metrics like total leads generated without regard for quality, or they focus on activity metrics without connecting them to revenue. This guide covers the KPIs that actually matter, the attribution models that reveal truth, and the reporting frameworks that enable smart decisions.
The Lead Generation Metrics Hierarchy
Not all metrics are created equal. They exist in a hierarchy, from activity metrics (inputs) to revenue metrics (outcomes). You need to track all levels, but your decisions should be driven by the metrics closest to revenue.
Level 1: Activity Metrics (Inputs)
These measure the volume of lead generation activity. They are necessary but not sufficient.
- Emails sent: Total outbound emails delivered
- Calls made: Total outbound phone calls attempted
- LinkedIn messages sent: Total outreach messages on LinkedIn
- Content published: Blog posts, whitepapers, videos produced
- Ad spend: Total investment in paid channels
Activity metrics tell you if your team is doing the work. They do not tell you if the work is producing results.
Level 2: Engagement Metrics (Outputs)
These measure how prospects respond to your lead generation activities.
- Open rate: Percentage of emails opened. Benchmark: 20 to 40 percent for cold email.
- Reply rate: Percentage of outreach that generates a response. Benchmark: 3 to 10 percent for cold campaigns.
- Connection acceptance rate: Percentage of LinkedIn connection requests accepted. Benchmark: 20 to 40 percent.
- Website traffic: Visitors driven by your lead generation content and campaigns.
- Content engagement: Downloads, webinar registrations, page views on key content.
Level 3: Pipeline Metrics (Near-Revenue)
These measure the quantity and quality of your pipeline.
- Meetings booked: The most important leading indicator. How many qualified meetings did your appointment setting or lead generation efforts produce?
- Meeting show rate: Percentage of booked meetings where the prospect actually attends. Benchmark: 70 to 85 percent.
- Qualified opportunities created: Meetings that pass your qualification criteria and enter the sales pipeline as real deals.
- Pipeline value: Total dollar value of qualified opportunities in your pipeline.
- Pipeline velocity: How fast deals move through your pipeline. Faster velocity means faster revenue.
Level 4: Revenue Metrics (Outcomes)
These are the metrics that matter most. Everything else is a means to these ends.
- Closed-won revenue: Total revenue closed from leads generated by each channel or campaign.
- Customer acquisition cost (CAC): Total lead generation and sales cost divided by number of new customers acquired.
- Cost per meeting (CPM): Total cost divided by number of qualified meetings booked.
- Cost per opportunity (CPO): Total cost divided by number of qualified opportunities created.
- Return on investment (ROI): Revenue generated divided by total investment. The ultimate measure of lead generation effectiveness.
- Lifetime value to CAC ratio (LTV:CAC): Customer lifetime value divided by acquisition cost. A ratio above 3:1 is generally considered healthy.
Attribution Models for B2B Lead Generation
Attribution in B2B is notoriously difficult because buyers interact with multiple touchpoints across multiple channels before they convert. The attribution model you choose significantly affects how you evaluate channel performance.
First-Touch Attribution
Gives 100 percent credit to the first interaction that brought the lead into your funnel. Useful for understanding which channels are best at filling the top of the funnel, but ignores everything that happened between first touch and close.
Last-Touch Attribution
Gives 100 percent credit to the last interaction before conversion. Useful for understanding what drives the final decision, but ignores all the awareness and nurturing that came before.
Multi-Touch Attribution
Distributes credit across multiple touchpoints. Linear attribution gives equal credit to every touchpoint. Position-based (U-shaped) gives more credit to the first and last touches. Time-decay gives more credit to recent touches. Multi-touch is the most accurate but requires sophisticated tracking infrastructure.
Practical Recommendation
For most B2B companies, a pragmatic approach works best: use first-touch attribution to evaluate lead generation channels and last-touch attribution to evaluate conversion and sales activities. Supplement with multi-touch data when available, but do not let perfect attribution be the enemy of good decision-making.
Building a Lead Generation Reporting Framework
A reporting framework ensures you review the right metrics at the right frequency with the right audience.
Daily Dashboard
Activity metrics and real-time engagement data. Reviewed by SDR managers and individual reps. Purpose: ensure daily activity is on track.
Weekly Pipeline Review
Meetings booked, pipeline created, stage progression, and deal health. Reviewed by sales leadership. Purpose: identify issues early and adjust tactics.
Monthly Performance Report
Channel performance, campaign results, cost metrics, and pipeline contribution. Reviewed by marketing and sales leadership. Purpose: evaluate strategy effectiveness and allocate resources.
Quarterly Business Review
Revenue metrics, ROI by channel, CAC trends, LTV:CAC ratio, and strategic recommendations. Reviewed by executive leadership. Purpose: inform strategic decisions about investment and focus.
Common Measurement Mistakes
- Counting leads without qualifying them: A thousand unqualified leads are worth less than ten qualified meetings. Always track quality alongside quantity.
- Ignoring time lag: B2B sales cycles mean that today's lead generation spend may not produce revenue for months. Measure cohorts, not just monthly totals.
- Comparing channels unfairly: Different channels have different cost structures, timelines, and quality profiles. Comparing cost-per-lead across channels without adjusting for quality and close rate is misleading.
- Over-optimizing for a single metric: Optimizing for cost-per-meeting can lead you to sacrifice meeting quality. Optimizing for reply rate can lead you to sacrifice volume. Balance your optimization across the full metrics hierarchy.
- Not tracking at all: Surprisingly common. Many B2B companies invest thousands per month in lead generation without clear tracking of what is producing results.
At Dewx.io, we provide transparent reporting to every client, tracking the full metrics hierarchy from activity through revenue. Get in touch to see how we measure and report on campaign performance. We believe that clear measurement is the foundation of continuous improvement -- and that lead generation partners who do not provide detailed metrics have something to hide. Measure relentlessly, attribute honestly, and let the data drive your decisions.