Pipeline Economics
Cost per qualified meeting: the metric that matters
Cost per email and cost per lead hide the real question. How to evaluate outbound ROI properly.
6 min read
Outbound is often judged on activity: emails sent, open rates, number of leads. None of those tell you whether you’re building pipeline.
Work backwards from revenue
- What is a closed deal worth to you (first-year value)?
- What share of qualified meetings become opportunities?
- What share of opportunities close?
- So what can you afford to pay for one qualified meeting?
Compare models on the same basis
An in-house SDR, an agency retainer and a pay-per-result model all look different on paper. Convert each to a cost per qualified meeting, including salaries, tools, management time and ramp, and the comparison becomes honest.
Pay for outcomes, and the cost of waste stops being yours.