This digital growth training session dives deep into solving a common challenge in digital growth: the lack of lead nurturing and misalignment between marketing and sales.
Many businesses believe that more leads automatically translate into more revenue, but Simon dismantles this myth.
Instead, he introduces the concept of lead maturity, emphasizing the need for structured lead nurturing processes. The training unveils The Acceleration Loop, a strategic framework designed to create a seamless lead-to-revenue system that drives exponential digital growth.
What This Training Covers
- The common misconception that more leads equal more sales
- The real reason leads fail to convert: lack of lead maturity
- The buyer journey and why most sales processes don’t align with it
- The Acceleration Loop framework and its role in solving the marketing-sales gap
- Actionable strategies for implementing a lead nurturing system
- FAQs and expert insights for CEOs and Growth Leaders
Key Points for Business Leaders
- “More leads do not equal more sales. More developed leads equal more sales.”
- “Your marketing team’s job isn’t just to drive awareness—it’s to nurture prospects into sales-ready leads.”
- “If you’re treating all leads like they’re ready to buy, you’re burning opportunities. Maturity, not quality, is the real issue.”
- “The customer journey isn’t linear. It’s messy, non-linear, and full of backtracking. Your system must guide, not confuse.“
- “Aligning marketing and sales isn’t about making things easier, it’s about making things better.”
- “If you don’t have a structured follow-up system, you’re leaving millions on the table.“
- “Businesses that wait to implement these changes will lose another year trying to figure things out.”
Expert Insight from Simon
If your business is struggling to convert leads, the problem isn’t necessarily lead quality—it’s lead maturity. The most successful companies recognize that the gap between marketing and sales is where they’re bleeding revenue. The fix? Structure your lead nurturing process with a proven system like The Acceleration Loop. Companies that master this process don’t just generate leads—they convert them into exponential growth.
Action Steps for CEOs & Growth Leaders
Audit Your Current Lead Process: Identify where your marketing and sales teams drop the ball in nurturing leads.
Implement a Lead Maturity Framework: Shift your team’s focus from “Are these leads good?” to “Are these leads ready?”
Structure a Follow-Up Cadence: Deploy at least a six-touch nurture sequence for incoming leads.
Automate & Optimize CRM Tracking: Ensure leads move from MQL to SQL to Closed Won/Lost with clear tracking and scoring.
Train Your Sales Team on Lead Nurturing: Move from a reactive to a proactive sales process.
Adopt The Acceleration Loop: Align marketing and sales, activate the right systems, amplify content, and accelerate with measurement.
Full Lead Nurturing Training Transcript
Howdy, howdy!
My name is Simon, and I am so excited to talk about a really important topic when it comes to digital marketing, lead generation, and digital growth—closing the gap between marketing and sales so that you can connect and close more leads.
I’m calling this training “How to Create a Seamless Lead-to-Revenue System that Drives Exponential Digital Growth.” Let’s get into it.
Most business leaders come into marketing and digital growth with the mindset that more leads equal more revenue. This is what they believe. This is what they go after.
The process seems simple. You invest in marketing. You run ads, create content, whatever that looks like—podcasts, blogs, social media. Leads start coming in. Website traffic is up. Followers are increasing. Inquiries are coming through.
Everything looks great, except sales stay the same.
And maybe that’s not always the case. Maybe your system is working. But if you’re here, chances are you’ve experienced this problem—you’re doing all the right things, but sales aren’t increasing the way you want.
It’s frustrating. You’re spending a lot of money on marketing. You have a sales team that’s been selling for a long time. And yet, sales are not moving like you expected.
From the sales team’s perspective, they’re getting leads, but they feel like they’re just chasing customers. They’re not taking orders—they’re hunting, following up over and over again, feeling like they’re pestering people.
The Logical (But Wrong) Conclusion
At this point, leaders and sales managers usually come to one of these conclusions:
- Leads aren’t converting because they’re low quality.
- They’re just tire kickers.
- The leads are not really qualified.
- Maybe our marketing efforts are just wasted.
This is the default reaction. And I get it. It’s what we naturally assume.
But the real problem is this:
- Marketing exists to drive awareness and interest.
- Sales exists to close deals.
- But no one is developing leads.
This is the classic marketing-sales gap.
You have marketing running. You have sales running. But there’s nothing connecting them.
At this point, you realize that the idea “More leads = More revenue” is actually false.
The truth is:
More developed leads = More revenue.
And this is the shift we need to make.
Fixing the Lead Nurturing Problem
It’s not about making marketing and sales easier. It’s about making marketing and sales better.
Simon villeneuve
Here’s what I’m going to do today:
- Walk through the biggest challenges you’ll face with digital growth, especially this gap between marketing and sales.
- Break down why leads aren’t converting and what to do about it.
- Walk through the Acceleration Loop and how to solve the problem.
- Answer pressing questions from real business leaders.
- Give you a clear path forward.
By the end, you should walk away with answers and clarity, whether you work with me or not.
Lead Maturity vs. Lead Quality
One of the biggest mindset shifts you need to make is this:
Stop focusing on lead quality. Start focusing on lead maturity.
It’s not about asking, “Are these leads good or bad?”
It’s about asking, “Are these leads ready? And if not, how do we develop them?”
Most leads aren’t bad—they’re just not ready yet.
The Buyer Journey (AIDA Model)
Customers don’t move in a straight line from awareness to purchase. Their journey looks something like this:
- Attention → They become aware of your brand (ads, referrals, SEO, social media).
- Interest → They check out your website, watch videos, download a resource.
- Desire → They start comparing options, looking at pricing, considering a purchase.
- Action → They request a quote, schedule a call, or make a purchase.
Most business leaders expect this process to be quick and linear—someone hears about your business, gets interested, and buys.
But what actually happens?
The process is messy. They start, they stop, they go in the wrong direction. They get lost, they leave your site open in a browser tab for a week, they forget. They ghost your sales team, come back later, change their minds, start over.
This is why leads feel unready.
And if your marketing and sales process isn’t aligned with how customers actually buy, you’re leaving money on the table.
The Fix: The Acceleration Loop
The solution isn’t just hiring more salespeople or running more ads. It’s building a structured, repeatable system for lead development.
This is where The Acceleration Loop comes in.
- Alignment → Define what makes a lead marketing-qualified vs. sales-qualified, and structure a clear lead handoff.
- Activation → Automate CRM tracking and set up structured follow-up sequences.
- Amplification → Execute strategic content and lead-driving activities.
- Acceleration → Measure, refine, and scale the process over time.
The key here is building a system that moves leads through maturity, rather than expecting them to close immediately.
Common Lead Nurturing Misconceptions
“These leads are bad.”
This is a common assumption when leads don’t convert quickly. However, the real issue is often lead maturity rather than lead quality. Many leads simply need further development before they are ready to buy. Companies should focus on structured lead nurturing instead of dismissing leads too early.
“If they don’t buy within a week, they’re not interested.”
False. Research shows that high-ticket B2B sales cycles can take anywhere from 4-6 months, and some leads require 5-50 touchpoints before conversion. Businesses must commit to a long-term lead nurturing process.
“We need more leads to close more deals.”
Not necessarily. The key is not just generating more leads but developing existing leads. Many businesses already have a pipeline filled with potential customers who just need a strategic, structured approach to move them toward conversion.
“Marketing should only focus on new traffic.”
Marketing is not just about bringing in traffic—it should also nurture and qualify leads before handing them off to sales. The handoff point between marketing and sales must be clearly defined to maximize effectiveness.
Lead Nurturing FAQs & Answers
Who owns lead nurturing—marketing or sales?
Both. Marketing nurtures MQLs, while sales nurtures SQLs. Effective alignment ensures that leads are properly developed before being handed off.
What if my marketing or sales team resist lead nurturing change?
Resistance to change is natural, but the best approach is to bring them into the process early. Show them how the system helps them close more deals with less effort. Involve them in discussions, get their input, and highlight wins to drive buy-in.
How long does this lead nurturing process take to implement?
The alignment phase takes weeks, the activation phase takes months, and the acceleration phase is ongoing. Most companies see significant improvement within a 90-day period if they commit to the process.
We already have a CRM, but nothing improves. Why?
A CRM alone is not the answer. Without structured processes, proper training, and accountability, even the best tools won’t fix lead conversion problems. Businesses must refine their lead scoring, follow-up cadence, and automation strategy to see real results.
If leads don’t buy within a week, are they bad leads?
No. Many leads take months or even years to convert. Businesses that successfully nurture leads over time outperform competitors that give up too soon.
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