Transcript

Unqualified Leads – Episode 013 Highlights

Hosts: Harry Hughes & Dan

Topic: What signals actually are, why they matter more in long B2B and high-ticket buying cycles, and how to use signals properly across awareness, consideration, intent, and pre-revenue, without forcing leads or breaking the buyer journey.

Signals in 2026: Why They Matter More Than Ever

Signals have been a hot topic for years, but they’ve become critical as how people buy has changed.

Buyers now:

• Self-educate for months

• Engage anonymously across multiple channels

• Delay “raising their hand” until very late

• Enter sales conversations far more informed

Signals help you see movement before revenue happens.

This episode focuses on first-party signals that work across:

• B2B

• High-ticket B2C

• Demand gen

• ABM

This is not an exhaustive list. The right signals depend on:

• Your go-to-market motion

• Your sales cycle length

• Your ACV

• Your business maturity

What Signals Are (And What They Aren’t)

A signal is not a confirmation of buying intent.

A signal is:

Any observable action or behaviour that indicates movement, intent, or change in a buyer’s journey before revenue occurs.

Key rule:

Signals are suggestive, not definitive. An account can fire multiple signals and still never buy.

Used correctly, signals help you:

• Optimise strategy

• Allocate effort intelligently

• Tell a better performance story in long sales cycles

  
  

The Big Mistake: Forcing Leads Too Early

Dan makes an important clarification:

This is not about forcing buyers through a funnel or extracting emails at every stage.

This is not:

• Gating awareness content

• SDRs outbounding off every micro-interaction

• Treating every signal as “in market now”

Signals are the solution to over-aggressive lead capture. They allow you to align with how people actually buy.

What Signals Are Used For

Harry outlines four practical uses of signals:

1) Measuring Marketing Effectiveness in Long Sales Cycles

When revenue takes 6–12 months, signals provide leading indicators that things are working.

2) Optimising Strategy

You can identify which signals correlate with:

• Higher ACV

• Faster deal velocity

• Better close rates

3) Powering Retargeting

Mid-to-late signals can be used to build smarter retargeting audiences.

4) Triggering SDR Outreach

When specific signal thresholds are hit, outreach becomes timely, not spammy.

A Critical Operational Rule: Timestamp Signal-Based Outreach

Dan stresses: If SDRs outbound off a signal, it must be:

• Recorded

• Time-stamped

• Tagged with why outreach happened

Example:

“Attended 3 webinars in 30 days → outbound triggered.”

This allows you to later analyse:

• Which signals justify outreach

• Which signals correlate with conversion

Harry adds:

This usually requires a custom prospecting object in the CRM.

Stage 1 Signals: Awareness & Attention

These signals help answer:

“Is our top-of-funnel working?”

Branded Search Volume

• Are more people searching your brand name?

• Trend over time matters more than raw volume

  
  

Tools:

• Google Search Console

• Google Ads Keyword Planner

• My Telescope (competitive + AI analysis)

Direct Traffic

• People typing your URL directly

• Bookmarks, dark social, word of mouth

Direct traffic implies earned attention, not forced clicks.

Especially important when:

• Entering new geographies

• Running brand-heavy campaigns

Organic Social Engagement (When Relevant)

Signals:

• Shares

• Comments

• Meaningful engagement

Caveat:

Vanity engagement ≠ signal.

Dan highlights:

You must verify the right people are engaging (ICP check).

Harry adds:

AI spam comments are meaningless, ignore them.

Stage 2 Signals: Consideration & Evaluation

These signals show buyers are actively consuming and evaluating.

Scroll Depth & Session Time

Key tools:

• GA4

• Mixpanel

• Microsoft Clarity

Benchmarks:

• 50%+ scroll depth

• 60s+ session duration on key pages

Important:

Measure commercial pages, not blogs.

Bid Strategy as a Signal Multiplier

Dan explains:

Different ad objectives drive very different traffic quality.

Examples:

• Max clicks → short sessions, low intent

• Max conversions → longer sessions, deeper engagement

Scroll depth + time on page can validate:

• Media quality

• Platform objectives

• Audience relevance

Repeat Visitors

Returning within:

• 7 days

• 14 days

• 30 days

Power move:

Create a “power user” cohort:

• 5+ visits in 14 days = high-interest audience

These can be used for:

• Retargeting

• Prioritisation

Email List Growth (Organic)

Signals:

• Steady growth in opt-ins

• Rising engagement rates

Indicates:

• Brand trust

• Value exchange (not bribery)

FAQ Engagement

Tools:

• GA4 events

• Hotjar / Clarity

FAQ engagement suggests:

Buyers are overcoming objections.

Dan adds:

FAQs should evolve based on real sales objections.

Soft Hand-Raise Signals (Pre-Conversion)

These signals indicate intent without form submission:

• Contact form emails

• Live chat usage

• WhatsApp messages

• Chatbot interactions

Metrics:

• Chats per 1,000 visitors

• Time to first message

Caveat:

Too many chats may signal unclear landing pages.

Asset Engagement Signals

Key rule:

Assets must be directly relevant to your solution.

Signals:

• Rising download rates

• Multiple assets consumed by one person

Dan reframes assets as:

A value exchange, not a lead magnet.

Exclusive data > generic PDFs.

Conversion Signals (Lagging but Still Useful)

In long cycles, conversion metrics still act as signals.

Conversion Rate Increases

Examples:

• Demo bookings

• Call requests

Declining Abandonment Rates

Fewer users starting but not finishing forms.

Channel-Level Breakdown

Compare:

• Organic vs paid

• Referral vs direct

Requires clean UTMs.

Sales Call Quality as a Signal

Dan reframes sales calls as diagnostics.

Signals from calls:

• Are prospects qualified?

• Are they ready now or 6–12 months out?

• Are you early or late?

Tracking this over time lets you:

• Adjust messaging

• Improve funnel efficiency

• Increase “in-market” conversion rate

AI analysis across call transcripts compounds value.

Self-Reported Attribution Signals

Harry highlights a powerful but underused signal:

Ask:

“How did you hear about us?”

Signals:

• Podcasts

• Founder content

• Word of mouth

• Dark social

An increase here validates:

Top-of-funnel demand gen is working.

ABM & Enterprise-Specific Signals

ICP Profile Views (LinkedIn)

A loose but useful awareness signal.

Not intent, just recognition.

Named Account Website Visits

Using de-anon tools:

• Clearbit

• SixthSense

• HockeyStack

Look for:

• More target accounts visiting

• Multiple users from one account

Event Attendance

Signals:

• Webinars

• Roundtables

• In-person events

  
  

Especially powerful when:

“They’ve seen you online before.”

Stakeholder Depth per Account

How many unique ICP stakeholders are engaging?

Consensus buying requires:

• Multiple engaged roles.

• Rising stakeholder depth = strong ABM signal.

  
  

High-Intent Page Views

Examples:

• Pricing page (multiple visits)

• Case studies

• ROI calculators

• Integration docs

Depth > surface traffic.

Product Signals (PLG / Trials)

Signals:

• Repeat logins

• Usage within first 7 days

• Feature interaction

More activity = stronger intent.

Show Rates & Booking Speed

Key signals:

• % of booked calls that show

• Time from form fill → booked call

Shorter time = higher urgency.

Combining Signals: Sequences > Single Event

Harry outlines an advanced concept:

High intent is often a sequence, not a single signal.

Example sequence:

• Pricing page view

• Webinar attendance

• Reply to outbound

When signals cluster, intent strengthens.

Requires:

• Historical data

• Consistent tracking

  
  

First-Party vs Third-Party Signals

This episode focuses on first-party signals.

Third-party signals also exist:

• G2 / Capterra views

• Review site activity

• ABM platform intent

But first-party data is:

• More reliable

• More controllable

• More defensible long-term

Final Takeaways

• Signals help you see movement before revenue

• Signals are suggestive, not confirmations

• Don’t force leads at every stage

• Match signals to the stage you’re measuring

• Awareness ≠ conversion KPIs

• Long sales cycles require leading indicators

• First-party signals are foundational

• Over time, analyse which signals correlate with:

  
  

  • Higher ACV

  • Faster velocity

  • Better close rates

Start measuring now, insight compounds later.