Why You Need a 20% Lead List for Gift-Based Outbound

Happy New Year!

Over the next few days, I'll share some key concepts for Gift-based Outbound or "GBO."

GBO is powerful...it helped us grow Scorpion 8x in 5 years.

We'll kick it off today with the 20% lead list.

If you want to do GBO, you need a 20% lead list.

What is a 20% lead list?

It's applying an 80/20 or Pareto Principle to your target vertical market.

See, not all businesses within your vertical are worth sending a gift to.

In fact, you should only send gifts to the best-fit businesses on your 20% lead list. 

Who are they?

They're the highest-value clients for your agency.

They're the most qualified to work with your agency.

They're the ones who stand to benefit the most from working with you.

They're the ones who you, as the founder, know that if you got them on the phone, they would hire you.

In a few days, I'll share more about how to create your 20% lead list.

Question to ponder:

👉 Do we focus our outbound on everyone, or are we selective in who we target?

CQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a "20% lead list" in the context of Gift-based Outbound?

Applying the 80/20 or Pareto Principle to a target vertical market, identifying the top 20% of businesses actually worth sending a gift to, rather than treating every business in the vertical equally.

Why shouldn't gifts go to every business within a target vertical?

Because not all businesses are equally good fits. Sending gifts broadly wastes resources on prospects less likely to convert, while a focused 20% list concentrates effort on the highest-value opportunities.

What defines a business as belonging on the 20% lead list?

The highest-value potential clients, the most qualified to work with the agency, the ones who'd benefit most from the relationship, and the ones the founder personally knows would hire the agency if reached directly.

How much did Gift-based Outbound contribute to Scorpion's growth?

It was a significant driver behind Scorpion's 8x revenue growth over 5 years, built specifically around this kind of focused, selective targeting rather than broad outreach.

What's the actual question worth asking about current outbound targeting?

Whether outbound efforts are spread across everyone in a target vertical, or focused selectively on the best-fit businesses that make up a real 20% lead list.