Capture the complete inquiry
Create one lead record with name, phone, email, source/campaign, submission time, requested service, property ZIP code, message, and stated contact preference. Preserve the original message.
Lead response SOP 02
New Web-Lead Response SOP
Turn every new form, chat, and advertising inquiry into an acknowledged lead with one owner and one dated next action.
Purpose and ownership
Speed matters, but ownership prevents the real leak.
This SOP begins when a prospect submits a website form, starts a chat, requests information through an advertisement, or sends another digital inquiry. The goal is to acknowledge the person quickly, validate the request, and place it with the right human before it becomes another unread notification.
Primary ownerCSR, dispatcher, office manager, or named sales coordinator.
Response targetAutomatic acknowledgement within 1 minute; human review and first attempt within 5 minutes during coverage hours.
Done meansThe inquiry has a source, status, owner, contact preference, and dated next action—or a documented closed outcome.
The first five minutes
Capture → Confirm → Route → Nurture
Confirm receipt within one minute
Send a truthful acknowledgement through the channel the person requested or used. Confirm receipt without claiming that an appointment, price, technician, or service availability has been approved.
Validate and deduplicate
Check for required contact information, obvious spam, an existing customer record, and another open lead from the same person. Merge duplicates so two employees do not contact the same homeowner independently.
Assign one accountable owner
Route by service type, ZIP code, urgency, lead source, existing-customer status, and team capacity. If routing fails, send the lead to a visible exception queue owned by a named person—not a shared inbox with no deadline.
Make the first human contact attempt
Review the submitted details before calling or replying. Ask only for missing information. Use the person’s stated contact preference and give urgent or sensitive situations to a qualified human.
Set the next action before leaving the record
Record the attempt, outcome, next channel, next contact time, and owner. Stop follow-up after an opt-out, wrong number, confirmed duplicate/spam, out-of-scope request, or another documented stop condition.
Coverage-hours rule: define the exact hours when a five-minute human attempt is realistic. After hours, acknowledge receipt, apply approved urgent escalation rules, and state when the team will review the request. Never imply 24/7 human coverage unless it actually exists.
Copyable scripts
Respond like a helpful local company, not a software sequence.
Immediate acknowledgement
Hi [First name], thanks for contacting [Company] about [service]. We received your request. A member of our team will review it [during coverage hours / by stated time]. If anything is actively leaking, unsafe, or without essential service, reply URGENT and briefly describe what is happening.
First human text
Hi [First name], this is [Name] with [Company]. I’m reviewing your request for [service]. I have the property in [ZIP/city]. Before we discuss the next step, is there anything urgent we should know, and is text or a phone call easier for you?
No-response follow-up
Hi [First name], [Name] from [Company] following up on your [service] request. If you still need help, reply here with the best time to reach you. If you already handled it or do not want more follow-up, let me know and I’ll close the request.
Consent and preference matter. A submitted form is not permission for unlimited outreach. Honor channel preferences and opt-outs, identify the company clearly, and use only the cadence your business has approved for that lead source.
Routing and exceptions
Every branch needs a visible destination.
| Inquiry | Required route | Required record |
|---|---|---|
| New request inside service area and scope | Assigned CSR, dispatcher, estimator, or salesperson based on the approved routing table. | Owner, first-attempt time, qualification status, and next action. |
| Active danger, gas concern, fire, collapse, electrical hazard, flooding, or medical risk | Approved safety response and immediate human escalation. Direct imminent danger to emergency services. | Exact customer statement, escalation time, and person notified. |
| Existing customer, active job, warranty, or complaint | Person responsible for the existing relationship. | Linked customer/job record and promised response time. |
| Missing or invalid contact information | Exception queue for correction when possible; otherwise close with reason. | Validation failure and any correction attempt. |
| Duplicate, spam, outside service area, or out of scope | Merge, suppress, refer using approved language, or close. | Clear closed reason so it does not re-enter follow-up. |
Measurement
Measure from submission to a real human outcome.
SpeedMedian acknowledgement time and median first-human-attempt time by source.
OwnershipPercentage assigned within five minutes; number left in the exception queue past its deadline.
OutcomeContact, qualified, appointment, sold-job, opt-out, duplicate, and spam rates by source.
Review sources separately. A fast response to low-quality spam is not success, and a high appointment rate does not prove profit. Compare lead quality, close rate, collected revenue, and workload before changing ad spend or automations.
Manager checklist
Put the SOP into operation.
Choose the next step
Find the next place follow-up breaks.
Use the Follow-Up Leak Audit to score missed calls, speed-to-lead, estimate follow-up, no-show recovery, and review/referral follow-up. If you want help implementing the first fix, request a free workflow review.