INTRODUCTION
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
Top Five Trends
p3
p4
Funnel Benchmarks
by: Revenue...........................................................
p6
Industry........................................................... p17
All Responses.................................................. p18
Cost Per Lead Benchmarks
by: Revenue...........................................................
p21
Determining the success of your marketing programs and analyzing key
performance indicators (KPIs) can be challenging if you don’t have access
to industry data.
HubSpot partnered with Qualtrics to find out how companies are generating
demand for their brands and how successful they’ve been in their efforts. We
surveyed more than 900 marketers, management level and above -- from all
different industries -- in North America and Europe. This demand generation
report provides data on KPIs like website visitors, leads, opportunities and
customers, how marketers are allocating their budgets across various tactics
and channels, email open and click-through rate statistics, and -- ultimately
-- revenue generation.
Presented below are the results of that survey, along with actionable insights
for your own future demand generation strategies.
Industry........................................................... p21
Company Size.................................................. p22
All Responses.................................................. p22
Email Benchmarks
by: Revenue........................................................... p23
Company Size.................................................. p25
Industry........................................................... p27
All Responses................................................... p29
Created By
Top Marketing Investments
by: All Responses................................................... p31
Industry........................................................... p32
Summary of Results
p34
Author:
Laurie Aquilante
@laquilante
Head of Enterprise Marketing,
HubSpot
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
Co-Author:
Alexandra Orfao
@AOrfao369
Inbound Marketing Specialist,
HubSpot
3
TOP 5 TRENDS
In addition, 40% of those not achieving their revenue goals didn’t know
their click-through rate. That’s 90% more than those exceeding their
revenue goals.
Short on time? Here is an executive summary of the five key trends we found
in this data.
34% of those not achieving their revenue goals didn’t know their open
rate - 52% more than those exceeding their revenue goals.
1) Companies meeting or exceeding their revenue goals attract
significantly more website traffic and generate more leads,
Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs), sales opportunities, and
customers than those that aren’t. (Tweet this stat)
4) Companies exceeding their revenue goals report branding,
website design and optimization, and social media as their
top 3 marketing investments. (Tweet this stat)
As you’ll see in the Funnel Benchmarks by Revenue section, nearly 80%
of companies not meeting their revenue goals attract 10,000 monthly
website visitors or less.
These are also the top three investments reported by all survey
respondents. The lowest investments are in telemarketing and traditional
advertising.
For those exceeding their revenue goals, nearly the reverse is true. 70%
report attracting more than 10,000 visitors per month.
5) 24% of telecommunications companies aren’t reaching their
revenue goals (20% higher than average) and it is one of the
few industries still ranking telemarketing and traditional
advertising among their top investments. (Tweet this stat)
Skip to the Funnel Benchmarks by Revenue section for more data on the
relationship between visits, leads, MQLs, opportunities, or customers
and revenue achievement.
By contrast, the most successful companies rank branding, website
design and optimization, and social media as top investments.
2) Companies with the highest annual revenue also report more
visitors, leads, MQLs, sales opportunities, and customers
than other companies. (Tweet this stat).
82% of companies generating $250,000 or less in annual revenue report
generating less than 100 leads per month whereas only 8% of companies
generating $1 billion in annual revenue report the same.
3) In general, the less companies knew about their KPIs, the less
likely they were to meet their revenue goals. (Tweet this stat)
74% of companies that weren’t exceeding revenue goals did not know
their visitor, lead, MQL, or sales opportunities.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
4
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
5
Percent of Respondents
25%
20%
FUNNEL BENCHMARKS:
BY REVENUE
15%
10%
Website Visitors per Month by Annual Revenue
5%
70%
0%
0-1K
1K-10K
10K-50K
50K-100K
100K-1M
1M-5M
5M+
60%
Percent of Respondents
Visitors per Month
Website Visitors
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Website Visitors per Month by Revenue
Achievement
Percent of Total Respondents
Not Achieving Revenue
Achieving Revenue
50%
<$250K
$250K-1M
40%
$1M-10M
30%
Average
Visitors / Month
20%
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
10%
Exceeding Revenue
0%
60%
0 - 1K
50,000 - 100,000
50%
$500M-1B
$1B+
10,000 - 50,000
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
1K-10K
$10M-500M
10K-50K 50K-100K 100K-1M
1,000 - 10,000
1M-5M
5M+
Visitors per Month
40%
30%
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
20%
10%
0%
0-1K
1K-10K
10K-50K
50K-100K
100K-1M
1M-5M
As the charts above and below show, the lower the annual revenue for a
company, the lower the number of monthly website visitors.
5M+
Website Visitors
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Annual Revenue
<$250K
$250K - 1M
$1M - 10M
$10M - 500M
$500M - 1B
$1B+
Companies achieving and exceeding their revenue goals report significantly
more website traffic than those that aren’t.
Average
Visitors / Month
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
Average Visitors / Month
1 - 1,000
1,000 - 10,000
10,000 - 50,000
10,000 - 50,000
50,000 - 100,000
100,000 - 1,000,000
50,000 - 100,000
10,000 - 50,000
92% of companies with annual revenues of $250,000 or less generate
10,000 or fewer monthly website visitors. For $1 billion companies, the
reverse is true. 92% generate more than 10,000 visitors per month.
1,000 - 10,000
More than 50% of companies that aren’t meeting their revenue goals generate
less than 1,000 visitors per month and 80% generate less than 10,000. For
those exceeding their revenue goals, nearly the reverse is true. 70% attract
more than 10,000 visitors per month.
For companies generating less than $250,000 in annual revenue, the
average number of monthly visitors is between 1 and 1,000, whereas
the average for companies generating more than $1 billion in revenue is
100,000 to 1 million.
As you’ll see in the following sections, there is also a correlation between
Annual Revenue
Average Visitors / Month
website visitors and annual revenue.
<$250K
$250K - 1M
$1M - 10M
$10M - 500M
$500M - 1B
$1B+
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
1 - 1,000
1,000 - 10,000
10,000 - 50,000
10,000 - 50,000
50,000 - 100,000
100,000 - 1,000,000
6
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
7
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Leads
Leads per Month by Annual Revenue
Percent of Respondents
Not Achieving Revenue
Achieving Revenue
Percent of Respondents
Leads per Month by Revenue Achievement
Exceeding Revenue
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Average
Leads / Month
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
1,000 - 2,500
500 - 1,000
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
101 - 500
<$250K
$250K-1M
$1M-10M
$10M-500M
$500M-1B
1 - 100
100 - 500
500 1,000
1,0002,500
2,500 5,000
5,000 10,000
10,000 +
$1B+
Number of Leads per Month
1-100
100-500
500-1,000
1,000-2,500 2,500-5,000 5,000 10,000
10,000 +
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Number of Leads per Month
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Annual Revenue
<$250K
$250K - 1M
$1M - 10M
$10M - 500M
$500M - 1B
$1B+
While the majority of companies are generating fewer than 500 leads per
month, the same pattern exists here as with website visitors.
Average
Leads / Month
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
Average Leads / Month
1 - 100
100 - 500
100 - 500
500 - 1,000
1,000 - 2,500
2,500 - 5,000
1,000 - 2,500
500 - 1,000
Also as one might expect, the more revenue a company has, the more leads
they generate.
101 - 500
Over 70% of those not achieving their revenue goals generate less than 100
leads per month and only 5% generate more than 2,500 leads per month.
Companies achieving their revenue goals report slightly higher numbers,
with only 36% generating 100 leads or less per month.
The differences are most drastic at the highest and lowest end of the
spectrum. 82% of companies with $250,000 or less in annual revenue report
generating less than 100 leads per month whereas only 8% of companies
generating $1 billion in annual revenue report less than 100 leads per month.
By contrast, companies
that
are exceeding
their
revenue
Annual
Revenue
Average
Leads
/ Month goals have a higher
overall overage and<$250K
report much more varied responses.
1 - 100 In fact, more than
$250K
1M
100
- 500 leads or more per
half of those exceeding their revenue goals report 1,000
$1M - 10M
100 - 500
month and 41% generate
more than 2,500 per month.
$10M - 500M
500 - 1,000
$500M - 1B
$1B+
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
1,000 - 2,500
2,500 - 5,000
8
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
9
Number of MQLs per Month
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs)
MQLs per Month by Annual Revenue
100%
MQLs per Month by Revenue Achievement
Achieving Revenue
90%
Exceeding Revenue
Percentage of Respondents
Not Achieving Revenue
90%
Percent of Respondents
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
80%
70%
<$250K
60%
$250K-1M
50%
40%
$1M-10M
30%
$10M-500M
20%
$500M-1B
10%
30%
$1B+
0%
20%
1 - 100
10%
100 - 500
500 1,000
1,000 2,500
2,500 5,000
5,000 - 10,000 +
10,000
Number of MQLs per Month
0%
1 - 100
100 - 500 500 - 1,000 1,000 - 2,500 2,500 5,000
5,000 10,000
10,000 +
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Number of MQLs per Month
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Annual Revenue
<$250K
$250K - 1M
$1M - 10M
$10M - 500M
$500M - 1B
$1B+
Average
MQLs / Month
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
500 - 1,000
100 - 500
1 - 100
Average MQLs / Month
1 - 100
100 - 500
100 - 500
500 - 1,000
1,000 - 2,500
1,000 - 2,500
Companies with higher revenues also generate more MQLs.
Most companies are generating less than 100 MQLs per month. However,
the correlation with revenue achievement is present in this data set as well.
Companies that are exceeding their revenue goals generate more MQLs
than those that aren’t.
95% of companies generating $250,000 or less in annual revenue generate
500 MQLs or less per month, whereas over half of $1 billion and above
companies generate more than 1,000 MQLs per month.
91% of companies not achieving their revenue goals generate 500 MQLs
or less per month, whereas the same is true for only 45% of companies
exceeding their revenue goals.
The differences for companies in the middle of this scale aren’t as drastic
for opportunities as they are for visitors and leads. As you can see in the
chart above, companies from $250,000 in annual revenue to $10 million
all average the same number of MQLs, as do the companies above $500
million.
Companies that are exceeding their revenue goals generate on average
between 500 and 1,000 MQLs per month while those that aren’t achieving
them only average 1-100.
However, the overall correlation between revenue and MQLs does exist.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
10
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
11
1-50
50-100
100-300
300-500
500-800
800+
Number of Opportunities
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Opportunities
Opportunities per Month by Annual Revenue
Sales Opportunities per Month by Revenue
Achievement
Achieving Revenue
80%
Percentage of Respondents
Not Achieving Revenue
90%
Exceeding Revenue
80%
Percent of Respondents
70%
60%
50%
40%
70%
<$250K
60%
50%
$250K-1M
40%
$1M-10M
30%
$10M-500M
20%
$500M-1B
10%
$1B+
0%
30%
1-50
51 - 100
100-300
20%
300-500
500-800
801 +
Annual Revenue
10%
0%
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
1 - 50
50 -100
100 - 300
300 - 500
500 - 800
800+
Number of Opportunities
Annual Revenue
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
<$250K
$250K - 1M
$1M - 10M
$10M - 500M
$500M - 1B
$1B+
Average Sales
Opportunities / Month
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
300 - 400
100 - 200
Average Opps / Month
50 - 100
50 - 100
100 - 200
200 - 300
300 - 400
400 - 500
50 - 100
The pattern we’ve been seeing continues here as well. Nearly 80% of
companies with $250,000 or less in annual revenue report generate 50
opportunities or less per month, whereas 82% of $1 billion companies
generate more than 50 opportunities per month.
As you might imagine, the benchmarks for opportunities follow a similar
pattern to those for visitors, leads, and MQLs.
Companies achieving and exceeding their revenue goals report more
opportunities than those that aren’t.
For $1 million companies, 35% report 50 opportunities or less per month
and nearly 30% report between 50 and 200.
87% of companies that are not achieving their revenue goals generate less
than 100 opportunities per month, while the same is true for only 20% of
those exceeding their goals.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
12
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
13
1-50
50-100
100-300
300-500
500-800
800+
Number of Customers per Month
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Customers
Customers per Month by Annual Revenue
90%
Customers per Month by Revenue Achievement
Achieving Revenue
Exceeding Revenue
Percent of Respondents
Not Achieving Revenue
80%
90%
Percent of Respondents
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
70%
60%
<$250K
50%
$250K-1M
40%
$1M-10M
30%
$10M-500M
20%
$500M-1B
$1B+
10%
30%
0%
1-50
20%
50-100
100-300
300-500
500-800
801 +
Customers per Month
10%
0%
1-50
50-100
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
100-300
300-500
500-800
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
800+
Number of Customers
Annual Revenue
Average
Customers / Month
Exceeding Revenue Goals
Achieving Revenue Goals
Not Achieving Revenue Goals
<$250K
$250K - 1M
$1M - 10M
$10M - 500M
$500M - 1B
$1B+
400 - 500
100 - 200
50 - 100
As you might expect, there is a strong correlation between the companies
that report exceeding their revenue goals and those that report having a
higher number of customers.
Average
Customers / Month
1 - 50
50 - 100
100 - 200
200 - 300
300 - 400
300 - 400
93% of companies reporting $250,000 or less in annual revenue also report
100 customers or less per month, while $1 billion companies report a wider
variety in the number of customers they generate. Nearly one third of those
companies report generating more than 800 customers per month.
As you’ll see in the charts below, there is also a correlation between having
more annual revenue and a higher number of customers.
Knowing The Numbers
74%
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
14
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
Of companies that weren’t exceeding revenue
goals did not know their visitor, lead, MQL, or
sales opportunities.
15
FUNNEL BENCHMARKS:
BY INDUSTRY
Key Takeaways
Companies exceeding their revenue goals and those that report more annual
revenue also report a higher number of monthly website visitors, leads,
MQLs, sales opportunities, and customers.
Industry
Of the companies not achieving their revenue goals, nearly 80% generate
10,000 monthly website visitors or less. 70% of those exceeding their
revenue goals attract more than 10,000 visitors per month.
While achieving a high number of website visitors shouldn’t be the your
goal, attracting traffic to your site is a key part of bringing potential leads
into your funnel. It’s estimated that around 78% of Internet users do product
research online before making a purchase. Attracting the right type of traffic
is also key to the Inbound Methodology.
Lead generation is also important, whether it’s converting a portion of
website visitors or generating leads from other sources. Again, companies
generating more leads also report achieving or exceeding their revenue goals
more often and report higher annual revenues. The average number of leads
for companies exceeding their revenue goals is 1,000 – 2,500 per month,
while companies not achieving their revenue goals only average 100-500.
Average Monthly
Visitors
Leads
MQLs
Sales Ops
Customers
Education
10,000 - 50,000
100 - 500
100 - 500
100 - 200
100 - 200
Healthcare &
Medical
10,000 - 50,000
100 - 500
100 - 500
100 - 200
100 - 200
Marketing
Agencies
10,000 - 50,000
100 - 500
100 - 500
100 - 200
100 - 200
Consulting
10,000 - 50,000
100 - 500
100 - 500
100 - 200
100 - 200
Industrial &
Manufacturing
10,000 - 50,000
100 - 500
100 - 500
100 - 200
50 - 100
Media &
Publishing
10,000 - 50,000
100 - 500
100 - 500
100 - 200
50 - 100
Travel & Tourism
10,000 - 50,000
500 - 1,000
500 - 1,000
100 - 200
300 - 400
Software
10,000 - 50,000
500 - 1,000
500 - 1,000
100 - 200
50 - 100
Information
Tech & Services
10,000 - 50,000
500 - 1,000
500 - 1,000
200 - 300
200 - 300
Consumer
Products
10,000 - 50,000
500 - 1,000
500 - 1,000
300 - 400
200 - 300
Financial
Services
50,000 - 100,000
500 - 1,000
500 - 1,000
200 - 300
200 - 300
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
As we move down the funnel, the correlation holds. Companies exceeding
their revenue goals generate about 300-900 more MQLs per month than
companies not achieving their goals. Those with $250,000 in annual revenue
report, on average, 100 MQLs or less per month, 50-100 opportunities, and
1-50 customers. By contrast, $1 billion companies report on average, 1,000
– 2,500 MQLs, 400-500 opportunities, and 300-400 customers per month.
There weren’t many differences across industries in terms of website visitors,
leads, MQLs, or sales opportunities generated. Here are the noteworthy
ones:
• In all industries except Financial Services, the average number of
monthly website visitors is 10,000 - 50,000.
• Financial Services companies report the highest number of visitors but
around the same number of leads, MQLs, opportunities, and customers,
possibly indicating lower conversion rates.
• Travel & Tourism, Software, Information Technology & Services, and
Consumer Products companies report the highest numbers of leads and
MQLs, but the same number of website visits as other industries.
• Travel and Tourism companies report the highest number of customers,
while reporting similar numbers in other areas, possibly suggesting
higher conversion rates.
A solid lead nurturing strategy and effective marketing automation are key
to moving leads down the funnel. According to Marketing Sherpa, 79% of all
marketing leads never convert into sales and a lack of lead nurturing is the
common cause. (See this and more stats here). Here are some tips on lead
nurturing and choosing the right marketing automation vendor.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
16
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
17
FUNNEL BENCHMARKS:
ALL RESPONSES
Leads
Number of Leads per Month
Percent of Respondents
Website Visitors
Number of Website Visitors per Month
30%
Percent of Respondents
25%
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
1 - 100
100 - 500 500 - 1,000
20%
1,000 2,500
2,500 5,000
5,000 10,000
10,000+
Leads per Month
15%
10%
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
5%
0%
0-1K
1K-10K
10K-50K
50K-100K
100K-1M
1M-5M
5M+
58% of companies generate 500 leads per month or less and 71% generate
1,000 or less. However, as we saw previously, the companies having the
Leads per Month by Revenue Achievement
most success are also the ones generating the most leads.
Visitors per Month
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Not Achieving Revenue
Percent of Respondents Percent of Respondents
Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs)
Achievement
Achieving Revenue
Exceeding Revenue
Percent of Total Respondents
As we covered in the sections above, those that are exceeding their revenue
60%
goals and those with higher annual revenues report significantly more
50%
website40%
traffic than their peers. The average for those achieving their revenue
goals is30%
10,000 - 50,000 and for those exceeding their goals it jumps to
20%
50,000 - 100,000. Companies with over $1 million in annual revenue all
10%
average more
than 10,000 visitors per month.
0%
0-1K
1K-10K
10K-50K
50K-100K
100K-1M
1M-5M
Exceeding Revenue
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
Number of MQLs per Month
20%
50%
10%
45%
0%
40%
1-100
100-500
500-1,000 1,000-2,500 2,500-5,000 5,000 10,000 +
35%
10,000
30%
Number of Leads per Month
25%
20%
15%
Demand
10%Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
5%
0%
1 - 100
100 - 500 500 - 1,000
1,000 2,500 5,000 10,000 +
2,500
5,000
10,000
The majority of companies report between 1,000 and 10,000 visitors per
Website Visitors per Month by Revenue
month. Nearly 50% report 10,000 monthly visitors or less.
Not Achieving Revenue
Achieving Revenue
5M+
Number of MQLs per Month
Website Visitors
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
18
ercent of Respondents
Most companies generate 100 or fewer MQLs per month and more than half
per Month
by saw
Revenue
generate 500 orMQLs
less. However,
as we
above, Achievement
companies achieving their
Not Achieving
Revenue
Exceeding
revenue goals generate
onRevenue
average, Achieving
100 - 500
per month
andRevenue
the average for
all companies
with more than $250,000 in annual revenue is over 100 leads
90%
80%
per month.
70%
60%
50%
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation
40% Report • 2015
30%
19
Percent
10.00%
5.00%
COST PER LEAD BENCHMARKS:
BY REVENUE
0.00%
Opportunities
$1 - $10
$11 - $25 $26 - $50 $51 - $100
$101 $250
$251 $500
$501 $1,000
$1,001+
Cost Per Lead
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Cost Per Lead
By Annual Revenue
1-50
50-100
100-300
300-500
500-800
Cost per Lead
Percent of Respondents
Opportunities per Month
800+
Number of Opportunities
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
$1M-10M
$10M-500M
$500M-1B
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
$1B+
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Companies with higher annual revenues tend to pay a higher cost per lead.
However, companies with between $250,000 and $10 million in revenue
70%
Percent of Respondents
$250K-1M
Percent of Respondents
80%
60%
Customers
50%
Percnet of Respondents
<$250K
0%
57% of companies report generating 100 sales opportunities per month or
Sales Opportunities per Month by Revenue
less. (Although this jumps to nearly
90% for those not achieving revenue
Achievement
goals). Only 9% of total respondents report generating more than 800
Not Achieving Revenue
Achieving Revenue
Exceeding Revenue
opportunities per month.
all average a cost per lead of $26-$50.
40%
30%
50%
0%
40%
COST PER LEAD BENCHMARKS:
BY INDUSTRY
Customers per Month
20%
60%
10%
1 - 50
50 -100
100 - 300
300 - 500
500 - 800
800+
Number of Opportunities
30%
Demand
20% Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
10%
0%
1-50
50-100
100-300
300-500
500-800
800+
Number of Customers per Month
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Just over 50% of the respondents are generating 1-50 customers per month,
while the rest
are fairly per
evenly
spread
50 toAchievement
over 800 customers per
Customers
Month
by from
Revenue
month.
Not Achieving Revenue
Achieving Revenue
Exceeding Revenue
90%
80%
Percent of Respondents
$1,001+
$501 - $1,000
$251 - $500
$101 - $250
$51 - $100
$26 - $50
$11 - $25
$1 - $10
70%
Industry
Cost Per Lead
Media & Publishing
$11 - $25
Education
$26 - $50
Healthcare & Medical
$26 - $50
Consulting
$26 - $50
Industrial & Manufacturing
$26 - $50
Travel & Tourism
$26 - $50
Consumer Products
$26 - $50
Software
$51 - $100
Information Tech & Services
$51 - $100
Marketing Agencies
$51 - $100
Financial Services
$51 - $100
The cost per lead varies by
industry, with Media and
Publishing
reporting
the
lowest cost per lead at $11-$25.
Software, Information Tech &
Services, Marketing Agencies,
and
Financial
Services
companies all reporting the
highest average cost per lead at
$51 - $100.
60%
50%
40%
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
30%
20%
20
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
21
EMAIL BENCHMARKS:
BY REVENUE
COST PER LEAD BENCHMARKS:
BY COMPANY SIZE
Companies exceeding or achieving their revenue goals report both higher
click-through and higher open rates.
The 2014 State of Inbound Report also asked about cost per lead and found
that mid-sized companies had a higher cost per lead than both companies
under 25 employees and those over 1,000. It also found that the cost per lead
for companies using an inbound strategy was far lower than those using an
outbound strategy.
Above Average Open Rates
(% of respondents)
60%
48%
Above Average Open Rates
(% of respondents)
35%
60%
48%
Exceeding Revenue
Achieving Revenue
35%
Not Achieving Revenue
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
60% of those
exceeding their Achieving
revenue
goals hadNot
anAchieving
above-average
open
Exceeding Revenue
Revenue
Revenue
rate, while the same was true
for only
48% ofCTR
those achieving their revenue
Above
Average
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
goals and 35% of those not(%
achieving
their goals.
of respondents)
COST PER LEAD BENCHMARKS:
ALL RESPONSES
64%
Above Average
CTR
42%
(% of respondents)
Cost Per Lead
28%
64%
Percent of Respondents
25.00%
42%
20.00%
Exceeding Revenue
15.00%
10.00%
Not Achieving Revenue
28%
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
5.00%
0.00%
$1 - $10
$11 - $25 $26 - $50 $51 - $100
$101 $250
$251 $500
$501 $1,000
Exceeding Revenue
$1,001+
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Cost Per Lead
By Annual Revenue
$501 - $1,000
$251 - $500
Not Achieving Revenue
64% of those exceeding their revenue goals have an above-average clickthrough rate, while only 28% of those not achieving their goals had an
above average open rate.
The cost per lead ranged from an average of $11-$25 per lead up to an
average of $251 - $500 per lead.
$1,001+
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation
Report • 2015
Achieving Revenue
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Cost Per Lead
Lead
Achieving Revenue
<$250K
22
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
23
Knowing The Numbers
In terms of annual revenue, the biggest difference is at the lowest end of
the spectrum. The majority of companies generating $250,000 or less in
annual revenue report open rates under 5% and CTRs under 1%. Companies
generating more than that report much more varied responses in terms of
both open rate and CTR.
Of those companies not achieving their revenue goals:
40%
34%
didn’t know their
CTR
Email Open Rates by Annual Revenue
didn’t know their open
email rate
35%
Percent of Respondents
30%
25%
In the case of those who didn’t know their CTR, that’s 90% more than
those exceeding their revenue goals. Of those that didn’t know their
open rates, that’s 52% more than those exceeding their revenue
goals.
<$250K
20%
$250K-1M
$1M-10M
15%
$10M-500M
10%
$500M-1B
5%
$1B+
EMAIL BENCHMARKS:
BY COMPANY SIZE
0%
< 5%
5-10%
10-15%
15-20%
20-30%
30-40%
40%+
Open Rates
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Email CTR by Annual Revenue
Email Open Rates by Company Size
45%
0.35
40%
30%
<$250K
25%
$250K-1M
20%
$1M-10M
15%
$10M-500M
10%
$500M-1B
Percent of Respondents
Percent of Respondents
35%
$1B+
5%
0.3
0.25
1-200
0.2
201-500
0.15
501-1000
0.1
1001-5000
5001+
0.05
0
0%
0 - 1%
1 - 2%
2 - 3%
3 - 4%
4 - 5%
5 - 10% 10 - 15%
<5%
15%+
5-10%
10-15%
CTR
15-20%
20-30% 30-40%
40%+
Email Open Rates
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Email CTR by Company Size
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
24
recentage of Respondents
40%
35%
30%
25%
1-200
20%
201-500
15%
501-1000
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
1001-5000
25
Email Open Rates
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
EMAIL BENCHMARKS:
BY INDUSTRY
Email CTR by Company Size
Industries With Highest Average Open Rates
35%
30%
25%
25%
1-200
20%
201-500
15%
501-1000
10%
1001-5000
Percent of Respondents
Percent of Respondents
Precentage of Respondents
40%
20%
25%
15%
20%
10%
15%
5%
10%
0%
5%
5001+
5%
0%
0 - 1%
1 - 2%
2 - 3%
3 - 4%
4 - 5% 5 - 10% 10 - 15%
15%+
CTR
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Industries With Highest Average Open Rates
Financial Services
Travel & Tourism
Financial Services
Industrial &
Manufacturing
Travel & Tourism
Industrial &
Manufacturing
0%
Open Rates
Companies with fewer than 200 employees tend to see lower overall open
rates and CTRs. Nearly 40% of companies with 200 or fewer employees
have open rates of 1% or less and 20% of them have open rates of 5% or less.
For companies with over 200 employees, however, there isn’t that big of a
difference in email metrics and as you get larger than 500, the differences
become even less significant.
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Open Rates
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Percent of Respondents
Percent of Respondents
Open Rates For All Other Industries
30%
25%
Consumer Products
Open Rates For All Other Industries
30%
20%
25%
15%
20%
10%
15%
5%
10%
0%
5%
0%
Open Rates
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Open Rates
Education
Consumer Products
Healthcare & Medical
Education
Consulting
Healthcare & Medical
Software
Consulting
IT & Services
Software
Media & Publishing
IT & Services
Marketing Agencies
Media & Publishing
Marketing Agencies
The
Financial
Services,
Travel and Tourism, and Industrial and
Demand
Generation Benchmark
Report, 2015
Manufacturing industries report a 15-20% open rate on average, while all
other industries report a 10-15% open rate on average.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
26
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
27
45%
45%
40%
40%
35%
10 - 15%+
15%
10
- 15%+
15%
25%
CTR For All Other Industries
CTR For All Other Industries
20%
15%
Email Open Rates
10%
25%
5%
20%
0%
15%
< 5%
5-10%
10-15%
15-20%
20-30%
30-40%
40%+
20-30%
30-40%
40%+
Open Rates
10%
Demand
5% Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
0%
< 5%
35%
30%
30%
25%
25%
20%
20%
15%
15%
10%
10%
5%
5%
0%
0%
Email Open Rates
Percent of Respondents Percent of Respondents
0 - 1% 1 - 2% 2 - 3% 3 - 4% 4 - 5% 5 0 - 1% 1 - 2% 2 - 3% 3 - 4% 4 - 5% 10%
510%
CTR
CTR
Consumer Products
Consumer Products
Financial Services
Financial Services
Healthcare & Medical
Healthcare & Medical
Industrial & Manufacturing
Industrial & Manufacturing
Travel & Tourism
Travel & Tourism
0 - 1% 1 - 2% 2 - 3% 3 - 4% 4 - 5%
0 - 1% 1 - 2% 2 - 3% 3 - 4% 4 - 5%
CTR
CTR
5 - 10 - 15%+
10%
15%
5 - 10
- 15%+
10% 15%
5-10%
10-15%
15-20%
Open
Rates
Companies reportedEmail
a variety
open
rates,
from
under 5% to over 40%.
ClickofThrough
Rates
(CTR)
25%
The majority
reported a 5-10% open rate.
Education
Education
Information Tech & Services
Information Tech & Services
Media & Publishing
Media & Publishing
Marketing Agencies
Marketing Agencies
Software
Software
Consulting
Consulting
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Percent of Respondents Percent of Respondents
Percent
of Respondents
Percent
of Respondents
Percent
of Respondents
Percent
of Respondents
30%
30%
25%
25%
20%
20%
15%
15%
10%
10%
5%
5%
0%
0%
EMAIL BENCHMARKS:
ALL RESPONSES
Industries With Highest Average CTR
Industries With Highest Average CTR
20%
15%
Email Click Through Rates (CTR)
10%
5%
25%
0%
20%
0 - 1%
1 - 2%
2 - 3%
3 - 4%
15%
4 - 5%
5 - 10%
10 - 15%
15%+
4 - 5%
5 - 10%
10 - 15%
15%+
CTR
10%
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Consumer Products, Financial Services, Healthcare & Medical, Industrial &
Manufacturing, and Travel & Tourism industries all report on average about
1 – 2% higher CTR than other industries.
5%
0%
0 - 1%
1 - 2%
2 - 3%
3 - 4%
CTR
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
The average CTR is around 2-3%, although some companies report CTRs as
high as 15%+.
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
28
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
29
TOP MARKETING INVESTMENTS:
ALL RESPONSES
Key Takeaways
The data showed a correlation between achieving revenue goals and higher
open rates and click-through rates (CTRs).
Marketing Tactics by Budget Allocation
(% of Total Respondents)
It also showed that there is some correlation between having fewer than 200
employees or less than $250,000 in annual revenue and lower than average
open rates and CTRs. However, most of the companies above $250K or 200
employees showed little difference in open rates and CTRs.
50%
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
It also showed the highest open and CTRs for three industries: Travel and
Tourism, Financial Services, and Industrial and Manufacturing. However,
the averages didn’t vary greatly.
Perhaps the most telling statistic was the number of companies that didn’t
know their open and CTRs. 40% of respondents who weren’t meeting their
revenue goals said that they didn’t know their CTR, and 34% didn’t know
their email open rate. The takeaway here is that the more you know about
how your potential customers are responding to your demand generation
tactics, the better equipped you’ll be to convert them into sales. Benchmark
and understand your own open and CTRs, and work to improve them.
Branding/Public Relations
Website Design & Optimization
Social Media Marketing
Content Creation (Whitepapers, etc.)
Online Advertising / Media Placement
Trade Shows / Events
Email Marketing
Marketing Automation / Lead Management
Search Engine Optimization
Traditional Ads (raido, TV, direct)
Telemarketing
Respondents were asked to rank the three marketing tactics that receive
the most budget allocation. The biggest investments are in branding, then
website design and optimization, followed by social media. Those same
tactics, in that order, were also ranked as the highest investments by survey
respondents who are exceeding their revenue goals.
The tactics with the lowest investments were traditional advertising and
telemarketing. This is not surprising as these tactics are far less effective
than more modern tactics like website optimization, content, and social
media. As HubSpot and other organizations have reported in the past, 200
million Americans have registered their phone numbers on the FTC do not
call list (HubSpot), 86% of people skip television ads (Voltier Digital), and
cold calling doesn’t work 90.0% of the time (HBR).
SEO was also ranked low in terms of marketing investment. This may be
because the budget required for a good SEO strategy is simply lower than
other tactics, such as branding and PR or website design. Additionally,
the lines between where SEO ends and other strategies, such as content
marketing, begin, are blurring all the time. Content creation was ranked as
the fourth highest investment. As getting found online is critical to success,
marketers are undoubtedly still optimizing their webpages (and landing
pages) for search engine discoverability.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
30
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
31
TOP MARKETING INVESTMENTS:
BY INDUSTRY
The graph below shows the overall bottom five marketing investments,
broken down by industry.
Bottom 6 Investments by Industry
100%
The tactics employed do vary by industry. The graph below shows the overall
top five marketing investments, broken down by industry.
Percentage of Respondents
Top 5 Investments by Industry
100%
Percentage of Respondents
90%
Online Advertising/
Media Placement
80%
70%
50%
80%
Traditional Ads
70%
60%
SEO
50%
40%
Marketing Automation/
Lead Management
30%
20%
Email Marketing
10%
0%
Content Creation
60%
Telemarketing
90%
Trade Shows/Events
Social Media
40%
30%
Website Design &
Optimization
20%
10%
Industry
Branding/PR
0%
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Here are the statistics that stand out from this data set:
Industry
• Financial Services companies list Marketing Automation as a top
investment, which is 73% higher than other industries.
Demand Generation Benchmark Report, 2015
Here are a few key takeaways:
• The Travel and Tourism industry lists online advertising as a top
investment, which is 75% more than other industries.
• Both software companies and manufacturers list trade shows as one
of their top marketing tactics, ranking them significantly higher than
companies in other industries.
• Social media, while ranked an important investment overall, holds even
more weight for marketing agencies, with over half of them considering
it their top investment.
• The Telecommunications industry is one of the only fields still ranking
telemarketing and traditional advertising among their most important
tactics. It should also be noted, though, that 24% of telecommunications
companies aren’t reaching their revenue goals, which is 20% higher than
the average.
• Content creation is a top investment for 43% of Information Technology
companies, which is 54% more than other industries.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
32
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
33
SUMMARY OF RESULTS
LOOKING TO GENERATE
MORE DEMAND?
From all of this data, what can you hope to take away that will be useful in
shaping your own marketing strategy for the future? First, content creation,
social media, and website design and optimization have continually proven
to be the most effective for demand generation. Traditional outbound
methods, which have been marketing staples for decades, are losing
popularity as they become less successful.
Learn More About HubSpot’s
All-in-One Marketing Platform
HubSpot provides you with all the tools and resources you need to attract,
convert, close, and delight customers, all in one easy-to-use platform.
HubSpot can help you exceed your goals and benchmarks. Learn more
about inbound marketing, explore the tools we have to offer, or talk to a
specialist today.
Companies exceeding their revenue goals generate significantly more
website visits, leads, MQLs, sales opportunities, and customers than those
that don’t. Attracting the right type of traffic to your website and generating
the right type of leads is important, as is nurturing those leads to become
MQLs, opportunities, and eventually customers. Companies that meet or
exceed their revenue goals also show somewhat higher email open and clickthrough rates.
These benchmarks don’t vary greatly by industry or company size. True,
there’s some variation. Certain industries do better in certain areas, such as
the financial industry’s success at website traffic. And in terms of company
size, the very smallest companies have smaller numbers, and the very largest
ones have the biggest numbers, but for the vast majority in the middle, the
numbers are mostly the same.
Perhaps the most important takeaway, though, is that monitoring and
understanding these factors is a major contributing factor to overall success.
In general, the less companies knew about their KPIs, the less likely they
were to meet their revenue goals.
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
Landing Pages
Forms
Lead
Management
Email
Marketing
Automation
Analytics
Salesforce
Sync
Social Inbox
Blogging
Schedule a demo
34
HUBSPOT • Demand Generation Report • 2015
35