The 12-point lead-intake leak checklist I run before automating anything

GhostCoder6969 — Wed, 09 Sep 2026 14:47:38 +0000

Before I automate any lead intake — mine or a client's — I score the existing funnel first. Twelve checks, 0 (broken/missing), 1 (partial/manual), 2 (automated + logged). Max 24. Anything I can't verify gets a 0; hopeful answers don't count.

Speed (0–6)

A new web-form lead reaches a human or queue in under 5 minutes, nights and weekends included.
Lead-ad leads flow automatically — no CSV download + import step.
You can name the slowest source and by how long it lags.

Assignment and routing (0–6)

Every lead gets an owner automatically (round-robin, territory, or intent rule). None sit unassigned.
Hot leads trigger an instant alert (Slack/SMS), not just a CRM row.
After-hours leads have a defined path, not "we'll see it Monday".

Data quality (0–6)

Duplicates impossible by construction (search-before-create on email) — not "we merge weekly".
Invalid emails rejected at intake with an error log — not silently dropped, not silently stored.
Every record carries source + timestamp + consent basis.

Follow-through (0–6)

An untouched-lead SLA exists (e.g. 2h) with escalation when breached.
No-reply sequences are templated + human-approved, never fully auto-sent.
One dashboard answers: received / contacted / qualified / lost — plus where each loss happened.

Reading your score

20–24: tight operation. An audit buys you the error-branch and scoring layer only.
12–19: the sweet spot — 1–2 recovered deals a month typically pays for a $998–$4,500 build.
0–11: fix assignment and SLA before buying any AI scoring. Scoring a leaking funnel wastes money — I'd rather tell you that on a call than sell you a build.

Try three test leads yourself

I put the same rules in a public in-browser demo (test data only, nothing leaves the page): a good lead gets created + scored, a bad email returns HTTP 400 with an error log, and a repeat submit merges instead of duplicating — https://ghostcoder6969.github.io/lead-intake-automation-demo/ — with the workflow file and a sample run log in the repo.

Full disclosure, same as my last post: no clients yet, which is why the demo, the files, and a fix-or-refund guarantee are public instead of testimonials. I do fixed-price intake builds and a $79 DIY starter pack. If any checklist item reads wrong to you, say so in the comments and I'll fix the post.

Same test lead in Zapier vs Make vs n8n: what actually differs (2026 prices)

GhostCoder6969 — Wed, 09 Sep 2026 12:26:43 +0000

I ran the same fictitious test lead through three stacks and compared what it actually costs at 1,000 leads/month.

Test lead: {name: Jane, email: jane.test@example.com, message: "Need follow-up for 40 open-house leads/mo"}. Flow in all three: webhook → validate → dedupe by email → CRM create → score → Slack alert → log. Success = CRM record + priority alert; failure = HTTP 400 + error log, nothing silent.

Measured: n8n self-hosted

~1 hour to build the 6-node flow (workflow file).
$0 marginal runtime at 1k leads/mo on an already-provisioned VPS (log disk use TBD after 30 days live — estimate until then).
Failure behavior proven live in the demo: bad email → HTTP 400 + error log, duplicate → merge.
You own upgrades, backups, monitoring: honest ~1–2h/month (my estimate).

Cited: Zapier (official machine-readable pricing ref, updated 2026-09-09)

Each successful action step = 1 task; triggers, polling, and built-ins (Filter/Paths/Formatter) = 0. This flow ≈ 4–5 tasks per lead.
Free = 100 tasks/mo and two-step zaps only — this multi-step flow REQUIRES Pro.
Pro 750 tasks = $19.99/mo annual ($29.99 monthly); Pro 5,000 = $89/mo annual.
Per-1k math: 120 leads/mo ≈ 600 tasks → 750 tier; 1,000 leads/mo ≈ 5,000 tasks → $89/mo annual.
Polling 15 min Free / 2 min Pro (webhooks instant on paid).

Cited: Make (official page + 3 corroborating 2026 guides, prices as a band)

Billing unit is credits (renamed from operations in Aug 2025); most actions = 1 credit.
Free = 1,000 credits/mo, 2 scenarios, 15-min interval. Core/Pro/Teams all base 10,000 credits/mo (~$12/$21/$38 annual) — tiers add features, not volume.
This flow ≈ 5–6 credits/lead → 1,000 leads ≈ 5–6k credits → Core tier suffices.

Cited: CRM API limits (bind none of the three at SMB volume)

HubSpot private apps: 100 req/10s burst (Free/Starter), 190 (Pro/Enterprise); daily 250k–1M (official docs).
Pipedrive: burst by plan + daily token budget (official docs).
GoHighLevel V2: 100/10s, 200k/day/location, no batch endpoints for most resources (secondary source — treat as approximate).
Practical edge: HubSpot batch endpoints (100 records/call) matter for migrations, not per-lead intake.

My take (opinion)

Zapier if the team already lives there, <500 leads/mo, and nobody wants infra. Pay per run for zero maintenance.
Make if visual routing and error handling matter and someone technical exists.
n8n self-hosted if per-run pricing stings, you want the workflow file in git, and someone owns the box.

Full disclosure: no clients yet on my side — that's exactly why the demo, the workflow file, and a fix-or-refund guarantee are public. I do fixed-price intake builds ($998–$4,500) and a $79 DIY starter pack for teams with someone technical. Happy to be corrected on any figure above — SaaS pricing moves, and I'll update the post.

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