Your most valuable lead source

The most difficult part of Doubling Your Business is generating high-value leads.

Most of us started by knowing how to paint, but not how to network or market in order to attract high-value leads.

So, we started out working for builders & GCs.

In the beginning, we thought this was great because these builders could keep us busy.

More recently, new companies are getting started with paid leads.

They also feel good about this, at first, because they are kept busy running around estimating for these low-value leads.

But after a while, they find that they are still broke.

There’s nothing worse than being busy and broke.

Finally, you see the value and figure out how to start generating direct-to-customer referrals through some networking.

This is Step 5 in the DYB System

While referrals from networking are much better leads than from GCs and Paid leads, which are a racket,Here is your most valuable lead source

And, it’s right under your nose.

Most people hustle so hard after new leads, that they forget about the list of raving fans that they already have.

Your customer list.

Hustle smarter, not harder.
I read once that it’s 500% cheaper to generate business from your customer list than it is to get a new lead.

In principle, I agree.

Step 9 in the DYB System is: Staying Top of Mind

This is your forgotten goldmine.

Here are the top 4 ways to stay top of mind without pinging them with ads and discounts.

But first, understand that they are already raving fans.

You don’t need to sell them.

Just stay top of mind.

To do this, use the acronym GIE:

  • Gratitude
  • Inspiration
  • Entertainment

Every time you reach out to them, send them a communication of either gratitude, inspiration, or entertainment (GIE).The Top 4 Ways to Stay Top of Mind

1. Connect with them on social via your personal profiles.

People want to connect with people, not businesses or logos.

And when you reach out to them to connect, don’t ask them to “follow you”. You’re not the Messiah.

Instead, invite them to “connect”. 🙂

2. The second way to stay top of mind is with email newsletters.

I know, I know, email newsletters are boring!

Just don’t be boring.

Make sure they are GIE. No discounts, sales, or coupons.

By the way, this is one marketing function that you should delegate.

Your time is way too valuable to be thinking of GIE ideas to write, design, and then send out every month.

That’s why April and her team at DYB Virtual offer a fantastic monthly newsletter service packed full of gratitude, inspiration, & entertainment for just $75 a month. Check it out here.


“Delegate to elevate.” – Dan Sullivan

3. The third way to stay top of mind is to send them a nice Hallmark-style card in the mail at least every 3 months.

This is how Joe Girard became the World’s Greatest Salesman in the Guinness Book of World Records: he sent every one of his customers a card, every month.

They never forgot about him, and ushered in a flood of referrals and repeat business for years.We recommend a site called SendOutCards for this.

It’s about $2.50 a card and well worth it. (Remember, GIE, no coupons, discounts, or sales.

4. The fourth way to stay top of mind is to call 2 customers a day.

Keep a list of your top customers in your phone’s contacts labels as “A Customers”.

Every day as your drive around town, just call 2 of them.

When you call them, remember that they hired you because they liked you.

It wasn’t just transactional for them.

Let them know that you’re just calling to say hi and to see how they are doing.

Then let the conversation takes its natural course from there.

To recap:

Your most valuable lead source is your customer list.

If you stay top of mind with them using GIE messaging, you’ll generate endless high-value referrals and repeat business.

You do this by:

  • Connecting on social
  • 2 phone calls a day
  • Email newsletters monthly
  • Mailing out cards quarterly

About the Author

As many of you know, my journey has been one of grit, grace, and transformation. At 19, I was a high school dropout, single father, and struggling paint contractor in Michigan. I later moved to Florida, where I faced both personal and professional hardships. With nothing left to lose, I turned to prayer—and was blessed with a relentless hunger to learn. I devoured books, attended seminars, and discovered better ways to streamline and grow my business—even through the Great Recession (and yes, I did hit the wife lottery along the way!). In 2014, I published How To Double Your Business and later sold the painting business, launching a new chapter: coaching others to grow their businesses. For the past 10 years, I’ve dedicated myself to helping business owners scale through the DYB System, while also drawing from frameworks like EOS, Scaling Up, and The Four Disciplines of Execution. Yet something was still missing—something more adaptive, integrated, and complete. Then I found Pinnacle. After months of research and interviews with other Guides, I joined Pinnacle. Their tools and strategies have exceeded every expectation. Now, as a Pinnacle Business Guide, I help leadership teams implement a custom-tailored operating system that draws from the best in the industry—but flexes with your unique business. It’s a dynamic, proven approach to achieve clarity, momentum, and lasting growth. I’m no longer taking on any more 1:1 coaching clients… Instead, I now specialize in working with visionary business owners who are ready to get their leadership teams aligned—around a clear vision, a focused strategy, and an actionable execution plan. With the tools and process I now have as a Pinnacle Business Guide, I help turn alignment into momentum, and momentum into results. If your business is growing—but your leadership team isn’t fully rowing in the same direction—let’s talk.

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