Where the money goes
Most installers can tell you their cost per lead. Fewer can tell you what a signed customer costs once lead fees, the rep’s commission, and cancelled contracts are added together. Those numbers live in different systems, owned by different people, so nobody sees the total.
The lead invoice goes to marketing. The commission goes through payroll. Cancellations show up months later in operations. Each looks reasonable on its own.
A lead you share is a lead you discount
Most vendors sell the same homeowner to several installers. By the time your rep calls, the homeowner has already heard three pitches, and the conversation starts at price. The lead cost is only the entry fee. The real cost is the margin you give up to win a race you didn’t choose.
The commission stack sets your price
When most of the acquisition cost is commission, it doesn’t fall as you grow. Every new customer costs roughly what the last one did. Owned channels work the other way. The brand, the reviews, and the search presence you built last year keep producing this year, at no extra cost.
How to see the real number
Start with signed contracts, not leads. For each one, trace the first touch, add the lead fee, the commission, and a share of cancellations, and total it by channel. Our calculator does the arithmetic with your own inputs.
What to change first
Speed to lead and follow-up discipline usually pay back first, because they improve the leads you already pay for. Owned channels take longer, and they’re what changes the curve.