"We need more leads."
Maybe. But probably not. Most businesses don't have a lead problem. They have a conversion, delivery, or follow-up problem. More leads just expose the cracks faster.
Here's the bottleneck test:
If you got 10 new customers tomorrow, what would break?
Your honest answer reveals where to focus.
- "We couldn't schedule them all" → Scheduling system
- "We don't have enough techs" → Hiring/training process
- "We'd lose track of them" → CRM/project management
- "We wouldn't know if we're profitable" → Financial tracking
- "Half wouldn't show up" → Confirmation/reminder system
More customers amplify existing problems. Fix the constraint first. Then scale.
Automation helps you handle growth without breaking things.
But only if you automate the right constraint.