Lead Generation: What It Is, Importance, Example

What Is Lead Generation?

By Keith Noonan – Updated Nov 14, 2025 at 1:40 AM EST

Key Points

Lead generation helps businesses find potential customers, crucial for growth.
There are two main types: outbound reaches out directly, inbound attracts customers.
Effective targeting in lead generation strategies can enhance business success.

Even if a business offers top-notch products or services, it will struggle if it's not able to reach and attract customers. Because of this, lead generation is a central to success for most businesses.

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Person using a telephone on a desk. — Image Source: Getty Images

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Marketing

Marketing is a way for companies to reach out and speak directly to their current and future customers, including potential investors.

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Through the search service, businesses can pay to have their links promoted in search queries or try to foster inbound lead generation by hosting valuable information that attracts potential customers. By building profiles that include relevant user information, Google can estimate whether a person is a viable sales lead for a given product. The search engine is one of the world's most important tools and destinations for lead generation, and it plays a huge role in shaping the digital advertising industry and determining what content is seen and interacted with around the web.

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About the Author

Keith Noonan is a contributing writer at The Motley Fool covering technology, consumer goods, and other sectors. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Boston College.

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Keith Noonan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.