How to choose client acquisition channels: a simple scoring system
Why most companies spread their marketing too thin, and a five-criteria scoring model to pick the 3–5 channels that will bring the most clients for your business.
Ruslan Yurchenko · 2026-10-27 · 3 min read
Who this guide is for
For owners and managers of established companies — manufacturers, retail chains, wholesalers, B2B service providers — who already have clients and want more of them without spreading budget and attention across dozens of activities.
The problem: too many channels, too little focus
A typical company is "a bit present" everywhere: a website nobody updates, an Instagram account with irregular posts, an occasional ad campaign, a trade fair once a year. Each activity takes time, none gets enough attention to work properly, and nobody can say which one actually brings orders.
The solution is not to do more, but to choose fewer channels deliberately and do them well.
Step 1. List where your current clients come from
Before looking for new channels, look at the last 20–30 clients:
- How did they first hear about you?
- What made them contact you?
- How long did it take from first contact to first order?
Often you find that 60–80% of clients came through two or three routes — referrals, Google, one trade fair. These are your proven channels.
Step 2. Collect candidate channels
Use our catalogue of 12 channel groups and write down every channel that could plausibly reach your buyers. For a manufacturer this might be LinkedIn, industry directories, trade fairs, partnerships with distributors and product landing pages. For a supermarket chain: Google Maps, reviews, local communities and a loyalty programme.
Step 3. Score each channel on five criteria
Give each channel 1 to 5 points per criterion:
| Criterion | Question |
|---|---|
| Fit with the client | Are your buyers really present and active here? |
| Expected impact | How many qualified enquiries can it bring in 3–6 months? |
| Cost & effort | How much budget, time and skill does it need? (5 = little) |
| Speed | How quickly will you see first measurable results? |
| Sustainability | Can your team run it after training, without external help? |
Add up the points. Channels with the highest totals are your candidates — but check the result against common sense and the facts from Step 1.
Step 4. Test before you scale
For the top 3–5 channels, plan a small experiment of 4–8 weeks. Write down in advance:
- what exactly you will do,
- what it will cost (money and hours),
- what result you expect (e.g. 10 qualified enquiries),
- how you will measure it.
After the test, decide: scale, adjust or stop. Keep these decisions in an experiment log — after a few months it becomes your most valuable marketing document.
Step 5. Assign an owner and KPIs
A channel without a responsible person stops working within weeks. For each selected channel define who runs it, how many hours per week it gets and which two or three numbers are reviewed monthly.
Typical mistakes
- Choosing channels because competitors use them. Your buyers and margins may be different.
- Measuring reach instead of enquiries. Views and likes do not pay salaries.
- Stopping too early. Search, reviews and partnerships often need 2–3 months before results show.
- Running too many tests at once. You won't know what caused the effect.
Next step
If you want an external view of your channels, we do this as part of our growth audit: in 2–3 weeks you get a scored channel map and a 90-day plan for your company.