Framework · Personal Injury Growth
The Cost Per Signed Case Review Framework
Lead volume doesn't grow a firm. Signed cases do. This is the framework we use to set a real MVA lead standard, anchor on honest cost benchmarks, and audit cost per signed case end to end, so your budget flows to what actually converts.
By Jacob Medina · 7 min read
Start with a lead standard
Most firms argue about cost per lead before they've ever defined what a lead is. A review framework only works if everyone agrees on the standard a source has to meet before its numbers count. Here's the baseline we hold every MVA source to.
Exclusive, not shared
A real lead is routed to one firm only. Shared and resold leads collapse contact rates before intake ever picks up the phone.
Real-time delivery
Speed-to-lead is the single biggest driver of contact rate. The standard is seconds, not hours, with your firm reaching the claimant first.
Contactable and US-sourced
Valid numbers, accurate geo, and accident context. A lead that can't be reached is not a lead, it's a line item.
Compliance-minded
TCPA-aware, privacy-conscious handling that respects consent and the claimant experience from the first touch.
Anchor on cost benchmarks
Use these as directional ranges, not guarantees. Your geo, injury mix, intake speed, and follow-up discipline move every one of them.
Exclusive MVA cost per lead
$275 – $450+
Climbs with market, accident type, injury severity, timeframe, and how many filters you require.
Contact rate (fast, exclusive)
55 – 65%+
Real-time exclusive delivery plus disciplined follow-up consistently outperforms aged or shared data.
Lead-to-signed-case rate
10 – 15%+
A benchmark range, not a guarantee. Intake discipline and source quality move it more than volume.
Target cost per signed case
$2,000 – $3,000
The number that actually matters. Higher cost per lead still wins when exclusivity and speed produce more signed cases.
The CPA formula at the center
Cost per signed case = (cost per lead) ÷ (contact rate × sign rate)
A $325 exclusive lead at a 60% contact rate and a 15% sign rate of those contacted lands near $3,600 per signed case before optimization, and tightens fast as intake speed and follow-up improve. A $120 shared lead at a 30% contact rate and a 10% sign rate lands in the same neighborhood, except now you're racing several firms to the same claimant and burning intake on dead numbers. The framework forces you to compare sources on this number, not the sticker price.
The CPA review framework, step by step
- 1. Define your standard — Write down what a qualifying lead actually is for your firm: geo, accident type, injury threshold, exclusivity, and delivery speed. You can't measure CPA against a moving target.
- 2. Anchor on benchmarks — Compare each source against directional benchmarks for cost per lead, contact rate, and sign rate, not just the sticker price per lead.
- 3. Audit the funnel math — Run cost per signed case = (cost per lead) ÷ (contact rate × sign rate). A cheap lead that never converts is the most expensive line in your budget.
- 4. Track disposition — Tag every lead outcome so spend flows to sources that produce signed cases. Without disposition feedback, optimization is guesswork.
- 5. Replace and scale — Cut sources that miss the standard, and scale the ones beating your target CPA. Review on a fixed cadence, not by gut feel.
Results vary by market, intake speed, follow-up discipline, and campaign conditions. RevvX is a lead-generation partner, not a law firm, and does not guarantee case volume or outcomes.
Run the review on your own sources
Book a free 15-minute MVA growth review. We'll apply this framework to your current sources and the gaps driving up your cost per signed case.