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01 — The Business02 — What's Broken03 — The Growth Plan04 — Making Marc the Authority05 — The 4,50006 — The 20,00007 — The Arsenal08 — How We Operate09 — How We Keep Score10 — Day One
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How We Keep Score

How We Keep Score — Ernest Gilmore × MWA
Section 09
How We
Keep Score
Every decision I make runs through one filter: does this move MWA from 150–240 cases per month to 180–288? That number lives on my dashboard, my scorecard, and every vendor conversation I have. Here are the specific metrics — by practice area, by channel, by vendor, and by initiative — that tell me whether we’re winning or losing, every Tuesday at 9 AM.
“The metrics you choose to track are a statement of what you actually care about. Every number on this scorecard was chosen because it connects directly to a signed case — nothing else earns a spot on the Tuesday dashboard.”
— Ernest Gilmore
180–288
Cases / month target
$2M+
Budget under management
3
CPCase targets tracked
4
Vendor scorecards
Weekly
Level 10 reporting cadence
The Primary Metric — Everything Else Is Context
180–288
cases per month.

Current baseline: 150–240 cases per month. 2026 target: 180–288 — a 20% increase tracked monthly by practice area and weekly at the Level 10. This is the only number that matters. Every CPL, every CPCase, every vendor scorecard, every initiative metric exists to explain whether we’re on track to hit this number or not.

I don’t manage to impressions, clicks, or open rates. I manage to signed cases. Those other metrics are signals — early warning systems that tell me whether a channel is working before the case volume data confirms it. But the case count is the truth.

20%
Annual growth target — 2026
Baseline 150–240 → Target 180–288 / month
Weekly
Signup tracking cadence
Monthly trend analysis + weekly pulse at Level 10
3 areas
Tracked by practice area
SSD · VA · LTD · Elder Law (data collection)
1,948
Annual pace at current trajectory
Target: 2,160–3,456 annually by year-end
Q1
Current gap to close
487 YTD · Need 540 by March 31 · Gap: 53 cases
Financial Performance
Cost per case.
The number that proves ROI.

Cost per lead tells me if a channel is efficient. Cost per case tells me if it’s profitable. These are different questions and they require different data sources. CPL comes from Google Ads, CallRail, and HubSpot. CPCase requires connecting that CPL data to signed cases in Salesforce — which is why the full attribution stack has to be working correctly before any of these numbers can be trusted.

The three CPCase targets below are not aspirational. They’re minimums. If LTD is running at $2,140 CPCase against a $1,667 target, that’s not a watch item — that’s a crisis that already has a gate attached to it. Every number below has a specific action triggered when it goes off target. I don’t wait for the quarterly review to notice.

S
Social Security Disability · 35% Budget
SSD — Primary Growth Engine
Target CPCase ≤ $400
Current CPCase $438
Minimum ROI 8.5 : 1
Avg case value $3,000–3,400
Target CPL $25–40
Conversion target 10–12%
Lead volume target +30–40%
Watch: CPCase at $438 — 9.5% above target. PPC bid audit underway. Primary growth engine must stay in range while scaling.
V
Veterans Administration · 20% Budget
VA — The Conversion Fix
Target CPCase $500–600
Current CPCase $612
Minimum ROI 10 : 1
Avg case value $6,000
Target CPL $25–35
Current conversion 6%
Target conversion 8–10%
Fix: 9-touch pre-filing HubSpot sequence live Day 10. Measure at Day 45. Target: 6% → 8%+ at zero additional budget.
L
Long Term Disability · 45% Budget
LTD — Gate Active
Target CPCase ≤ $1,667
Current CPCase $2,140
Minimum ROI 6 : 1
Avg case value $10K–$50K+
Target CPL $125–200
Conversion target 10–12%
Decision point April 18
Crisis: CPCase at $2,140 — 28% above target. Hennessy 60-day gate active. Decision: stay or replace at Day 60 checkpoint.
Cost Per Lead by Channel — Current vs. Target
ChannelSSD Target CPLVA Target CPLLTD Target CPLCurrent StatusAction
PPC — Google Ads
Hennessy Digital
$25–40 $25–35 $125–200 ✕ All Over 60-day gate active
Organic / SEO
DisabilityDenials.com
$0 (organic) $0 (organic) $0 (organic) ⚠ Volume ↓33% AIEO restructure
TV — Houston Market
Roux Advertising
Blended Halo Halo Measuring CallRail halo numbers live
Attorney Referrals
4,500 network
Relationship Relationship Relationship ✓ 13.4% conv. Maintain + Mastermind
Client Referrals
20,000+ database
Automated Automated Automated ✓ 12.1% conv. Post-win sequence build
Hispanic Market
Facebook / Instagram
TBD baseline TBD baseline TBD baseline Wk 6 Launch Month 1–3: establish CPL
Channel Performance
What I track
by channel.

Each channel has its own performance language. PPC speaks in CPL and Quality Score. Organic speaks in CTR and AI citation share. TV speaks in direct response volume and brand search lift. Attorney referrals speak in referral count and conversion rate. I don’t run every channel through the same KPI framework — I run each channel through the metrics that actually measure whether it’s doing its job.

What they all have in common: every metric connects back to cost per case. A great CTR that doesn’t produce cases isn’t a win. A high CPL that produces cases at target CPCase is acceptable. The attribution chain has to be intact for any of these numbers to mean anything — which is why the HubSpot audit and CallRail verification happen before anything else.

Digital / SEO
DisabilityDenials.com
Organic lead volumevs. prior month
Impressions (GSC)holding / declining
Click-through rateAI interception signal
AI citation auditMonthly · 3 tools
Branded search volumeGSC monthly delta
Conversion rate by pageHubSpot tracked
Paid Search
PPC — Hennessy Digital
CPL by practice areavs. $25–200 targets
Quality Score avgCampaign level
Search term waste %Weekly audit
Impression shareCompetitive position
Conversion trackingvs. CallRail actual
60-day gate progressCPL trend by week
Television
TV — Roux Advertising
SSD direct calls (CallRail)Per flight
VA halo callsNew · vanity number
LTD halo callsNew · vanity number
Brand search liftPre/post flight GSC
Monthly ROI analysisDirect + halo blended
Creative rotation statusQuarterly review
Referral Networks
Attorney + Client
Attorney referrals / weekvs. 290/qtr pace
Top 10 referrersMonthly Frequent Flyer
Dormant attorney flags30–60 day silence
Client referral countvs. 15% of total target
Post-win referral rateWon cases → referral %
Referral conv. rateAttorney 13.4% · Client 12.1%
PR & Brand
Bucaram PR Group
Media placementsCount + authority tier
Speaking engagementsConfirmed / quarter
Branded search liftGSC delta post-placement
AI citation shareMonthly audit · 3 tools
Referral attribution30 days post-speaking
6-month renewal gateDay 120 report
Hispanic Market
Paid Social — Week 6
CPL baseline (Mo 1–3)Establishing
Conversion rate (Mo 4–6)Target: 10–12%
Case volume contribution5–10% by year-end
Creative A/B performance3 angles tested
Landing page conv. rateSpanish page vs. EN
Scale decisionMonth 7 checkpoint
Vendor Performance Standards
What each vendor
is accountable for.

Vendor accountability starts with clear expectations. A vendor can’t be held to a standard that was never written down. Each of the four vendors has a defined expectation set — specific enough that underperformance is measurable, not debatable. These aren’t the vendor’s goals. They’re mine. The vendor either meets them or we have a conversation.

The accountability mechanism is the same for all four: monthly scorecard presented at the Level 10, quarterly vendor review, and a clear decision gate if performance isn’t improving on the defined timeline. No vendor surprises Marc with news I should have caught first.

Hennessy Digital
SEO / PPC · $454K annual · 60-day gate active
The vendor under the most scrutiny. PPC performance is the primary accountability lever — and the 60-day gate gives Hennessy a specific window with specific milestones. SEO maintenance is a secondary expectation: the AI search decline is not entirely Hennessy’s failure, but the AIEO restructure strategy is their responsibility to execute on pages I identify.
Improve PPC CPL to meet cost-per-case targets within 90 days — written milestones per practice area
Develop and execute AIEO content strategy for top 20 DisabilityDenials.com pages
Maintain national expansion readiness — content strategy, geographic tracking, keyword mapping
Monthly performance reviews with specific optimization recommendations — not just reports
Attribution accuracy — Google Ads conversion data must reconcile against CallRail and HubSpot
Proactive flagging — Hennessy tells me about problems before I find them in the data
Roux Advertising
TV Campaign · $400K annual · Halo attribution building
A strong vendor relationship that needs better measurement infrastructure. The halo attribution model is the primary new expectation — Roux needs to work with me on building a measurement framework that shows the cross-practice impact of the TV investment. Direct SSD lead efficiency is the baseline expectation that’s already being met.
Maintain direct SSD lead generation efficiency — CallRail-tracked volume and conversion rate
Collaborate on halo attribution methodology — unique tracking numbers per flight, pre/post brand search
Optimize creative messaging for maximum brand impact — quarterly creative rotation review
Quarterly ROI analysis including cross-practice benefits — LTD and VA halo contribution
30-day notification on all flight schedule changes, budget adjustments, or market shifts
The Vault
Print / Mail / Gifting · Operational backbone
The vendor relationship with the highest operational criticality and the lowest drama. The Vault’s job is to deliver on time, at quality, without surprises. When the quarterly client newsletter arrives late, 20,000 client relationships feel it. My expectation is simple: nothing misses, nothing surprises, and any issue gets flagged 30 days before it becomes a problem.
On-time delivery of all newsletters — client quarterly, Barrister bi-monthly — zero missed cycles
Quality execution of attorney gifting program — correct gifts, correct timing, correct recipients
Cost efficiency maintained — no surprise cost increases without 30-day advance notice
Attorney postcard campaigns executed on schedule — 3x annually, correct list, correct design
Proactive communication — any production issue or supply delay flagged immediately
Bucaram PR Group
Public Relations · $3,500–5,000/month · 6-month initial term
The newest vendor relationship with the least established baseline. Month 1–2 is about integration: Bianca needs the marketing calendar, the messaging hierarchy, and the target publication list before she can pitch effectively. From Month 3 forward, I expect measurable placements and a growing attribution story.
Establish baseline metrics for PR impact on lead generation and brand awareness — Month 1–2
Deliver media placements — TV, radio, print, online — with authority-weighted tracking
Coordinate speaking opportunities — bar associations, medical events, industry panels
Integrate PR activities with marketing calendar — no PR moves that contradict campaign messaging
6-month attribution report — placements, brand search lift, AI citation audit, renewal recommendation
Initiative Scorecards
How each growth initiative
gets measured.

Every growth initiative has its own success metrics — specific enough that I know at 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days whether it’s working. Vague success criteria are how initiatives run indefinitely without producing results. Each initiative below has a defined measurement timeline, a specific checkpoint metric, and a decision threshold: if the metric doesn’t hit the checkpoint by the defined date, we make a decision — don’t drift.

Initiative 01
SSD Scalability Drive
Lead volume growth target+30–40%
CPCase maintenance while scaling≤ $400
Geographic expansion (content)5 new states Q2
YouTube video production20+ by Q3
TV halo attribution modelLive by Day 30
Conversion rate maintenance10–12%
Initiative 02
Hispanic Market Launch
Launch dateWeek 6
Month 1–3: CPL baselineEstablishing
Month 4–6: Conversion rateTarget 10–12%
Year-end case contribution5–10% of total
Scale decision checkpointMonth 7
Test budget$7,500/month
Initiative 03
Medical Professional Network
New relationships per quarter25–50
LTD cases from network / qtr2–5
First contacts identified25 by Day 60
Speaking engagementsMedical events Q2
Relationship development cycle6–12 months accepted
Long-term value trackingHubSpot CRM
Initiative 04
National Digital Expansion
State-by-state lead trackingLive Q1
Blog production cadence8+ posts/month
National keyword rankingsMonthly GSC report
YouTube channel growth20+ videos by Q3
National PPC gateTX CPL on target first
GMB reviews per location100+ target Q4
Initiative 05
VA Lead Nurture — The Free Win
Sequence launchDay 10
Day 45 conversion checkpoint≥7% trending
Target conversion improvement6% → 8–10%
Additional cases per month+15–18
Email open rate target25–35%
Additional budget required$0
All Initiatives
The Unifying Filter
Primary success criterionCases → 180–288/mo
Q1 checkpoint540 cases by Mar 31
Q2 checkpointHispanic + VA data
Q3 checkpointMedical + national
Q4 target180–288 confirmed
Reporting cadenceWeekly Level 10
2026 Annual Growth Target — Live Tracker
180–288 cases per month
by December 2026. Here’s where we stand.
SSD cases
112 / mo
VA cases
47 / mo
LTD cases
35 / mo
Total vs. target
194 / 288
Cases YTD
487
Jan–Mar 2026 · Annual pace ~1,948
Q1 Target Pace
540
Needed by March 31 · Gap: 53 cases
VA Conversion
6.4%
Target 8–10% · Fix launches Day 10
Hispanic Launch
Week 6
On schedule · $7,500/month test
The Scorecard Principle
Every metric on this page
exists to answer one question:
are we winning?
If a metric doesn’t connect to a signed case, it doesn’t earn a spot on the Tuesday dashboard. That’s not a philosophy — it’s a filter. And it’s what keeps the Level 10 meeting focused on what actually matters: the 180–288 number and whether we’re on track to hit it by December.
See the Live Scorecard  →