Another LeadsCon is in the books, and 2026 definitely delivered on the "future" vibe, and there was plenty to process.
As we settle back into the office, we wanted to share the team’s takeaways from the conference that actually matter for your lead gen business this year.
1. Ping Data Theft Is Becoming A Problem
One of the more unsettling trends discussed this year is the rise of ping data theft. We heard several stories of industry players "scraping" or intercepting ping data to call leads before they were even sold.
If a platform sends a full phone number (or enough identifiable data) during the ping process, that lead could be used by someone with the wrong intentions. It can be a breach of trust that hurts the consumer and the buyer. We believe that pings should not contain PII, so that you’re not able to identify or reach out to that person unless you are the one that bought the lead.
2. The Insurance Knowledge Gap
Based on our insurance-specific conversations, something became clear to us: Many agency owners are struggling to scale.
While many are experts at closing local referrals, there is a lack of knowledge about buying leads at scale. Moving from a handful of leads to high-volume distribution requires a completely different mindset. We noticed a major need for education on:
- Lead Filtering: Understanding which attributes actually drive ROI versus what just looks good on paper.
- Speed to Lead: Implementing the automation necessary to hit a lead the second it’s generated.
- Diversification: Learning how to balance real-time inbound calls with aged lead sets.
3. AI: The Difference Between "Saying" and "Doing"
It wouldn’t be 2026 without every booth claiming they are "AI-powered." However, not everything that says they’re AI actually is.
- The Reality: People are successfully using AI to research and analyze market trends and competitor pricing.
- The Hype: Every company "says" they are using AI for reporting insights, routing optimization, and forecasting. Yet, when pushed, most could only explain it anecdotally.
Saying and doing are two different things. While AI has incredible potential, much of what’s being marketed right now is just standard logic-based routing with a fancy new label. If a partner can't explain the math behind their "AI insights," proceed with caution.
4. Closing the Feedback Loop is Non-Negotiable
The most successful players we spoke with all close the feedback loop. Without conversion data coming back from the buyer to the seller, you don’t know what happens when data leaves your hands. You can’t optimize your marketing spend or your routing logic if you don’t know which leads actually turned into a sale. If you aren’t integrating disposition data back into your lead flow, you’re leaving your profit margins to chance.
5. Final Thought: Robot Dogs are Awesome
We have to give a shout-out to the robot dog roaming the event. It was a crowd-pleaser and a great reminder that while we spend all day looking at data and lead flows, the technology itself is becoming more impressive by the day.
2026 is the year of transparency. Whether it’s being honest about what your AI actually does or being vigilant about your data security, people are seeing the truth in thing, so it’s better to do the right thing and show it instead of trying to get away with nefarioius behavior.
What was your biggest takeaway from the show? If you’re looking to secure your pings or finally bridge that insurance scaling gap, let’s chat!
