In a competitive marketplace, not every lead is created equal. Some leads are ready to buy, while others may just be window shopping. The task of the sales and marketing teams is to determine which leads should be followed up with immediately and which require additional nurturing activities. This is where lead scoring comes in.
In this blog post, we will cover what lead scoring is, the definition of lead scoring, various lead scoring models, and walk you through a step-by-step process for scoring leads. By the end of this blog, you will also see how a lead qualification process can work for your organization to help improve your conversions and sales efficiency.
What is lead scoring?
Lead scoring is a method utilised by marketing and sales to allocate a score (i.e., a number) on the likelihood of the lead becoming an actual customer. This score is created based on identifying leads using a number of criteria such as demographics, involvement and engagement, online behaviour and other interactions with your brand.
What a lead score means is that it allows your team to prioritize and rank prospective customers which can then help your team understand exactly where they should tend their time and energy, and given a lead a score of above a predetermined threshold means they are more serious buyers compared to lower scoring leads which means you may have to churn them along through your email campaigns and perhaps retargeting a different piece of content.
Defining Lead Scoring
A methodical way to evaluate and rank future potential buyers against how closely they look like your ideal buyer profile and how interested they appear to be in your goods or services.
Most often, businesses use lead scoring based on a score of some type of scoring scale (0 – 100) to choose how “sales-ready” their lead is. A lead scoring system serves marketing and sales to help them both have alignment on which leads may take a second priority and feel confident that they are both working towards converting qualified prospects.
Why lead scoring matters?
When there is no lead scoring, sales teams spend too much time pursuing leads who are not likely to buy and may ignore leads who will buy. Adding lead scoring offers many advantages:
Better Sales Efficiency – Sales teams can proactively engage with leads that have a high likelihood of buying.
Increased Marketing ROI – Marketers will get insights into which campaigns attracted the most qualified prospects.
Improved Team Alignment – Marketing is able to give sales an actionable data set, then sales gives marketing feedback to improve the lead scoring criteria.
Shorter Sales Cycles – By focusing on leads who are hot, closing deals will take a shorter period of time.
Personalized Nurturing – You can personalize your communications based on a lead’s score and their stage in the buying process.
Simply put, lead scoring ensures that every lead is nurtured based on their willingness to buy.
Lead Scoring Models
Since customer behaviour differs from business to business, there is no one-size-fits-all lead scoring approach. However, several lead scoring models are relevant across industries. Let’s review a few types:
1. Demographic Model
The model is point-based on who the lead is, which includes factors like job title, company size, location, or industry.
For example:
CEO or Decision Maker: +20 points
Located in the target area: +10 points
Student or unrelated occupation: -10 points
2. Behavioural Model
Points can be assigned based on how they engage with your funnel.
For example:
Visited your pricing page: +15 points
Downloaded a white paper: +10 points
Subscribed to your newsletter: +5 points
Closed your email: -5 points.
3. Predictive Model
Predictive models use AI/machine learning to predict which leads are most likely to convert by scoring leads based on historic data. This model relies on demographics and behavioral data.
4. Firmographic Model
In common use in B2B Land, this model considers company variables such as annual revenue, number of employees or brand presence.
5. Engagement-Based Model
This model focuses purely on a level of engagement to score leads, such as how often a lead visits your website, how many times they open your emails and/or how many times they engage with you on social media.
Choosing the right model depends on your business goals, data availability and the type of customers you serve.
How to score leads?
If you’ve wondered how to score leads, here is a step-by-step process for how to get started:
Step 1: Establish your “Ideal Customer Profile” (ICP)
To start, define what your ideal customer profile is. These characteristics should include, but are not limited to:
Industry or niche
Budget range
Company size
Their buying stage
Your ICP serves as a baseline for assigning points that are positive or negative.
Step 2: Decide on what features are Important for scoring leads.
Be specific about the data points you will assign to scoring leads. Here are some examples:
Demographic data (age, role, region)
Engagement data (time on site, number of times they visited)
Behavioral data (how many pages did they visit, open an email, request a demo, etc.)
Step 3: Assign Points
You need to decide how much value each point or engagement is worth. Such as:
+20 points for requesting a demo
+10 points for visiting the pricing guide or information page
-10 points for unsubscribing from an email
Step 4: Create a cutoff score
Once values have been established, select a number from which a lead is considered “sales qualified.”
For example, leads with 70 points or more can be referred to sales to nurture and sales leads with below 70 points will stay in the marketing funnel for nurturing until they reach the cutoff point.
Step 5: Automate the process
Utilizing CRM tools like Abstract CRM, HubSpot, Salesforce or Zoho can help in scoring leads effectively. Your CRM will score leads consistently and in real time.
Step 6: Review and adjust
Lead scoring should not be a once-and-done initiative. A good idea is to regularly review your scoring model to ensure that it reflects actual conversions. Use the feedback you receive from the sales team to evaluate your point designated to the various measures.
Lead Qualification Process
After leads have scored, they enter the lead qualification process to ensure that only leads most likely to convert are placed in your sales pipeline via “qualified” status. The qualification process usually consists of:
Marketing Qualified Leads (MQL)
Leads that have rapidly demonstrated their interest by engaging with your organization’s marketing material (e.g., reading an eBook or attending your webinar).
Sales Qualified Leads (SQL)
Leads that have reached the threshold of being ready for outreach from your sales team.
Conversion or Opportunity Stage
Leads that have expressed a significant signal of buying intent and are ready to buy. Having a well-defined lead qualification process can be hugely beneficial for handoff early in the sales process. It minimizes friction for the seller and improves the overall buyer experience even before sales engagement.
Best practices for maximizing your lead scoring system
For lead scoring and opportunity development to be valuable, ensure that you follow these best practices to get the most effectiveness from your lead scoring system:
1. Collaboration Across Teams
When you define the scoring rules, consider getting input from both marketing and sales in compliance with the lead qualification process.
2. Use Positive and Negative Scoring
For instance, if there is no interest by the lead or the lead has not engaged with your organization in some time, assign negative points.
3. Keep Data Clean and Accurate
Old or inaccurate data can skew your lead scoring results and alter their robust decision-making.
4. Use Automations or AI
Most CRM’s can provide a predictive scoring process that is advantageous for personal time management and provides more accurate results.
Consistently Evaluate Conversions
Track which lead scores result in actual sales, then fine-tune your scoring model to better predict conversions.
Conclusion
To sum up, lead scoring is not just a number; it is a strategic framework to focus your time on leads with a greater likelihood to buy. Understanding what lead scoring is, analyzing the variety of lead scoring frameworks, and knowing how to score leads can improve your conversion rates and your overall lead qualification process. When done correctly, lead scoring will also unify marketing and sales teams, shorten the sales cycle, and provide confidence that every opportunity has been followed up with the best decision and timing as possible.
There is no better time than now create a lead scoring system for yourself and turn your prospect management into a far more data-driven and results-oriented process.
FAQS on Lead scoring
Lead scoring is a methodology that ranks prospects based on their perceived value and likelihood to convert. It’s important because it helps sales teams prioritize their efforts on high-quality leads, improving conversion rates and reducing wasted time on unqualified prospects.
The main types include demographic scoring (based on job title, company size, industry), behavioral scoring (website visits, email engagement, content downloads), predictive scoring (using AI and historical data), and hybrid models that combine multiple factors for comprehensive lead evaluation.
Calculate lead scores by assigning point values to specific attributes and behaviors. For example, a C-level executive might receive 20 points, downloading a whitepaper adds 10 points, and visiting your pricing page adds 15 points. Leads exceeding your threshold score are considered sales-ready.
Lead scoring is the numerical ranking system that evaluates leads, while lead qualification is the broader process of determining if a lead meets your criteria to become a customer. Scoring is one tool within the qualification process, often combined with frameworks like BANT or MEDDIC.
