What is lead scoring?

The way businesses conduct online commerce is changing. Productivity is now expected to be more disciplined and more efficient. The sales team doesn’t need to talk to every lead; they only need to talk to the right leads. This new focus requires marketers to be more judicious in who they select for sales, which has made lead quality a priority for 74% of B2B marketers. And the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) has only made lead scoring more effective. 

In this guide, we’ll help you understand the different types of lead scoring available, how to create executive buy-in for a purchase and how to choose the best lead scoring software for your business.

Based on our evaluation of more than 25 software options, here are our top choices for lead scoring solutions in 2024:

Also read: What is Lead Scoring & How Does it Help Sales?

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What is the best lead scoring software?

Salesforce Marketing Cloud — Best for enterprises


Pros

  • Offers enhanced data visualization, excellent lead management tools, easy contact filtering and segmentation
  • Provides good CRM integration
  • Recently improved automation capabilities 
  • Known for great customer support​​

Cons

  • Lacks a free plan
  • Relatively expensive compared to competitors
  • A/B testing is only available to higher-tier plans
Salesforce Marketing Cloud Intelligence

Our Rating: 4.5/5

  • Advanced email analytics: Offers insights into email performance to optimize campaigns.
  • Lead deduplication: Prevents duplicate records, ensuring cleaner data.
  • Multivariate landing page testing: Tests different landing page versions to improve conversion rates.
  • Lead nurturing: Automates the process of engaging with leads at various stages.
  • Behavior scoring: Scores leads based on their interactions and behaviors.
  • Advanced dynamic content: Personalizes content based on lead data and activities.
  • Growth: $1,250/month for up to 10,000 contacts.
  • Plus: $2,500/month for up to 10,000 contacts, with additional features.
  • Advanced: $4,000/month for up to 10,000 contacts, offering more advanced features.
  • Premium: $15,000/month for up to 75,000 contacts, including all features from other plans.
  • *Prices are billed annually, and additional charges may apply for extra services or add-ons​​.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud, formerly Pardot, known for its advanced lead scoring capabilities, offers a suite of tools that enhance data visualization and lead management, making it easy for users to filter and segment contacts. 

Its integration with CRMs is smooth, and recent updates have bolstered its automation features. The platform is lauded for excellent customer support, ensuring users get the most out of their marketing efforts. However, it lacks a free plan and is considered relatively expensive, especially since A/B testing is reserved for higher-tier plans. Pricing starts at $1,250/month for up to 10,000 contacts, with several tiers up to $15,000/month for more advanced features and a larger contact base. These prices reflect an annual billing model, with potential additional costs for extra services or add-ons.

Comparatively, SharpSpring provides similar lead management and nurturing tools but is often seen as more cost-effective, offering month-to-month contracts which Salesforce Marketing Cloud does not. 

ActiveCampaign is another competitor, favored for its user-friendly interface and extensive email marketing capabilities at a lower price point. HubSpot Sales Hub, meanwhile, offers a broad suite of sales and marketing tools with a focus on ease of use and scalability, making it a formidable alternative for businesses looking for an all-in-one solution.

Where Salesforce Marketing Cloud wins against these competitors is in areas such as integration with Salesforce, providing a more unified platform for sales and marketing teams. 

This integration allows for unparalleled data access and management capabilities, making Marketing Cloud a great option for businesses already using Salesforce. Additionally, its advanced email analytics, lead deduplication, and multivariate landing page testing are key features that enhance its lead scoring and nurturing capabilities.

  • Pricing: 3.5/5
  • Features and functionality: 4.8/5
  • Ease of use: 3.7/5
  • Integration and compatibility: 4.6/5
  • Customer support and resources: 4.3/5
  • Security and compliance: 4.9/5

Salesforce Marketing Cloud is a lead scoring software designed for businesses aiming to improve their marketing efforts and sales alignment. 

It automates lead management, scoring leads based on interactions and behaviors to efficiently prioritize engagement. Its standout feature is the seamless integration with Salesforce CRM, facilitating enhanced lead data management and a cohesive customer engagement strategy. Recent updates have improved automation features and the user interface, simplifying the creation of personalized lead nurturing paths.

While the starting price of $1,250/month for up to 10,000 contacts places it in the higher price range,  its comprehensive features, including advanced email analytics and landing page testing, make it a valuable tool for medium to large enterprises focused on refining their lead scoring and nurturing processes.

HubSpot Marketing Hub — Best for ease of use


Pros

  • Centralized contact management
  • Ease of navigation and onboarding
  • Comprehensive lead generation and management
  • Strong email marketing
  • Effective social media management
  • Integrated solution supporting a closed-loop marketing strategy​​

Cons

  • Reporting limitations
  • Can be expensive, especially as your number of contacts grows
  • No contract flexibility
  • Limited usability as a non-all-in-one tool: HubSpot is designed to be an all-in-one solution, and businesses looking to use only select features might find it less suitable​​.
HubSpot CRM logo

Our Rating: 4.5/5

  • CRM integration: Integrates with HubSpot’s own CRM system, allowing for lead management and scoring based on interactions across sales and marketing​​.
  • Email marketing: Offers tools for creating, sending, and analyzing email campaigns, with capabilities for A/B testing and automated workflows.
  • Landing pages: Crucial for capturing lead information and scoring leads based on their engagement and conversion actions​​.
  • Lead management and generation: Tools for capturing, tracking, and nurturing leads, including forms and lead scoring mechanisms that prioritize leads based on engagement and behavior​​.
  • Social media management: Allows for the management of social media campaigns and interactions within a single platform, contributing to lead scoring by tracking engagement metrics​​.
  • Free: $0/month
  • Starter: $18/month
  • Professional: $800/month

HubSpot Marketing Hub stands out primarily for its all-in-one platform that excels in ease of use and comprehensive feature set. Its strengths lie in centralized contact management, user-friendly navigation, and an integrated approach to marketing that includes email marketing, social media management, and lead generation tools​​​​​​.

Against competitors like SharpSpring, ActiveCampaign, and Pardot, HubSpot wins with its seamless CRM integration, which is included in every plan, making data sync effortless and enhancing the overall marketing strategy​​. Moreover, its free plan offers accessibility to small businesses looking to scale, with affordable pricing tiers for growing needs​​​​.

SharpSpring positions itself as a viable alternative with its flexibility and agency-focused features, yet HubSpot’s ease of setup and comprehensive customer support provide a smoother onboarding experience and ongoing assistance​​​​. ActiveCampaign matches closely in automation and email marketing but lacks HubSpot’s range of features and the seamless integration with CRM and other marketing tools​​​​. Pardot, with its Salesforce backbone, offers deep automation and scoring capabilities but trails in user-friendliness and the ease of integration that HubSpot naturally provides through its own CRM​​.

HubSpot Marketing Hub’s customizability, particularly in dashboard and reporting, is noteworthy, offering businesses granular visibility into lead and campaign performance, a feature somewhat limited in its competitors​​. Additionally, HubSpot’s commitment to providing a holistic marketing solution is evident in its extensive range of high-quality features, designed to meet the needs of businesses at various stages of growth​​​​.

  • Pricing: 4/5
  • Features and functionality: 4.8/5
  • Ease of use: 4.7/5
  • Integration and compatibility: 4.5/5
  • Customer support and resources: 4.4/5
  • Security and compliance: 4.6/5

HubSpot Marketing Hub is a software tool designed to help businesses attract visitors, convert leads, and close customers. 

It combines various aspects of digital marketing into one platform, including email marketing, social media management, and creating web pages. Essentially, it’s a toolbox that businesses use to manage their online marketing efforts more efficiently. The software is known for being user-friendly, making it accessible even to those who aren’t tech-savvy. It integrates with HubSpot’s CRM, allowing for seamless management of customer data and interactions.

ActiveCampaign — Best for analytics


Pros

  • Comprehensive automation features
  • User-friendly interface
  • Detailed tracking and analytics
  • Flexible lead scoring models
  • CRM integration
  • Excellent email marketing capabilities

Cons

  • Limited templates customization
  • Some integrations require workarounds
  • Customer support varies by plan
ActiveCampaign logo.

Our Rating: 4.5/5

  • Automated lead scoring: Automatically scores leads based on their interactions and behaviors.
  • CRM integration: Seamlessly integrates with its built-in CRM for better lead management.
  • Segmentation tools: Allows for detailed segmentation of contacts for targeted scoring.
  • Email marketing automation: Uses email interactions for dynamic lead scoring adjustments.
  • Website and event tracking: Tracks website visits and events to score leads based on activity.
  • Predictive sending: Optimizes email send times based on lead engagement patterns.
  • Lite: $29/month (annual), $39/month (monthly) – 1 user, includes 1,000 contacts.
  • Plus: $49/month (annual), $70/month (monthly) – 3 users, includes 1,000 contacts.
  • Professional: $149/month (annual), $187/month (monthly) – 5 users, includes 2,500 contacts.
  • Enterprise: $259/month (annual), $323/month (monthly) – 10 users, includes 2,500 contacts.

We chose ActiveCampaign for its strong automation and CRM integration, appealing for its lead scoring precision. 

It excels in email marketing and behavioral tracking, crucial for dynamic lead scoring. Compared to EngageBay, Freshsales, and Pardot, ActiveCampaign offers a balance of functionality and price, making it attractive for varied business sizes. 

While EngageBay and Freshsales provide cost-effective solutions with a focus on SMBs, Pardot, with its Salesforce integration, targets larger enterprises needing advanced features. ActiveCampaign’s user-friendly interface and detailed analytics is top notch, though users have reported it faces some customization and integration challenges.

  • Pricing: 4/5
  • Features and functionality: 4.8/5
  • Ease of use: 4.5/5
  • Integration and compatibility: 4.7/5
  • Customer support and resources: 4.6/5
  • Security and compliance: 4.5/5

ActiveCampaign serves as a software tool designed for businesses to score and prioritize leads based on their activities and engagement. 

It integrates with CRM to streamline lead management and uses automated processes to adjust scoring. Features include tracking website visits, email interactions, and automating marketing communications based on lead behavior.

Freshsales — Best for overall lead management


Pros

  • Integrated CRM
  • Customizable lead scoring
  • User-friendly interface
  • Advanced analytics
  • Automation capabilities
  • Good customer support

Cons

  • Limited integrations
  • Complex for small teams
  • Complex for small teams
  • Mobile app limitations
Freshsales logo.

Our Rating: 4.3/5

  • Automated lead scoring: Automatically ranks leads based on engagement and profile criteria.
  • Behavior tracking: Monitors lead interactions on websites and apps.
  • Email activity tracking: Captures and scores leads based on email engagement.
  • Custom scoring rules: Allows for tailored scoring models based on specific business needs.
  • Insightful analytics: Provides detailed reports on lead scoring effectiveness.
  • Integration with sales pipeline: Scores are integrated directly into the sales pipeline for prioritization.
  • Free: $0 for up to 3 users, includes essential CRM features like Kanban view, built-in communication tools, and support.
  • Growth: $9/user/month billed annually or $11/user/month billed monthly, adds AI contact scoring, sales sequences, and more.
  • Pro: $39/user/month billed annually or $47/user/month billed monthly, expands on Growth with multiple sales pipelines and advanced sales team management.
  • Enterprise: $59/user/month billed annually or $71/user/month billed monthly, offers the most advanced customization, governance, and dedicated support.

Freshsales is tailored for businesses aiming for high usability in tracking, filtering, and managing leads effectively. 

The platform’s emphasis on lead scoring automation through AI and bots allows for dynamic and responsive lead prioritization, enhancing sales strategies and customer engagement.

Compared to competitors like ActiveCampaign, EngageBay, and Pardot, Freshsales stands out for its seamless integration of sales and marketing functions within a single platform. While ActiveCampaign is celebrated for its comprehensive automation and email marketing capabilities, Freshsales focuses more on CRM functionalities and lead scoring precision. EngageBay offers a broad set of tools at an affordable price, but Freshsales excels in providing a more streamlined user experience with its emphasis on ease of use and efficiency in lead management. 

Pardot, although highly customizable and integrated with Salesforce, may present cost and complexity barriers that Freshsales circumvents with its straightforward approach and competitive pricing structure.

  • Pricing: 3.8/5
  • Features and functionality: 4.5/5
  • Ease of use: 4.7/5
  • Integration and compatibility: 4.2/5
  • Customer support and resources: 4.6/5Security and compliance: 4.3/5

Freshsales, part of the Freshworks product suite, is a customer relationship management (CRM) software designed to help businesses manage their interactions with current and potential customers. Launched in 2016, Freshsales was created to offer a more intuitive, user-friendly CRM solution compared to traditional options available in the market, with a strong focus on usability and automation.

The platform encompasses a wide range of features aimed at improving sales efficiency and productivity, including lead scoring, email tracking, sales pipeline visualization, and advanced analytics. It’s built to cater to the needs of sales teams of all sizes, providing them with tools to capture leads, nurture customer relationships, and close deals faster.

Some of the latest updates have focused on leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) for sales forecasting, enhancing lead scoring models, and integrating more deeply with other tools in the Freshworks ecosystem, such as Freshdesk for customer support and Freshmarketer for marketing automation.

EngageBay — Best for SMBs


Pros

  • All-in-one platform
  • User-Friendly
  • Competitive pricing, cost-effective​​
  • Advanced workflow automation​​
  • Supports custom integration​​
  • Good customer service​​

Cons

  • Advanced features on higher plans only​​.
  • Support level varies by plan
EngageBay logo

Our Rating: 4.3/5

  • Automates lead scoring: Automatically scores leads based on behavior and demographics.
  • Custom criteria: Users can set their own criteria for scoring leads.
  • Integrated with marketing: Lead scoring is part of a larger marketing automation system.
  • Segmentation: Automatically groups leads based on scores.
  • Real-time tracking: Offers instant insights into lead activities.Predictive scoring: Uses past data to predict future lead behavior.
  • Free Plan: $0/user/month
  • Basic Plan: Priced at $12.74/user/month, it includes lead scoring, 500 contacts, email templates, SMS marketing, and more​​.
  • Growth Plan: $55.24/user/month
  • Pro Plan: $101.99/user/month

EngageBay makes the list for its suite of features that cater well to small and medium-sized businesses. 

Its all-in-one platform combines CRM, marketing automation, and customer support, streamlining the process of converting visitors into customers. Notably, EngageBay makes setting up meetings and creating tasks straightforward, thanks to its user-friendly interface. It also provides robust automation functions, including lead/customer tracking, deals, pipelines, and automated emails, all of which are crucial for effective lead scoring and segmentation​​.

What sets EngageBay apart from competitors is its affordability and the comprehensive nature of its offerings. Unlike more expensive options like HubSpot or Pardot by Salesforce, EngageBay provides a cost-effective solution without sacrificing functionality. It includes predictive lead scoring, which anticipates future behavior of leads, thereby enhancing the potential for conversions. Additionally, EngageBay offers customization options for scoring leads based on their actions, further allowing businesses to target and prioritize prospects effectively​​.

Recent updates have improved EngageBay’s service automation and live chat capabilities, adding standard automation templates and macros for quicker response times. Reporting features have been enhanced to provide more detailed insights into ticket management, customer requests, and team efficiency​​. However, EngageBay has some limitations, including a range of integrations and only English language support, which might be a drawback for some international businesses​​.

In comparison to other software like Freshsales or ActiveCampaign, EngageBay’s unique selling point remains its balance of affordability, ease of use, and a broad feature set tailored for efficient sales and marketing management.

  • Pricing: 4.5/5
  • Features and functionality: 4.7/5
  • Ease of use: 4.6/5
  • Integration and compatibility: 4.2/5
  • Customer support and resources: 4.8/5
  • Security and compliance: 4.6/5

EngageBay emerged as a relatively new player in the CRM and marketing automation arena, founded with the mission to offer small to medium-sized businesses an affordable, all-in-one solution for their sales, marketing, and service needs. The software is designed to simplify complex processes like lead scoring, enabling businesses to easily identify and prioritize their most promising leads based on engagement and behavior.

At its core, EngageBay focuses on lead scoring by automating the process of evaluating leads. It uses criteria such as website activity, email engagement, and demographic information to score leads, thereby helping businesses focus their efforts on leads most likely to convert. This functionality is particularly valuable for sales teams looking to optimize their funnel and ensure they are engaging with the right prospects at the right time.

One of EngageBay’s key selling points is its affordability, providing a suite of powerful features without the hefty price tag associated with some of its competitors. With EngageBay, businesses can enjoy features like email marketing, landing pages, live chat support, and, of course, advanced lead scoring and segmentation, all within a user-friendly interface.

Despite being newer to the market, EngageBay has quickly established itself as a formidable alternative to more established names like HubSpot, offering comparable functionality tailored to the needs and budgets of smaller businesses​​​​​​​.

SharpSpring — Best for flexible pricing


Pros

  • Cost-effective compared to rivals​​
  • Flexible contracts; no long-term lock-in​​
  • Agency-focused features and branding​​
  • Advanced workflow automation​​
  • Advanced lead scoring; engagement-based​​
  • Broad integrations with digital tools​​

Cons

  • Feature limitations vs competitors​​.
  • Strict email accuracy requirement​
  • Pricing escalates with contact count
SharpSpring logo.

Our Rating: 4.3/5

  • Behavior-based email automation: Tailors emails based on user activity and engagement​​.
  • Dynamic forms: Creates customizable forms that adapt to regular visitors for higher conversion rates​​.
  • Call tracking: Associates call data with leads for comprehensive tracking​​.
  • Campaign tracking: Monitors the effectiveness of marketing campaigns in real-time​​.
  • Lead nurturing: Engages leads at critical sales journey stages with targeted messaging​​.Social listening: Identifies prospects ready to buy by monitoring social media conversations​
  • 1,000 contacts: $449/month
  • 10,000 contacts: $999/month20,000 contacts: $1,449/month​​

These plans include unlimited users, customer support, and a dedicated onboarding specialist. Additionally, there’s an option to purchase an extra onboarding plan for $2,399, which provides training and support for the platform for the first 2 months as a one-time purchase​​.

Agency pricing is customized and requires contacting SharpSpring directly for a quote.

SharpSpring offers a comprehensive suite of marketing automation tools designed to enhance the effectiveness of lead management and nurturing strategies. 

It provides users with an intuitive system for creating forms and landing pages, which are crucial for capturing and scoring leads. The platform’s drag-and-drop builder, alongside pre-built landing page designs, simplifies the process of setting up targeted lead capture mechanisms​​.

One of SharpSpring’s distinct advantages is its flexible pricing model, which is considered cost-effective when compared to competitors like Pardot and Marketo, especially given its feature-to-feature parity. This affordability, combined with month-to-month billing and no required contracts, makes SharpSpring an attractive option for businesses seeking flexibility and value​​.

SharpSpring excels in offering behavioral-based email automation, site tracking, and a built-in CRM system. Its landing page builder is notably robust, providing beautiful templates designed to convert visitors into leads. This positions SharpSpring as a strong contender for agencies and SMBs looking for a tool to support complex marketing plans​​.

The platform integrates seamlessly with over 700 third-party tools and CRMs via Zapier, enhancing its versatility and ability to fit into various marketing ecosystems. Despite not being the cheapest option on the market, SharpSpring delivers a rich set of features that justify its cost, particularly for businesses looking to run complex marketing campaigns​​.

  • Pricing: 3.8/5
  • Features and functionality: 4.7/5
  • Ease of use: 4.2/5
  • Integration and compatibility: 4.3/5
  • Customer support and resources: 4.6/5Security and compliance: 4.4/5

SharpSpring’s blend of affordability, flexibility, and a comprehensive feature set makes it a compelling lead scoring software choice for marketing agencies and SMBs aiming to boost their sales and marketing efficiency.

SharpSpring’s user-friendly approach to lead nurturing and management, highlighted by features like the Visitor ID and campaign tracking, allows sales teams to identify ready leads efficiently. The platform’s CRM integration capabilities further streamline client management, making it easier for businesses to maintain a cohesive view of their sales process​​.

In comparison to competitors such as HubSpot, SharpSpring is seen as targeting a different type of business, with a particular focus on agencies managing marketing campaigns for clients. While HubSpot offers an intuitive and easy-to-use platform that may become costly for large teams, SharpSpring provides a more budget-friendly option without sacrificing functionality or user experience​​.

Find your new lead scoring software

Key components of lead scoring software

With the right lead scoring software, you can assign a value to each profile in your database based on factors like company size or recent behavior on your website.

Key components of lead scoring software encompass a range of functionalities designed to automate and refine the process of evaluating and prioritizing leads. These components are essential for businesses aiming to optimize their sales funnel and ensure their sales teams focus on the most promising prospects. Here is an overview of these critical features:

This tracks a lead’s interactions with a company’s digital assets, such as websites, emails, and social media. The software can assess a lead’s engagement level by monitoring activities like page visits, content downloads, and email opens.

Factors in personal or company information provided by the lead, such as job title, industry, company size, and location. This data helps in determining the lead’s potential fit with the company’s target market.

Seamless integration with Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems ensures that all lead data is centralized. This facilitates a smoother transition of leads through the sales funnel by providing sales teams with immediate access to lead scores and related information.

Integral for nurturing leads, this feature allows for the automation of personalized email campaigns based on the lead’s behavior and score. It’s about delivering the right message at the right time to encourage further engagement.

Tools for creating customized landing pages and forms that capture essential lead information and preferences. These are crucial touchpoints for lead generation and scoring.

Offers insights into the effectiveness of marketing and sales efforts with detailed analytics on lead behavior, campaign performance, and overall ROI. This data is vital for refining lead scoring criteria and strategies.

Allows for the monitoring and scoring of leads’ interactions on social media platforms. Engagement on these channels can provide valuable insights into a lead’s interest level and readiness to buy.

Enables the development of targeted drip campaigns that deliver tailored content to leads based on their score and stage in the buying process. This keeps potential customers engaged and moves them closer to a purchase decision.

The ability to customize scoring criteria and thresholds is critical, as it allows businesses to tailor the lead scoring system to their unique sales process and goals.

What are the types of lead scoring

1. Traditional/rules-based

Rules-based or “traditional” lead scoring consists of assigning a numerical value to characteristics of and behaviors exhibited by people in your marketing database. These rules are defined by the marketer, with strong input from sales.

Marketo breaks rules-based scoring into two categories based on respective data types: implicit and explicit.2 Implicit lead scoring refers to tracking and quantifying a prospect’s behavior on your website. The classic example is when someone views your product page versus your careers page. One behavior implies interest in your product and should trigger an increase in lead score. At the same time, the other indicates an interest in working for your company and should trigger a negative score.

Explicit lead scoring refers to assigning a score based on information someone volunteers when they fill out a form — the number of employees at their company or their marketing budget, for example.

Rules-based lead scoring has been around for some time, and it’s now a standard feature in most marketing automation platforms. A traditional scoring framework can be pivotal to increasing the quality of leads you pass over to sales. Still, it is not, strictly speaking, the type of framework you will find in the products termed lead scoring software.

2. Predictive lead scoring

As the market stands today, lead scoring software is synonymous with predictive lead scoring. Predictive scoring differs from rules-based scoring in that it relies on predictive modeling to identify which leads are best suited for your sales team to pursue. These point solutions provide a more complex form of scoring based on machine learning and algorithmic prediction.

How, specifically, does this work? The scoring software builds a predictive model using the data in your CRM and marketing automation system to identify which series of behaviors and lead characteristics your closed/won accounts share.

The system then augments this internal data with external sources to construct a more complete lead profile. Infer, a predictive scoring vendor, describes it this way: “Infer uncovers thousands of signals such as employee count, job openings, web presence, social presence, technology vendors, patents, trademarks, and more.”

In theory, predictive lead scoring has several advantages of over rules-based lead scoring.

  • No more guesswork: Anecdotes from sales and small ad-hoc correlations form the foundation of many rules-based frameworks. Predictive scoring builds a statistical model to isolate the most important leads.
  • More complete data: Traditional lead scoring relies only on internal data — the data sales enter into the CRM and the information marketing automation grabs from a person’s onsite behavior and form downloads. Because predictive scoring vendors bake in additional information from multiple outside sources, the predictive model can identify previously hidden factors contributing to your ideal lead profile.
  • Better scale: Rules-based scoring is difficult to scale, because as the company grows and changes, manual corrections must be made to the framework. With predictive scoring, the model can correct itself based on the changing behavior of your audience.

Also read: What is Lead Management? 

Are you equipped for predictive lead scoring?

Rules-based lead scoring is often available as part of a larger platform, like marketing automation or even customer relationship management software. What the market now refers to as “lead scoring software” usually indicates software with the predictive capabilities mentioned above.

The market for this software is still small, with only twenty or so products centering their value proposition around predictive lead scoring. These products are standalone applications, which means they need other platforms to supply their predictive models with data. Because lead scoring software functions almost exclusively as an add-on, it’s important to make sure your organization is prepared to fully utilize this technology.

Here a few prerequisites you need:

A consistent pipeline

Lead scoring is a means of increasing your sales team’s efficiency. If your sales team has enough time to contact each person who makes a request on your website, you don’t have enough volume for lead scoring.

A history of conversions

A predictive lead scoring model runs on historical data. If you can’t supply a reasonable sample of closed/won accounts, then the model won’t be able to produce a trustworthy forecast.

A reason to ditch rules-based scoring

If you’re using rules-based lead scoring, how well does it work? There are several important metrics to consider — for example, the conversion rate of marketing qualified leads (MQL) into sales accepted leads (SAL).

If you have a decent conversion rate, there’s probably no need to abandon rules-based scoring. If your conversion rate is low — SiriusDecisions puts a good conversion rate at 32 percent  — you might have a case for predictive lead scoring.

Marketing automation and CRM software

Predictive scoring relies on the data stored in two main repositories: a marketing automation platform and a CRM. A predictive model would have limited utility if your organization doesn’t have either or both of those.

Creating executive buy-in

When talking to your CMO

As marketing continues to shoulder more revenue responsibility, CMOs will expect every expenditure to deliver measurable ROI. Make the argument that predictive lead scoring can increase your MQL/SAL conversion rate, which should result in more revenue. To stack the value of lead scoring software, remind your CMO that time is money and that each hour sales spends talking to the wrong leads is an hour wasted. If used to increase lead quality, scoring software will save sales time and the company money.

When talking to your CEO

Because CEOs often have to report to a board of investors, they are obsessed with hitting numbers. If they report positive growth, they can position the company positively. To persuade the CEO, focus on the big picture. Explain that time chasing bad leads is time wasted, which slows growth. Emphasize that lead qualification is a large part of marketing’s job and that it has a direct impact on growth. Mention the MQL to SAL conversion rate and bring a (conservative) revenue projection that increasing that number could bring to the company. This argument proposes growth through specific, quantitative action. 

Also read: The Definitive Guide to Lead Qualification 

When talking to your CTO

Even if lead scoring software will serve departments outside of IT, getting the CTO on board is wise. This argument is relatively straightforward. Lead scoring software can deliver substantial business value, and it shouldn’t be overly complicated to install. A worthwhile product should easily integrate with your CRM and marketing automation platform. Your CTO will be a valuable resource during the selection process; ask for advice on vendor selection, system requirements, and implementation.

When talking to your CFO

Like the CEO, the CFO will want to see some numbers. Hype and industry jargon don’t have a place in any discussion with a CFO, so focus on the specific financial benefits lead scoring software can deliver to the company: shorter sales cycles, increased conversion rates, etc.

If you want to go a step further, take the argument about cost savings based on increased sales efficiency and put some math behind it. Estimate a salesperson’s salary at your company, and calculate how much time is lost on sales development activities for sub-par leads.

Choosing the right lead scoring software

TechnologyAdvice helps businesses connect with the best technology for their needs. We’ve compiled product information, reviews, case studies, feature lists, video walkthroughs, and research articles on lead scoring software vendors to make the buying process more straightforward for decision-makers like you.

How to maximize sales efficiency and ROI with lead scoring

Maximizing sales efficiency and return on investment (ROI) with lead scoring involves leveraging the insights gained from the lead scoring process to optimize your sales and marketing strategies.

Use lead scoring to identify and prioritize high-quality leads more likely to convert. Allocate your sales and marketing resources to these leads to maximize conversion rates and ROI.

You should also habitually tailor your lead nurturing strategies based on the lead scores and their behaviors. Develop personalized and targeted content that addresses each segment’s specific needs and interests, thereby increasing engagement and the likelihood of conversion.

Presuming that you have a CRM system in place, setting up automated alerts to notify the sales team when leads reach a specific threshold and are deemed sales-ready will ensure timely follow-ups and increase the chances of closing deals with qualified leads.

By implementing some of these strategies, you can enhance the efficiency of your sales and marketing efforts, optimize your lead conversion process, and ultimately improve your ROI. 

How can lead scoring ultimately benefit my business?

Implementing an effective lead scoring system can offer several key benefits to your business, ultimately contributing to improved sales performance, enhanced customer relationships, and increased revenue. 

Lead scoring helps you identify and prioritize high-potential leads, allowing your sales team to focus their efforts on leads that are more likely to convert. 

Looking for the best comprehensive lead management software? Check out our Lead Management Software Guide

FAQs

Lead scoring is a methodology used by sales and marketing teams to rank prospects against a scale that represents the perceived value each lead represents to the organization. The higher the score, the more likely they are to convert.

Lead scoring helps prioritize leads, enabling your sales team to focus on leads with the highest potential for conversion, improving efficiency and increasing the chances of closing deals.


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