Scoring allows you to evaluate and prioritize leads by assigning them points according to their actions and engagement. It helps marketing teams prioritize the leads that are the most interested and the most likely to become customers. They should then be handed over to your sales team, which will take care of closing the sale.
Integrate lead scoring into your marketing process
Common lead scoring mistakes to avoid
How scoring works
The score is calculated based on your leads’ actions and behavior toward your brand and products. Without lead scoring, marketing and sales teams risk wasting time following up with prospects who are unlikely to convert. By using lead scoring, companies can streamline their sales processes, save time, and increase their conversion rate.
The steps to follow to prioritize leads using scoring
To set up scoring, start by identifying the scoring criteria you want to use; these criteria should obviously be aligned with your marketing and sales objectives. Next, it is necessary to assign points to these scoring criteria. You can use marketing automation software to make the task easier. The last step is to define the number of points needed to qualify, that is, a threshold at which you consider your lead mature enough to hand over to your sales team.
Assign points for the actions you consider relevant. In marketing, there are many of them; here are 3 examples:
→ Newsletter signup = +10 points
→ Resource download = +15 points
→ Webinar registration = +20 points
It’s up to you to choose how many points you want to assign and for which actions!
How to evaluate leads based on your scoring
You can evaluate your leads based on different criteria, whether behavioral or demographic.
The principle of demographic scoring is quite simple. It involves assigning points to your leads based on personal criteria such as age, gender, geographic location, industry, or even the position held within the company. This method allows you to qualify your prospects if they match your ideal target.
As for behavioral scoring, it is based on assigning points to your leads according to the actions they take throughout their buying journey. This scoring makes it possible to measure your prospects’ engagement. The more a lead takes actions that demonstrate interest in your products or services, the higher their score will be. You will therefore know whether it is a hot or cold lead!
Integrate lead scoring into your marketing process
To integrate lead scoring into your sales process, start by communicating your lead scoring criteria to your sales team. Communication and collaboration between your marketing and sales teams must be smooth. Make sure everyone understands how leads will be scored and how these scores will be used to prioritize follow-up.
?Webmecanik Tip: if you are not seeing conversions among your qualified leads, you may need to modify your follow-up plan to focus on different aspects of their engagement and behavior.
Using a marketing automation tool for your scoring
Thanks to a tool like Webmecanik Automation, you can automate your scoring and lead management. Start by configuring campaign scenarios that assign points based on your contacts’ actions. These workflows allow you to track and adjust scores in real time according to lead behavior.
You can add or remove points based on the resources downloaded by the contact. Modify and adjust the scoring system based on email opens or sends, pages visited, etc. It is also possible to assign points each time a form is completed and to add points based on the contact’s profile and actions during marketing campaigns.
The scoring feature is present in most marketing automation platforms. Your tool must be synchronized with your CRM software. This will allow you to automatically score leads and track their progress throughout your sales funnel. You can also configure alerts and notifications to inform your sales team when a lead’s score changes, so they can act quickly.
Use a CRM tool to manage your leads
Synchronizing your marketing automation tool with your CRM ensures that all prospect information is centralized and up to date. This makes management easier for you, because sales teams can see in real time the quality of each lead, based on their activities and interactions.
By giving sales reps a complete view of contacts and the interaction history, you enable them to better understand each prospect. They can see not only the score assigned to each lead, but also past actions, such as emails opened or pages visited. This helps them prioritize the most interested prospects and adapt their approach to improve the chances of conversion.
Read also: integrating scoring into sales strategies helps you maximize your conversions?
Common lead scoring mistakes to avoid
The lead scoring feature is valuable, but there are nevertheless common mistakes to avoid.
- Not adjusting your scoring criteria regularly! For many, once the criteria are defined, they are not adjusted over time. Your criteria may need to evolve, which is why you must review and adjust them regularly in order to ensure the effectiveness of your scoring.
- Using only one scoring criterion. Lead scoring is more effective when it uses a combination of criteria. The mistake would be to rely solely on a single piece of data, which can lead to an incomplete picture of your leads and their likelihood of conversion.
- Not defining a score threshold for leads. Without a score threshold, it can be difficult to determine which leads are hot, warm, or cold, and to prioritize your follow-up efforts accordingly.
Not synchronizing your marketing automation tool with your CRM. Synchronization will help you track leads throughout your sales funnel and act accordingly. We discuss this in more detail in our article dedicated to lead scoring: best practices and limitations
