How does lead scoring work?
Each possible answer carries points, each category of questions carries a weight, the weighted points are totalled, and the total is compared against a threshold that defines what qualified means.
A worked example
Three categories — budget, timing, fit — weighted 3, 2 and 1 produce a very different ranking from the same answers weighted equally.
Take two prospects. One has budget and no urgency; the other is urgent with no budget. Weighted equally they tie, and your reps have learned nothing. Weight budget at three and the first ranks clearly higher — which may or may not be right for your business, but it is now a decision you made rather than one the default made for you.
Where scoring usually goes wrong
Scores that were set once from intuition and never checked against what actually happened to those leads.
Scoring is a hypothesis about which answers predict good customers. Like any hypothesis it should be checked: look at the leads that converted and the ones that wasted everybody's time, and see whether the score separated them. If it did not, the points are decoration.
Part of our guide to lead scoring software.
Related questions
See it on your own enquiries
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Last updated 2026-10-02