Lead scoring means giving each enquiry a number so you know who gets a same-day quote and who gets a polite reply. For a tradie it can be three questions, each scored 1 to 3, added up on paper. Nothing here is a proven method. Treat it as a starting point and change it with your own results.
What lead scoring is for
Scoring is for one decision: where your next hour goes. If you have six enquiries and time for two quotes, the score tells you which two.
It is not a way to predict who will sign, and it will not replace your judgement. It writes down what you already do in your head, so the same enquiry gets the same treatment on a busy Monday and a quiet Friday.
Software vendors sell lead scoring with dozens of signals, such as email opens and page visits. A one-man fencing crew or a ten-person renovation business does not need that. You need a few answers from a short phone call.
The score sits after you have checked the basics in how to qualify an enquiry before you quote: is it a real number, in your area, for work you do. Scoring ranks the ones that pass.
The three questions and the 1 to 3 scale
Ask these on the first call. Score each one, then add them for a total out of nine.
| Question | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job fit: is it the work you want to do? | Outside your usual work or size | Close, with some stretch | Exactly your kind of job |
| Urgency: when do they want it done? | No date, “just getting ideas” | A rough time this year | A date or a reason, like a lease or an event |
| Decision: who chooses? | Not the decision maker, or has not discussed it | Needs a partner or one more person | They decide, and have budget in mind |
Write the three scores on the enquiry. A 3, 2, 3 is an 8. A 1, 1, 2 is a 4.
Why these three? They are the things that most often decide whether a quote turns into work: whether you want the job, whether it is going ahead soon, and whether the person you are talking to can say yes. Your own list may differ. A solar installer might swap in “roof suitable”. A kitchen builder might use “has drawings or a layout”.
A worked example
These are made-up numbers to show how it works. They are not data from real jobs.
Say five enquiries come in during the week for a deck builder.
| Enquiry | Fit | Urgency | Decision | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A: new deck, owner, wants it before summer | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| B: deck rebuild, owner, “sometime next year” | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| C: small repair, owner, this month | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| D: deck plus pergola, needs partner’s okay | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| E: price check, no date, asking for family | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
A gets a site visit booked today. E gets a friendly message and a rough price range, with no free site visit. B, C and D sit in the middle, and this is where the score alone does not settle it. C scores well but is a small job, so you might pass it to someone else. D might move up after a call with the partner.
The score is a tie-breaker and a filter. It does not make the choice for you.
Setting your own cut-off after thirty jobs
Do not start with a cut-off. Start by scoring every enquiry for a while and keeping the record. After about thirty enquiries that reached a quote, look back.
- List the quotes you won and the ones you lost.
- Write the score next to each.
- See where the won jobs sit. If nearly all your wins scored 7 or more, then 7 is your line for a same-day quote.
- If wins are spread across all scores, the questions are not telling you much. Change one.
Thirty is a rule of thumb, not a statistical test. With fewer jobs the pattern may be luck. Keep scoring and check again.
Sending the quote quickly is the other half. See how fast to call a bought lead if the enquiries you are scoring came from a source you pay for.
Where scoring fails
- People answer to please you. “Yes, we are ready to go” costs nothing to say. A date or a deposit is more telling than a word.
- Scores drift. After a slow month you start giving 3s to everything. Re-read the table when you notice it.
- A low score can hide a good job. A homeowner who says “no rush” may still sign the right quote. Do not throw those away, just do them second.
- A high score does not mean the job is profitable. Fit covers whether you want the work. It does not check your margin.
Also note the difference between scoring and qualifying. Qualifying is yes or no: is this a real job for me. Scoring ranks the ones that pass. You need both, in that order. For a longer set of filters, read how to filter tyre kickers.
When software is worth it
Paper works until you cannot keep up. Consider software when you are logging more enquiries than you can review by hand, when several people take calls and need to score the same way, or when you want the score to sort a list automatically. Even then, start from the same three questions so you know what the software is doing.
If the hard part is answering your own enquiries quickly enough to score them, PreBuild Systems also replies to enquiries fast for builders and trades. See the enquiries page.
Common questions
What is lead scoring?
Giving each enquiry a number based on a few answers, so you can decide who to quote first.
What is the difference between lead scoring and lead qualification?
Qualification is a pass or fail check on whether the enquiry is a real job for you. Scoring ranks the ones that pass.
What is a good lead score?
There is no standard answer. Work out your own line from your won and lost quotes after about thirty jobs.
Do I need software to score leads?
No. A notebook or spreadsheet is enough while the volume is small.