Shared leads are sold to several businesses, capped leads to a set few, and an exclusive lead to one. Too many is anything above the number you can beat with your own speed and price. You need to be told the number, in writing, before you pay.
This guide explains the three kinds in plain words, why “exclusive” does not always mean one, and what to ask. For a wider tour of lead types, see types of leads for contractors.
Three kinds of lead, in plain words
| Kind | Who gets the homeowner | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Shared | Any business willing to pay, with no set limit | A race. Cheaper per lead, harder to win. |
| Capped or limited | A fixed number, such as three | Fewer rivals, still a race. |
| Exclusive | One business | No race, if the word means what it says. |
Any of these can be sold for any trade. What differs is how many phones ring at once.
When “exclusive” still means several buyers
The word has no fixed meaning. In seller terms and sales pages it tends to turn up in three forms:
- One buyer, for good. The homeowner is sent to you and never sold again. This is what most people think they are buying.
- One buyer for a window. You get the homeowner first, for a set number of minutes or hours. If you have not made contact by then, the lead goes to the next business.
- A capped shared lead with a better label. The homeowner goes to two or three businesses, and the page still says “exclusive”.
Only the first is exclusive in the sense that matters to you. If a seller says “exclusive” and gives you a window, a cap, or wording like “first to call”, it is a shared lead with a head start. Price it that way.
Sellers also quote close rates for shared and exclusive leads. The ones published online mostly come from businesses that sell leads, with no method shown, so we do not repeat them. Your own records are a better measure, and the steps are below.
What the homeowner experiences when five businesses ring
Put yourself in their place. They fill in a form at lunchtime. By two o’clock they have had calls and texts from several businesses. They did not expect that.
Some stop answering. Some take the first quote that sounds fine. Some get annoyed and decide not to hire anyone from the form. Whichever way it goes, the homeowner has been asked to compare strangers on the phone, and the cheapest is the easiest to say yes to.
A lead sold to many also costs the homeowner their time. Being the only call is a different conversation: you are expected, and you are not being compared with whoever rang ten minutes earlier.
Shared leads: speed matters as much as the number
The number of rivals matters. How quickly you ring matters at least as much, since the first business to reach a homeowner often sets the pace. See how fast to respond to enquiries.
Rather than trust anyone’s close rate, work out your own:
- Count the leads you took from each source over a quarter.
- Count how many you quoted and how many you won.
- Divide what you paid by jobs won.
Here is the break-even sum, with made-up numbers rather than data. If a shared lead costs a third of an exclusive one, it pays as long as you win at least a third as often. So if you win one in three exclusive leads, shared leads need to win one in nine to cost the same per signed job. Fewer than that and the cheap lead is the dear one.
A shared lead at a low price can still pay if you are fast and your close rate holds. An exclusive lead at a higher price can lose if you are slow. Use the worksheet on what a lead is worth to set a ceiling.
Questions that expose the real number
- “How many businesses can receive this exact enquiry?” A number, not “limited”.
- “Do you ever sell the same homeowner again, to me or to others, after a day, a week or a month?”
- “If you call exclusive, what is the window?” A window is not exclusivity.
- “Is this in the contract, and where?”
- “If I find out another business had the same lead, what do I get?”
Write the answers down. A seller who is happy to give a clear number has nothing to hide. One who talks around it has given you your answer. See fake and duplicate leads for how to log what you find.
What one business per homeowner changes
The race goes away. The homeowner gets one call from one business, which was checked before it rang them. You get to spend your first call on the job, not on beating four others to the phone.
PreBuild Systems works this way: every homeowner who enquires is rung, checked on six points and sent to one business only. See the homeowners page.
Common questions
What is the difference between shared and exclusive leads?
A shared lead goes to several businesses. An exclusive lead goes to one. Get the real number in writing.
How many contractors get each lead?
The seller sets it, and only the seller knows. Ask for a number, in writing, and ask whether the same homeowner is ever sold again later.
Do shared leads close worse?
You are in a race, so expect to win fewer, but published figures come from sellers and are not reliable. Track your own close rate by source.
What does race to the phone mean?
The first business to reach the homeowner often wins. It is how shared leads work in practice.