Why you should always score your leads

Not all sales enquiries are generated equal

A referral from a long-term client is better than a tyre kicker after the best price who has called 7 other companies. Naturally, you’ll know which are the likely buyers so it’s important to categorise these enquiries. Here's what we've always done: Used a traffic light system:

• Green for good
• Yellow for maybe
• Red for unlikely.

Others have used 123 or ABC. In the Business Automation CRM we’ve used traffic lights because it has a visual element too for instant recognition. It’s important to do this because when it comes to re-engaging these contacts with email marketing campaigns, the ‘green’ ones are likely to be more receptive to relationship building, whereas the ‘red’ guys are likely to be more receptive to a strong offer to grab their attention. Of course it all comes down to how you choose to grade them, but having a criteria that you operate by means that you can market to them more effectively going forward. Whether it’s the Business Automation CRM you use or something else, make sure this is something that is built in and allows you to email them directly from the system. It’s one of the easiest ways of generating sales from the existing enquiries you have.