How to score leads from their call answers: a points table and thresholds
Sado AI team · · 4 min read
In short
Lead scoring means giving each lead points for their answers on the call, then using the score to decide who to work with first. Pick 4–6 criteria (need, timing, budget, who decides, next step), give each 0–3 points, and subtract points for bad signs. For example, 8 or more is hot, straight to a manager; 4–7 is warm, call on the agreed day; 3 or less is later. After a month, compare scores with real sales and adjust the table.
What lead scoring is, and why it comes from the call
A form usually holds just a name and a phone number, which tells you nothing about who will buy. The call reveals what matters: what they need, by when, whether the price works, who decides.
Without scores, managers call leads in the order they arrived, or pick the ones that look “easy”. With scores, the list is ready in the morning: hottest leads first, then the rest.
A points table: a training centre example
| Criterion | Answer | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Need | Wants a specific course (for example, 1C accounting) | 3 |
| Need | “Just curious” | 0 |
| Timing | Wants to start this month | 3 |
| Timing | Within 1–3 months | 2 |
| Timing | Not sure | 0 |
| Budget | Heard the price and said “that works” | 2 |
| Decision | Decides alone, or the employer pays | 2 |
| Next step | Booked a trial lesson | 3 |
| Bad sign | Another city, no online group | −3 |
This table is only an example: choose criteria and points from your own sales. Four to six criteria are enough; with more, nobody fills them in.
Thresholds: what each score means
- 8 or more, hot: a manager calls today, or the call is transferred to staff right away.
- 4–7, warm: a callback on the agreed day, with the needed information sent beforehand.
- 0–3, cold: one call in a month or two, or a newsletter.
- Below zero, not a fit: the reason is recorded and the lead is removed from the list.
Two example leads
Dilnoza: needs a 1C course (3), wants to start this month (3), the price works (2), pays herself (2), booked a trial lesson (3): 13 points, hot.
Bekzod: “just curious” (0), no timing (0), didn’t ask the price (0), decides alone (2): 2 points, cold.
Both sent a request on the same day. Without scores, a manager would spend the same time on each. With scores, Dilnoza gets a call today and Bekzod in a month. Names and numbers are only an example.
How to set up scoring
- Take your last 30–50 sales and look at what those customers said on the call: which answers keep coming up.
- Turn those answers into 4–6 criteria with points.
- Create a CRM field for each criterion and let a formula add up the score.
- Add one question per criterion to your call script.
- After a month, compare: how many hot leads bought, how many cold ones did. If the gap is small, change the criteria.
Build the table together with your managers and review it once a quarter: when the product, price or ads change, so do the signs of a hot lead.
An AI operator collects the answers for scoring
Sado’s operator calls every new lead, asks your questions in Uzbek or Russian and saves the answers as separate fields. In Bitrix24 they land on the lead card: Bitrix24 integration. Our team connects amoCRM. A CRM formula adds up the score, and the manager sees hot leads first.
The portal keeps each call’s recording, transcript, short summary and next step. If a customer says “sign me up now”, the operator transfers the call to a manager by your rule. More: AI calls to new leads. Try it live or call 78 778 01 23.
Questions
How many criteria does lead scoring need?
Four to six. Each should be settled by one question on the call. Too many criteria turn the call into an interrogation.
Who gives the points, the manager or the system?
If the answers are saved in fields, let a CRM formula score them, so every lead is measured the same way. The manager just adds a note.
How is lead scoring different from lead qualification?
Qualification answers “is this lead a fit for us?”. Scoring shows which of the fitting leads to work with first.