How-To Guide

How to automate lead routing in under 3 minutes

The architecture: lead arrives → enrich → AI score → branch on score → route to right queue with notification. Total latency: 60-90 seconds. Conversion lift: 21x vs. 30-minute response.

Time4h

Cost$50-200/month

Steps8

Tools you'll need

n8nSlackCalendlyClaude or GPT-4o-miniHubSpot or Pipedrive

Steps

1
Capture leads at a single entry point
Whichever form (Tally, Typeform, custom HTML) posts directly to a webhook URL — not async to a CRM. The webhook receives the lead in <500ms.
2
Enrich with public data (fire-and-forget)
Use Clearbit, Apollo, or Twenty to enrich company size + industry + revenue. Cap at 15s timeout — if it doesn't return, proceed without it. Don't block the acknowledgment on enrichment.
3
Score the lead 0-100
4-component model: FIT (40 pts: company size + revenue + industry + decision-maker title), INTENT (30: form type + hours-reported + challenge-length), ENGAGEMENT (20: pages visited + return visit + email engagement), URGENCY (10: time-based keywords).
4
Branch on score thresholds
≥85 = HOT → Slack #leads-hot with @AE-on-rota + 5-min SLA. 65-84 = WARM → SDR queue, 4-hour SLA. 40-64 = NURTURE → auto-enter 5-touch sequence. <40 = FUTURE → archive, quarterly re-score.
5
Send acknowledgment email within 90 seconds
Templated email with personalisation tokens (first name, industry, estimated reclaim). Single CTA: book a call. Calendly link inline.
6
Log to CRM as the LAST step
CRM write is non-blocking. If the CRM is down, the acknowledgment still went out. Sync the lead + score + segment with the CRM API; don't make the form post directly to the CRM (too slow + brittle).
7
Set up escalation if AE doesn't respond
If hot lead unread in Slack after 10 min → escalate to manager. After 20 min → escalate to founder. Build the safety net before launching.
8
Measure + tune weekly
Track: median time-to-first-response (target <3 min, p95 <5 min), score distribution by segment, segment-to-SQL conversion rate. Adjust scoring weights monthly using closed-won data.

Steps

Capture leads at a single entry point

Whichever form (Tally, Typeform, custom HTML) posts directly to a webhook URL — not async to a CRM. The webhook receives the lead in <500ms.

Enrich with public data (fire-and-forget)

Use Clearbit, Apollo, or Twenty to enrich company size + industry + revenue. Cap at 15s timeout — if it doesn't return, proceed without it. Don't block the acknowledgment on enrichment.

Score the lead 0-100

4-component model: FIT (40 pts: company size + revenue + industry + decision-maker title), INTENT (30: form type + hours-reported + challenge-length), ENGAGEMENT (20: pages visited + return visit + email engagement), URGENCY (10: time-based keywords).

Branch on score thresholds

≥85 = HOT → Slack #leads-hot with @AE-on-rota + 5-min SLA. 65-84 = WARM → SDR queue, 4-hour SLA. 40-64 = NURTURE → auto-enter 5-touch sequence. <40 = FUTURE → archive, quarterly re-score.

Send acknowledgment email within 90 seconds

Templated email with personalisation tokens (first name, industry, estimated reclaim). Single CTA: book a call. Calendly link inline.

Log to CRM as the LAST step

CRM write is non-blocking. If the CRM is down, the acknowledgment still went out. Sync the lead + score + segment with the CRM API; don't make the form post directly to the CRM (too slow + brittle).

Set up escalation if AE doesn't respond

If hot lead unread in Slack after 10 min → escalate to manager. After 20 min → escalate to founder. Build the safety net before launching.

Measure + tune weekly

Track: median time-to-first-response (target <3 min, p95 <5 min), score distribution by segment, segment-to-SQL conversion rate. Adjust scoring weights monthly using closed-won data.