If you’re tired of sorting through endless spreadsheets or watching your sales team chase dead ends, you’re not alone. Automating lead scoring is supposed to save you from that mess, but most guides are either vague or assume you’ve got a dozen engineers on speed dial. This walkthrough is for real-world marketing ops folks who want to get results with Kleo—without the fluff or the headaches.
Let’s get you from “What the heck is lead scoring, again?” to “Wow, my reps are actually calling the right people.” Here’s how to set up automated lead scoring in Kleo so you can stop wasting time and start seeing actual impact.
What You Need to Know Before You Start
Before you dive in, let’s keep it honest: automated lead scoring isn’t magic. It can highlight your best prospects and shave hours off your week, but it won’t fix a broken funnel or turn bad data into gold.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Access to your Kleo account (with admin or similar permissions)
- A clear idea of what a “good lead” looks like for your business
- Basic understanding of your sales process and key customer actions
- Clean(ish) data—if your CRM is a dumpster fire, fix that first
Skip this guide if: - You’re still figuring out your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) - You don’t have enough leads to segment in the first place - Your sales team ignores whatever you send them anyway
If you’re set on those fronts, let’s get into the actual steps.
Step 1: Get Your Data in Order
Let’s be blunt—garbage in, garbage out. If you’re feeding Kleo half-baked or outdated data, your scoring model will let you down.
Checklist before you start: - Make sure your CRM and marketing tools sync properly with Kleo. - Remove obvious junk leads and duplicates. - Standardize fields (e.g., use “VP” not “Vice President” or “V.P.” everywhere).
Pro Tip:
Don’t try to automate lead scoring until you’ve run a quick audit on your core data. Ten minutes here can save you hours of debugging later.
Step 2: Define What Makes a Good Lead
There’s no universal “perfect prospect.” Define this for your business first, or your scoring will be pointless. Have a quick (and honest) chat with your sales team—they know who actually buys, not just who fills out a form.
Questions to answer: - Which job titles or industries convert most? - What actions matter—webinar signups, demo requests, email opens? - Are there any red flags (like students, spammy emails, tire-kickers)?
Jot down a shortlist of must-have attributes and high-value behaviors. This is your scoring criteria, and it’ll keep you honest when you’re tempted to over-complicate things.
Step 3: Map Out Your Scoring Model
Now, let’s translate that wishlist into an actual scoring system.
Attribute scoring:
Assign points for things like:
- Job title (e.g., “Director” +10)
- Company size (e.g., “100-500 employees” +5)
- Industry (target industries +7)
- Location (if you only sell in certain regions)
Behavioral scoring:
Assign points for actions:
- Email opened (+2)
- Link clicked (+3)
- Demo requested (+20)
- Visited pricing page (+5)
Negative scoring:
Subtract points for signs someone’s a bad fit, like:
- Personal email address (e.g., @gmail, -10)
- Unsubscribed from everything (-15)
- No activity in 30 days (-5)
Keep it simple:
Start with a handful of rules. You can always add more later. And don’t give every action a score—focus on what really signals intent.
Step 4: Build or Import Your Scoring Model in Kleo
Here’s where you actually put your plan into action.
4.1. Navigate to Lead Scoring Settings
- Log in to Kleo and head to the “Lead Management” or “Scoring” section (the exact name may vary depending on your setup).
- If you’re new, look for a “Get Started” or “Add Scoring Model” button.
4.2. Set Up Attribute (Demographic) Scoring
- Add each main attribute as a rule—e.g., “Job Title contains Manager: +8 points.”
- Use Kleo’s dropdowns or rule-builder to map fields from your CRM.
- Double-check for typos and logic errors (it’s easy to accidentally give “Intern” a +20 if you’re not careful).
4.3. Set Up Behavioral (Engagement) Scoring
- Add behavioral triggers—e.g., “Opened marketing email: +2 points.”
- You can usually set decay rules (e.g., points expire after 30 days of inactivity).
- If you run webinars or events, connect those registration/attendance fields.
4.4. Add Negative Scoring
- Add rules for disqualifiers—e.g., “Email contains @yahoo: -10 points.”
- Don’t go overboard—if every lead ends up below zero, your sales team will just ignore the scores.
4.5. Save and Test
- Save your model, then run a test on a handful of leads. Does it reflect reality?
- Ask a sales rep or two to sanity-check the results.
Pro Tip:
If you’ve already built a scoring model in another platform, some Kleo plans let you import scoring rules via CSV or API. Just beware—copy-pasting old rules can bring old mistakes with them.
Step 5: Set Up Automated Actions Based on Score
Scoring by itself is nice, but it’s the automation that actually saves time.
Common automations in Kleo: - Assign hot leads (score above X) to a specific rep or sales queue. - Trigger tailored email nurture tracks for mid-range scores. - Notify sales when a lead crosses a threshold. - Send “cool-off” content to low scorers rather than wasting sales time.
How to do it: - Go to “Automation” or “Workflows” in Kleo. - Set up triggers based on lead score changes (e.g., “When score exceeds 50…”). - Build if/then rules: assign, notify, or enroll leads automatically. - Test with a few sample records—don’t unleash it on your whole database until you’re sure it works.
Reality check:
Automated actions are only as good as your underlying scoring logic. If your reps start complaining about junk leads, revisit your criteria and tweak the rules.
Step 6: Monitor, Review, and Adjust
This is the part most people skip, but it’s where you actually get results.
- Review how many leads are hitting each score band (e.g., “hot,” “warm,” “cold”).
- Check with sales after a week or two—are they getting better leads, or more noise?
- Look at conversion rates. Are “hot” leads actually converting?
- Adjust your scoring rules as needed. Don’t be afraid to delete or reduce points for actions that don’t correlate with sales.
Pro Tip:
Don’t try to “set it and forget it.” Even the best scoring models need a tune-up every month or so, especially if your business or marketing tactics change.
What Works (and What Doesn’t)
Works: - Keeping your model simple (fewer, higher-impact rules) - Getting feedback from sales early and often - Automating follow-up—less manual sorting means fewer dropped leads
Doesn’t Work: - Overcomplicating with 50+ scoring rules nobody can explain - Ignoring negative scoring (you’ll waste time on bad fits) - Blindly trusting the model—always sanity-check the results
Ignore the hype about “AI lead scoring” unless you’ve got serious volume and clean data. For most teams, a solid rule-based model in Kleo will get you 90% of the way there.
Keep It Simple, Iterate Fast
Automating lead scoring in Kleo can save you time and get your best prospects in front of the right people. But don’t overthink it—start small, keep your rules clear, and check in with your sales team often. Iterate as you go. The more you prune and tweak, the more valuable your scoring becomes.
Above all, don’t get bogged down chasing “perfect.” A working, simple model beats a complex mess every time. Good luck—and enjoy having fewer junk leads clogging your pipeline.