If your sales pipeline is a mess of cold emails, LinkedIn DMs, and “maybe someday” accounts, you’re not alone. Most B2B pipelines are clogged with leads that’ll never close. The real problem? It’s hard to tell the difference between real potential and wishful thinking. That’s where Scrubby comes in: a tool meant to help you qualify leads and actually prioritize what matters, instead of just adding more noise.
This guide is for sales teams and founders who are tired of chasing ghosts and want a practical, honest way to focus on the deals worth your time. We’ll cover how Scrubby works, what it can (and can’t) do, and a step-by-step process for getting your pipeline under control.
Why Qualifying B2B Leads Is So Hard
Let’s be blunt: most so-called “leads” aren’t leads at all. They’re just names in a spreadsheet. The real challenge is figuring out who’s worth your attention before you waste hours on dead-ends.
The usual problems: - Too many unqualified leads clogging up your CRM - Sales reps cherry-picking easy conversations, not real opportunities - No clear criteria for what makes a “good” lead - Everyone wasting time on deals that never close
A tool like Scrubby won’t magically make bad leads disappear. But it does give you a way to sort the wheat from the chaff, so you can spend time where it counts.
What Scrubby Actually Does (and Doesn’t)
Before we get into the how-to, let’s be clear about what Scrubby is not:
- It’s not a silver bullet. It won’t “automate” relationship-building or magically find you perfect-fit customers.
- It’s not a mass-emailing tool or a lead scraper.
- It won’t replace your CRM, but it can sit alongside it without a fuss.
What Scrubby does well: - Helps you set up real qualification criteria, not just “job title contains VP” - Scores or ranks your leads using data you actually care about - Surfaces leads that match your ideal customer profile, based on your actual results (not just wishful thinking) - Lets you quickly spot which leads are worth pursuing—and which ones need to be dropped
If you want to spend less time on busywork and more time closing, Scrubby is worth a look. But you’ll still need to think critically and make judgment calls. No software is going to know your market better than you.
Step 1: Get Clear on What a Qualified Lead Looks Like
Don’t skip this. Scrubby is only as smart as the criteria you feed it. If you’re vague, you’ll get vague results.
How to do it: - Look at your last 10 closed-won deals. What did they have in common? Industry, company size, pain points, budget, timeline, champion, etc. - Write down your non-negotiables. - For example: “Must have at least 50 employees,” “Uses Salesforce,” “Has a clear budget.” - Decide what disqualifies a lead. - Red flags, deal-breakers, tire-kicker signals.
Pro tip: Don’t overthink it. Start with a simple list, then tweak as you learn.
Step 2: Set Up Scrubby with Your Criteria
Now that you know what you’re looking for, it’s time to put Scrubby to work.
What to do: - Import your leads. Scrubby usually connects to your CRM or lets you upload a CSV. Keep it simple—just name, company, email, and any basic data. - Define your qualification rules in Scrubby. Map the criteria you listed in Step 1. - You can set up “must-have” fields (e.g., company size) and “nice-to-have” fields (e.g., recent funding). - Assign weights if Scrubby allows it—so “budget authority” matters more than “industry event attendance.” - Let Scrubby process your list. It’ll rank or score your leads based on your rules.
Honest take: These tools are only as good as the data you feed them. If your CRM is full of missing info or typos, expect some junk in your results.
Step 3: Review and Sanity-Check the Results
Don’t just trust the top of the list. You know your market better than any algorithm.
Go through the ranked list and: - Spot-check the top 10 leads. Do they feel right? If not, tweak your rules and rerun. - Look for obvious mismatches—sometimes a “high score” lead is a bad fit for reasons the software can’t see (like a terrible reputation, or they just fired their team). - Tag or flag any standouts or questionable results for a second look.
Ignore the temptation to chase every lead that Scrubby says is “hot.” Trust your own instincts too.
Step 4: Prioritize Outreach (and Drop the Rest)
Now the fun part—focus your energy where it counts.
How to act on the list: - Block time to reach out to your top-tier leads first. Don’t let “maybe later” deals distract you. - For mid-tier leads, send a quick note or set a reminder to revisit if your top choices don’t pan out. - Be ruthless about dropping or pausing the lowest-ranked leads. Don’t clog your pipeline with wishful thinking.
Pro tip: You don’t need to “nurture” every single contact. It’s okay to let go.
Step 5: Fine-Tune Your Criteria as You Go
Qualification isn’t set-it-and-forget-it. As you close more deals (or lose them), patterns will emerge. Feed that learning back into Scrubby.
How to improve: - After each quarter, review which leads actually closed, and which ones fizzled. - Adjust your criteria based on real-world results, not just gut feel. - If you see new patterns (e.g., a certain industry always ghosts you), tweak your qualification rules.
Don’t get sucked into endless tweaking. Make small changes, see what happens, and keep moving.
What to Watch Out For (And What to Ignore)
- Don’t chase “activity” metrics. More calls/emails doesn’t equal more deals.
- Don’t confuse “interest” for intent. Someone downloading a whitepaper isn’t the same as someone asking for a demo.
- Don’t let Scrubby (or any tool) make decisions for you. Use it to surface signals, not to abdicate judgment.
Red flag: If your team starts gaming the system to get “better” scores, your criteria are probably off.
Pro Tips for Getting More Out of Scrubby
- Keep your data clean. Garbage in, garbage out. Set aside time each month to clean up obvious errors.
- Limit your qualification criteria. More filters doesn’t mean better leads—just more ways to miss good ones.
- Use notes and tags. Scrubby’s notes field is your friend. Add context you can’t capture with a checkbox.
- Review your pipeline weekly. Don’t let “stale” leads linger out of habit.
Real Talk: What Scrubby Won’t Fix
Even the best tools can’t solve every problem: - If your value prop stinks, no amount of qualification will help. - If your team refuses to follow up, all the prioritization in the world is pointless. - If you’re in a tiny market with 50 possible buyers, don’t expect software to change your world.
But if you want to spend more time selling (and less time guessing), Scrubby’s a step in the right direction.
Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Overthink It
Qualifying B2B leads is hard enough without making it a science project. Start with clear criteria, let Scrubby help you sort, and focus on what’s actually working. When in doubt, simplify—then refine as you go. The goal isn’t a perfect pipeline, just one that doesn’t waste your time.
Now, get out there and work the leads that matter. Drop the rest. And remember: no tool can replace good judgment. Use Scrubby to make your life easier, not more complicated.