AI Lead Screening: Smarter Qualification. Faster Routing.

Speed to lead matters. Every minute faster you go is a higher percent chance you're gonna convert a hand raiser into a pipeline meeting. But quality counts too. The number one complaint from most sales teams is that the types of leads they're getting aren't necessarily right.

The Challenge: Speed vs. Quality

Maybe leads have good fit but don't have the right buying intent. Maybe it's inconsistent in who's getting through and who's not. Maybe they're ending up in the wrong sales motion or in front of the wrong person. All of these things cause problems throughout the pipeline.

Before starting any work, use a calculator to determine: with all the leads you have coming in, what is the opportunity of getting to a real discovery conversation faster worth to your business? Can that help you drive better pipeline velocity?

Step 1: Engage Every Lead Instantly

We want to engage any lead that comes in as quickly as possible by triggering their intent through our systems. A lead comes in through the CRM—whether that's HubSpot, Salesforce, or through Zapier and webhooks. Regardless of how we do it, the moment they raise their hand, boom—we're showing them an AI conversation personalized to their stage.

"We want to start as many qualification conversations as possible. A lot of scoring models are built on firmographic data—how many people are at your company, what is your role. That doesn't always reveal buying intent."

Scoring models are helpful for screening out the absolute nos. But within the "hey, this could be a good buyer" group, there's an opportunity to open that funnel and start more conversations.

Step 2: Qualify Through Conversation, Not Assumptions

Think about these conversational AI workflows beyond just qualification—into discovery. Because we're having a conversation, because the AI has intelligence, it can get from traditional firmographic data into buying intent:

• What is their use case?
• How urgent is this?
• What are their challenges?

For example, instead of asking "do you make over $10K per month?" you can prompt: "Politely ask them to share their revenue so we can recommend the right program." The AI figures out the answer through natural conversation.

Step 3: Route Dynamically by Revenue Stage

Take that qualification—both fit and intent—and tie it to routing rules that match the buying journey of today. Not every buyer needs to go through a discovery call. If we use AI right:

• Some can go straight to closers and skip discovery
• Some may just want to press a button, pay you money, and not talk to anybody
• Some need deeper nurture before they're ready

You can give different instructions based on where they land:

"If their monthly revenue is below a quarter million, they should be in Accelerate Revenue—that's designed for their current state. But if their revenue is above that, they go to Revenue Peaks with a group of their peers."

They're qualified in either scenario—it just depends on who the AI sends them to. Each pool has its own round robin, its own territory assignment.

Step 4: Build and Test in the AI Agent Builder

We always recommend picking a messaging channel that's most relevant for your buyer. Some buyers are on the go, on their phones—go with text message. Some are at their desk—email might make more sense. Test and try both.

Always push as much data as you have into the AI so it can maximally personalize the conversation. The introduction should start a conversation—not just say "hello."

Example introduction: "Hey [First Name], real quick—are you one of the founders of the company or a member of the team?"

This immediately starts the qualification. If they're a team member, maybe this isn't the right program. But now you know what they do, that's in your CRM, and if you change your offering, you can always go back.

Connecting to HubSpot

Most leads come in from forms. Here's how to wire it up:

1. Build your form in HubSpot
2. At the end, alert the person to check their phone or email
3. Get the campaign ID from your AI workflow
4. Add it to your HubSpot workflow
5. Make sure you add the right disclaimers (TCPA compliance for text)

Once you submit, the AI conversation starts automatically via SMS or email.

Example Conversation Flow

Here's how a real conversation might go:

• AI: "Thanks for your interest. Real quick, are you one of the founders?"
• Lead: "Yep, I'm the founder."
• AI: "Could you share your current annual revenue? This will help me recommend the best program."
• Lead: "We're at 82K."
• AI: "Great, we have a program called Accelerate Revenue. Would you like to set up a call to discuss next steps?"
• Lead: "How much does this cost?"
• AI: "It depends on the program and additional features. We can dive into those details during a call. Do any of these times work?"
• Lead: "Sure, tomorrow is great."

The AI handled the objection, explained why the call would be helpful, proposed times, and booked the meeting—all in real time.

Key Takeaways

• Don't rely on static scoring alone. Firmographic data doesn't reveal buying intent—conversations do.
• Qualify through discovery. Ask about use cases, urgency, and challenges, not just company size.
• Route dynamically. Match leads to the right motion based on where they are, not one-size-fits-all.
• Personalize the intro. Start with a question that immediately moves the conversation forward.
• Connect your CRM. Wire up HubSpot or Salesforce so the AI triggers instantly when leads come in.

This is how you screen, qualify, and route leads through conversations instantly—the minute they reach out or raise their hand.