Lead Tags Guide

Learn how to use tags to organize, filter, and categorize your leads for better workflow management.

What are Lead Tags?

Lead Tags are flexible labels you can apply to leads to organize them by any criteria that matters to your business. Unlike Lead Types and Statuses (which are one-per-lead), you can apply multiple tags to a single lead.

Default Tags (Available to All Companies):

• 🔥 Hot Lead - High-priority leads ready to close
• 🕒 Follow Up - Requires follow-up action
• ✅ Qualified - Qualified and ready for next steps
• ❌ Unqualified - Does not meet qualification criteria
• ⭐ VIP - High-value or important contact
• ✉️ Newsletter - Subscribed to newsletter/marketing
• ❄️ Cold - Low engagement or inactive
• 🌡️ Warm - Showing interest but not ready
• 🛒 Customer - Existing customer (auto-applied for Shopify)

Custom Tags (Admin-Managed):

• Create unlimited custom tags for your company
• Choose your own colors and icons
• Tailor tags to your specific workflow

Why Use Lead Tags?

Multiple Categories per Lead

• Apply as many tags as needed to each lead
• Example: A lead can be "VIP", "Hot Lead", and "Follow Up" all at once
• More flexible than single-category systems

Better Lead Organization

• Quickly identify lead characteristics at a glance
• Filter leads by specific tags
• Visual color coding for instant recognition

Trigger Automations

• Tags can trigger email campaigns automatically
• Apply a tag and the lead enters a nurture sequence
• See Email Automation for details

Improved Workflow

• Tag leads that need specific actions
• Identify priority leads quickly
• Track customer lifecycle stages

Team Collaboration

• Everyone sees the same tags
• Consistent lead categorization
• Clear communication about lead status

Tags vs Types vs Statuses

Lead Tags = Multiple flexible labels (can have many)

• Hot Lead, VIP, Follow Up, Newsletter, etc.
• Can add/remove freely
• For categorization and workflow

Lead Type = How they came in (one per lead, rarely changes)

• Demo Request, Download, Trial signup, etc.
• Typically set once
• For source tracking

Lead Status = Pipeline stage (one per lead, changes frequently)

• New → Contacted → Qualified → Won
• Tracks progress
• For pipeline management

Example Lead:

• Type: "Demo Request" (source)
• Status: "Qualified" (pipeline stage)
• Tags: "Hot Lead", "VIP", "Follow Up" (flexible categories)

Using Tags on Lead Details

View Lead Tags

1. Open any lead details page
2. Tags display below the lead name with color-coded badges
3. Icons make tags instantly recognizable

Manage Tags

1. Click the "Manage Tags" button below the lead name
2. A modal opens showing all available tags
3. Green/Solid tags = Currently applied to this lead
4. Outline tags = Available but not applied
5. Click any tag to toggle it on or off
6. Changes save automatically
7. Close the modal when done

Tags in Map View:

• For leads with addresses, tags appear in the map overlay
• Same functionality as regular view

Filtering Leads by Tags

On the Leads List Page

1. Go to your Leads page
2. Under "Filters" heading, expand the "Tag" accordion
3. Click any tag to filter leads with that tag
4. Active filter shows in the accordion header
5. Click "All Tags" to clear the filter

Filter Combinations:

• Combine tag filters with type filters
• Combine with search
• Stack multiple filters for precise results

Mobile-Friendly:

• Filters collapse for cleaner mobile view
• All tags wrap naturally on small screens
• No horizontal scrolling required

Managing Custom Tags (Admin Only)

Access Tag Management

1. Go to Company Settings
2. Click the Settings tab
3. Scroll to the "Custom Tags" section

View Available Tags

Default Tags Section:

• Shows all 9 system-wide default tags
• Read-only (cannot be edited or deleted)
• Available to all companies

Custom Tags Section:

• Shows your company's custom tags
• Full edit and delete control
• Create unlimited custom tags

Create a Custom Tag

1. Click "Add Custom Tag" button
2. Fill in the form:

1. Live Preview shows your tag as you build it
2. Click "Save Tag" to create it
3. Tag is immediately available for all leads

Icon Options:

• 🏷️ Tag
• ⭐ Star
• ❤️ Heart
• 🚩 Flag
• 🔖 Bookmark
• ⚡ Lightning
• 🏆 Trophy
• 💎 Gem
• 🚀 Rocket
• 🛡️ Shield

Edit a Custom Tag

1. Find the tag in the Custom Tags list
2. Click the pencil icon (✏️)
3. Modal opens with current values pre-filled
4. Make your changes
5. Live preview updates as you edit
6. Click "Save Tag" to update
7. All leads with this tag see the updated version immediately

Delete a Custom Tag

1. Find the tag in the Custom Tags list
2. Click the trash icon (🗑️)
3. Confirm deletion in the popup
4. Tag is removed from the system
5. Tag is automatically removed from all leads

Note: Deleting a custom tag cannot be undone.

Shopify Integration Auto-Tagging

Smart Behavior-Based Tagging

When you connect a Shopify store, LeadMachine automatically tags synced customers based on their behavior and marketing preferences:

Smart Tagging Logic:

• 🛒 Customer tag = Has placed orders (orders_count > 0)
• ✉️ Newsletter tag = No orders yet but accepts marketing (orders_count = 0 AND accepts_marketing = true)
• 🛒 Customer tag (fallback) = Applied if neither condition is met

Auto-Applied During:

• Manual customer sync
• Manual order sync (customer data in order)
• Real-time customer/create webhook
• Real-time customer/update webhook
• Real-time customer/marketing_consent_update webhook
• Real-time order webhooks (containing customer data)

How It Works:

1. Connect Shopify store in Company Settings
2. Sync customers or orders (manual or automatic via webhooks)
3. LeadMachine creates/updates leads
4. System checks orders_count and accepts_marketing fields
5. Appropriate tag(s) automatically applied based on behavior
6. Tags persist and update as customer behavior changes

Tag Transitions:

• Newsletter subscriber makes first purchase → Gets both "Newsletter" and "Customer" tags
• Customer opts into marketing → No tag change (already has "Customer")
• Customer updates marketing consent → Tags re-evaluated automatically

Use Cases:

• Customer tag - Identify paying customers, send loyalty campaigns, offer upsells
• Newsletter tag - Find engaged subscribers, send first-purchase incentives, nurture leads
• Both tags - VIP treatment for customers who engage with marketing
• Filter combinations - Target specific segments (Newsletter + Hot Lead, Customer + VIP)
• Conversion tracking - Measure newsletter subscriber to customer conversion rate
• Campaign segmentation - Exclude paying customers from acquisition campaigns

Best Practices

Tag Naming

Be Consistent:

• Use consistent naming conventions
• "High Priority" not "High-Priority" or "high priority"
• Decide on singular vs plural and stick to it

Be Specific:

• "Needs Pricing" is better than "Follow Up"
• "Contract Sent" is better than "In Process"
• More specific = more useful

Keep It Short:

• Tags display in small badges
• Aim for 1-2 words
• Use abbreviations if needed

Color Strategy

Use Color Psychology:

• 🔴 Red - Urgent, hot, important
• 🟢 Green - Qualified, good, positive
• 🔵 Blue - Information, cold, neutral
• 🟡 Yellow - Warning, warm, attention
• 🟣 Purple - VIP, premium, special

Be Consistent:

• All "action needed" tags = red
• All "qualified" tags = green
• All "nurture" tags = yellow
• Consistency helps visual scanning

Tag Organization

Don't Over-Tag:

• 3-5 tags per lead is ideal
• Too many tags = tag fatigue
• Focus on what's actually useful

Review Regularly:

• Delete unused tags
• Merge similar tags
• Keep tag list clean and relevant

Train Your Team:

• Document what each tag means
• When to apply each tag
• Tag workflow best practices

Common Tag Workflows

Sales Qualification:

1. New lead comes in
2. Initial contact → Add "Contacted" tag
3. Qualify lead → Add "Qualified" or "Unqualified"
4. Set priority → Add "Hot Lead" or "Warm"
5. Track actions → Add "Follow Up" or "Demo Scheduled"

Customer Lifecycle:

1. Shopify customer syncs → "Customer" tag auto-applied
2. Repeat buyer → Add "VIP" tag
3. Newsletter signup → Add "Newsletter" tag
4. Support issue → Add "Support" tag (if created)
5. Upgrade opportunity → Add "Upsell" tag (if created)

Campaign Management:

1. Create custom tag for campaign (e.g., "Q4 Promo")
2. Tag all leads in the campaign
3. Filter by tag to track campaign leads
4. Measure results for tagged leads
5. Remove tag or create "Converted" tag when done

Troubleshooting

Tags Not Loading

• Check browser console for errors
• Ensure you're logged in
• Hard refresh (Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + R)
• Check with admin if tags were recently deleted

Can't Create Custom Tags

• Only admins can manage custom tags
• Contact your company admin
• Check your user role in Company Settings

Tags Not Saving

• Check internet connection
• Look for error message in modal
• Try refreshing and saving again
• Check with admin if permissions changed

Auto-Tagging Not Working (Shopify)

• Verify Shopify connection is active
• Check that customers are syncing
• Customer tag only applies to synced customers
• Webhooks must be registered for real-time tagging

Tips & Tricks

Bulk Tagging:

• Tag multiple leads at once during import
• Use consistent tags for campaigns
• Set up tag templates for common scenarios

Tag Filtering:

• Combine tag + type filters for precision
• Use "Customer" tag to separate from prospects
• Filter by "Hot Lead" for priority calling

Reporting:

• Track conversion rates by tag
• Identify which tags lead to sales
• Optimize based on tag performance

Visual Scanning:

• Use bright colors for urgent tags
• Muted colors for informational tags
• Icons help identify tags faster

Tags and Automations

Tags are the primary trigger for LeadMachine automations. When you apply a tag to a lead, it can automatically start workflows.

Email Campaign Triggers

Link any tag to an email campaign to automatically enroll leads:

1. Go to Company Settings > Customize > Custom Tags
2. Create or edit a tag
3. Select a campaign in the Campaign Trigger dropdown
4. When that tag is applied, the lead enters the campaign

Example Use Cases:

• "Free Trial" tag triggers an onboarding sequence
• "Newsletter" tag enrolls leads in your newsletter campaign
• "Demo Request" tag starts a sales follow-up sequence

See Email Automation for full details on creating campaigns.

Automatic Spam Cleanup

LeadMachine automatically archives spam leads to keep your pipeline clean.

Quick Summary:

• Mark leads as spam by setting status to "spam" OR applying a "spam" tag
• Leads are automatically archived during the daily cleanup (3:40 AM)
• Archived leads are soft-deleted (still in database, just hidden from active lists)

Best Practice: Create a custom "spam" tag for quick one-click spam marking.

For full details, see the Auto-Cleanup & Rules guide.

Summary

Lead Tags are a powerful, flexible way to organize leads beyond the constraints of single-category systems. Use them to:

✅ Apply multiple categories to each lead ✅ Filter and organize leads your way ✅ Track actions and priorities visually ✅ Collaborate with your team effectively ✅ Automatically tag Shopify customers ✅ Auto-archive spam leads with the "spam" tag or status ✅ Create custom workflows that fit your business

Start with the default tags and add custom ones as you discover what works best for your workflow. Keep it simple, be consistent, and review regularly to maintain an effective tagging system.