Lead Types Guide

Learn how to categorize leads using Lead Types to better organize and qualify your prospects.

What are Lead Types?

Lead Types categorize leads based on how they came in or what they're interested in. Common examples:

• Demo Request - Someone who requested a product demo
• Download - Downloaded a resource (whitepaper, plugin, etc.)
• Trial - Signed up for free trial
• Contact Form - Submitted general inquiry
• Referral - Referred by existing customer
• Event - Met at conference or trade show
• Cold Outreach - You initiated contact

Why Use Lead Types?

Better Organization

• Quickly see what kind of lead it is
• Filter and sort by type
• Track which types convert best

Improved Follow-Up

• Different types need different approaches
• Demo requests = immediate high-priority follow-up
• Downloads = nurture sequence
• Trials = onboarding support

Better Reporting

• Which lead types convert?
• Which sources are most valuable?
• Where to invest marketing budget?

Lead Type vs Lead Status

Lead Type = How they came in (never changes)

• Demo Request
• Download
• Trial signup
• etc.

Lead Status = Where they are in your pipeline (changes frequently)

• New → Contacted → Qualified → Proposal → Won

Example:

• Type: "Demo Request" (stays forever)
• Status: New → Contacted → Demo Complete → Proposal → Won

Managing Lead Types

Viewing Lead Types

1. Navigate to Settings → Company → Lead Types
2. See list of all available types
3. View how many leads have each type

Creating a New Lead Type

1. Settings → Company → Lead Types
2. Click + Add Lead Type
3. Enter type name (e.g., "Webinar Attendee")
4. Choose icon (optional)
5. Choose color (optional)
6. Set default priority (High/Medium/Low)
7. Click Create

Naming tips:

• Be specific: "Pricing Page Visit" not "Website"
• Action-oriented: "Demo Requested" not "Demo"
• Consistent format: Use same tense/style

Editing Lead Types

1. Settings → Company → Lead Types
2. Click Edit next to type
3. Update name, icon, color, or priority
4. Click Save

Note: Editing updates all leads with that type.

Deleting Lead Types

Warning: Be careful deleting types.

1. Settings → Company → Lead Types
2. Click Delete next to type
3. Choose what to do with affected leads:

1. Confirm deletion

Assigning Lead Types

When Creating Lead

1. Click + New Lead
2. Fill out form
3. Select Lead Type from dropdown
4. Complete and save

For Existing Lead

1. Open lead detail page
2. Click Lead Type field
3. Select from dropdown
4. Changes save automatically

Bulk Type Assignment

Assign type to multiple leads:

1. Navigate to Leads list
2. Check boxes next to leads
3. Click Bulk Actions → Set Type
4. Select type
5. Click Apply

Automatic Type Assignment

Set default types for different sources:

1. Settings → Company → Lead Types
2. Default Types:

1. Click Save

How it works:

• New leads automatically get appropriate type
• Can override manually if needed
• Saves time on bulk imports

Using Lead Types

Filtering by Type

Find leads of specific type:

1. Navigate to Leads
2. Click Filters
3. Select Lead Type
4. Choose one or more types
5. View filtered list

Common filters:

• Type = "Demo Request" AND Status = "New" (urgent!)
• Type = "Trial" AND Created > 30 days ago (expired trials)
• Type = "Referral" (high-value leads)

Sorting by Type

Organize leads by type:

1. Navigate to Leads
2. Click Lead Type column header
3. Leads grouped alphabetically by type

Reporting on Types

Analyze which types perform best:

1. Navigate to Reports → Lead Sources
2. View metrics by type:

Example insights:

• "Demo Request" leads convert at 35%
• "Download" leads convert at 8%
• Focus on getting more demo requests

Lead Type Best Practices

Start with Common Types

Essential types for most businesses:

• Contact Form / Website Inquiry
• Demo Request
• Trial Signup
• Referral
• Event / Trade Show

Add more as needed.

Match Your Funnel

Types should match how leads enter:

B2B SaaS example:

• Free Trial
• Demo Request
• Whitepaper Download
• Webinar Attendee
• Contact Sales
• Partner Referral

Local Service Business:

• Phone Call
• Online Form
• Walk-In
• Referral
• Repeat Customer

Don't Overdo It

Too many types = confusion

• Keep to 5-10 types
• Combine similar types
• Be consistent

Bad:

• "Demo Request"
• "Requested Demo"
• "Demo Inquiry"
• "Demo Form Submission"

Good:

• "Demo Request"

Priority Levels

Assign priority to types:

High Priority:

• Demo Request (hot lead!)
• Trial Signup (high intent)
• Pricing Page Inquiry (buying mode)

Medium Priority:

• Contact Form
• Referral
• Event Lead

Low Priority:

• Newsletter Signup
• Blog Comment
• General Download

Follow up faster with high-priority types.

Type-Specific Workflows

Create different processes per type:

Demo Request:

1. Immediate email confirmation
2. Calendar invite within 24 hours
3. Prepare custom demo
4. Follow up same day after demo

Download:

1. Automated email sequence
2. Drip content over 2 weeks
3. Qualify via email engagement
4. Offer demo if engaged

Trial:

1. Onboarding email sequence
2. Check-in at day 3
3. Offer help at day 7
4. Upgrade offer at day 14

Advanced Features

Type-Based Assignment

Auto-assign leads to users by type:

1. Settings → Company → Lead Types
2. Click Edit next to type
3. Auto-Assign To: Select user
4. Click Save

Example:

• Type "Demo Request" → Auto-assign to Demo Specialist
• Type "Trial" → Auto-assign to Onboarding Rep
• Type "Support" → Auto-assign to Support Team

Type Templates

Create note templates per type:

Demo Request template:

Demo scheduled for: [DATE]
Their main pain point: [PAIN]
Current solution: [CURRENT]
Budget: [BUDGET]
Timeline: [TIMELINE]

Use template when creating notes for that type.

Type Scoring

Score leads differently by type:

Lead scoring example:

• Demo Request = +50 points
• Trial Signup = +40 points
• Download = +10 points
• Newsletter = +5 points

Higher scores = higher priority.

Type-Based Automations

Trigger actions based on type:

If Type = "Demo Request":

• Send instant notification to sales team
• Create calendar event
• Add to "Hot Leads" MailChimp list
• Set high priority flag

If Type = "Download":

• Add to nurture email sequence
• Tag as "Early Stage"
• Assign to marketing team

Special Lead Type: Company

The Company lead type is a special type designed for B2B users who work with organizations rather than individuals.

How Company Leads Differ

Creating a Company Lead

1. Click + New Lead
2. Select Company from the Lead Type dropdown
3. Enter the Company Name (required)
4. First/Last Name become optional
5. Add address, source, and other details
6. Save the lead

Adding People to a Company Lead

Company leads can have multiple contact people:

1. Open the company lead detail page
2. Find the People at this Company section
3. Click Add Person
4. Enter contact details:

1. Set as Primary Contact if applicable
2. Click Save

Managing Company Contacts

Edit a contact:

1. Click the pencil icon next to the contact
2. Update details
3. Save changes

Delete a contact:

1. Click the trash icon
2. Confirm deletion

Set Primary Contact:

• The primary contact is highlighted with a badge
• Only one contact can be primary at a time
• The primary contact appears first in the list

Cross-Referencing with Person Leads

If a contact at a company also exists as a separate person lead in your system, they can be linked:

• The linked contact shows a "Linked" badge
• Click the badge to view their person lead record
• Useful for tracking both company and individual relationships

When to Use Company Leads

Use Company leads when:

• You sell to businesses, not individuals
• Multiple people are involved in buying decisions
• You need to track various contacts at an organization
• The company name is more important than individual names

Examples:

• B2B SaaS sales to enterprise accounts
• Agency clients with multiple stakeholders
• Vendors or partners with multiple contacts
• Franchise organizations

Importing Company Leads

When importing via CSV, include a Lead Type column:

csv
lead_type,company,first_name,last_name,email
company,Acme Corp,,,[email protected]
company,Widget Inc,John,Smith,[email protected]
lead,,,Jane,Doe,[email protected]

• Set lead_type to "company" for company leads
• Company name is required for company leads
• First/last name are optional for company leads

Importing Brand / Industry Leads

If you have a CSV of brands or companies organized by industry, you can use the Industry column as the lead type. This lets you sort and filter leads by industry category.

Example CSV:

csv
Brand Name,Industry,Website
Walmart,Mass Retail,walmart.com
Crate & Barrel,Home Goods E-commerce,crateandbarrel.com
Sephora,Beauty Retail,sephora.com

How it works:

1. Upload your CSV and click Preview & Map Columns
2. The auto-detect will map:

1. Confirm the mapping and click Import

Auto-created lead types: If an industry value (e.g., "Mass Retail") doesn't already exist as a lead type for your company, it's automatically created during import. These new types appear in your sidebar and can be used to filter and sort leads just like any other lead type. You can customize their icon and color later in Settings → Company → Lead Types.

Other auto-detected columns:

• Brand Name or Brand → Company
• Industry, Sector, or Category → Lead Type
• Business Focus, Focus, Revenue, Traffic → Notes

No person name required: Any lead with a company name imports successfully even without first/last name fields, regardless of the lead type value. This means your brand CSV doesn't need to include contact names.

Ledo AI and Company Leads

When generating AI summaries for company leads, Ledo includes:

• Company information
• All contacts at the company
• Primary contact highlighted
• Contact roles and titles

This gives you a complete picture of the organization.

Common Lead Type Configurations

B2B SaaS

• Demo Request (High) - Sales qualified, wants to see product
• Free Trial (High) - Self-serve, needs onboarding
• Pricing Inquiry (High) - Near decision
• Content Download (Medium) - Early stage, nurture
• Webinar Attendee (Medium) - Educated, interested
• Contact Form (Medium) - General inquiry
• Partner Referral (High) - Warm introduction

E-Commerce

• Cart Abandon (High) - Almost bought
• Product Inquiry (Medium) - Interested in specific product
• Newsletter (Low) - General interest
• Loyalty Program (Medium) - Existing customer
• Influencer (High) - Partnership opportunity

Service Business

• Quote Request (High) - Ready to buy
• Contact Form (Medium) - Information gathering
• Phone Inquiry (High) - High intent
• Referral (High) - Trust established
• Repeat Customer (High) - Proven buyer

Agency

• Project Inquiry (High) - Specific need
• General Consultation (Medium) - Exploring options
• Website Audit Request (Medium) - Lead gen offer
• Referral (High) - Warm lead
• Event Contact (Low) - Networking

Troubleshooting

Leads Without Type

Problem: Some leads have no type assigned

Solutions:

• Filter for blank type
• Bulk assign appropriate type
• Set up default types to prevent future

Too Many Types

Problem: 20+ types, team confused

Solutions:

• Review and consolidate
• Delete rarely-used types
• Combine similar types
• Aim for 5-10 types

Wrong Type Assigned

Problem: Leads have incorrect type

Cause: Wrong default type or user error

Fix:

1. Filter affected leads
2. Bulk update to correct type
3. Update default type settings

Type Not Available

Problem: Need type that doesn't exist

Solution:

• Admin/SuperAdmin can create new type
• Or use closest existing type
• Request admin create needed type

Getting Help

Email: [email protected]

Include:

• What lead types you're trying to set up
• Your business model
• Any issues you're experiencing

Last Updated: February 2026