Overview

Waterfall lead distribution allows LeadExec to move through eligible buyers or delivery opportunities sequentially until the lead is successfully delivered or the configured distribution rules have been exhausted.

Instead of ending distribution when the first buyer cannot accept a lead, LeadExec can evaluate the buyer's response and proceed to another eligible opportunity per the configured workflow.

Waterfall and fallback behavior can respond to conditions, including:

Buyer Rejection • No Geographic Coverage • No Sale • Failed Delivery • Timeout • Capacity Limitations • Other Configured Delivery Responses

Waterfall routing can be combined with LeadExec's broader capabilities in buyer qualification, pricing, geographic routing, Ping/Post, distribution lists, delivery rules, and advanced routing.

For a broader explanation of LeadExec's routing engine, see Advanced Lead Routing in LeadExec.

For an overview of the complete LeadExec platform, see LeadExec Lead Distribution Software Platform Overview.

How Waterfall Lead Distribution Works

A waterfall begins by identifying the buyers or delivery opportunities that qualify for a lead.

LeadExec can evaluate criteria such as:

Geography • Coverage • Lead Attributes • Pricing • Buyer Schedules • Capacity • Lead Type • Campaign Rules • Delivery Requirements

The configured distribution strategy determines which eligible opportunity should be attempted first.

A typical waterfall workflow can look like:

Lead Received → Validate Lead → Identify Eligible Buyers → Prioritize Opportunities → Attempt Delivery → Evaluate Response → Continue to Next Eligible Opportunity if Necessary

If the first buyer successfully accepts the lead, distribution can be completed according to the configured rules.

If the buyer cannot accept the lead, LeadExec can use the response and configured fallback logic to determine whether another eligible opportunity should be attempted.

Example of a Waterfall Distribution

Consider a home-services lead with three qualified buyers:

Buyer A — $75
​Buyer B — $65
​Buyer C — $50

LeadExec determines that all three buyers meet the required lead criteria and geographic coverage.

If the configured distribution strategy prioritizes the highest-priced eligible buyer,

LeadExec attempts Buyer A first.

Buyer A

Offer: $75

Buyer A is eligible, but its delivery endpoint returns a rejection.

LeadExec evaluates the response and continues the configured waterfall.

Buyer B

Offer: $65

Buyer B is also eligible, but reports that it does not cover the consumer's location.

LeadExec can continue to the next eligible opportunity.

Buyer C

Offer: $50

Buyer C qualifies, covers the consumer's location, and successfully accepts the lead.

The lead is delivered successfully and the waterfall can end according to the configured distribution rules.

The resulting path is:

Buyer A — Rejected → Buyer B — No Coverage → Buyer C — Accepted

Rather than losing the lead after Buyer A's rejection, LeadExec continues through the eligible buyer opportunities according to the configured distribution workflow.

Buyer Qualification Before the Waterfall

Waterfall distribution does not mean sending every lead to every buyer.

LeadExec first determines which buyers or destinations are eligible for the lead based on configured qualification and distribution rules.

Buyer qualification can include criteria such as:

Geography • Service Territory • Lead Data • Pricing • Schedule • Capacity • Campaign • Lead Type • Delivery Requirements

Only qualified buyers participate in the applicable distribution workflow.

This prevents LeadExec from unnecessarily attempting buyers that do not meet the requirements for a particular lead.

For information about configuring standard client sorting methods, see Client Settings – Distribution.

Waterfall with Price-Based Routing

Waterfall logic can work alongside LeadExec's price-based distribution.

When multiple buyers qualify, buyer pricing can help determine the order in which eligible opportunities are evaluated.

For example:

Buyer A — $80
​Buyer B — $70
​Buyer C — $60

If Buyer A is attempted first but cannot accept the lead, LeadExec can continue to Buyer B. If Buyer B cannot successfully receive the lead, LeadExec can continue to Buyer C according to the configured rules.

This allows lead sellers to pursue higher-value opportunities while maintaining fallback paths when those opportunities cannot be completed.

Waterfall with Geographic & Coverage Routing

Buyer geography and service coverage can also influence waterfall distribution.

LeadExec can evaluate geographic criteria including:

State • ZIP Code • Service Territory • Radius Around ZIP • Configured Buyer Coverage

A buyer that does not cover the consumer's location can be excluded during qualification or, depending on the workflow, a coverage response can cause LeadExec to continue to another eligible opportunity.

This is particularly useful for industries such as home services, insurance, solar, franchises, dealer networks, and other territory-based businesses.

For geographic grouping within distribution workflows, see How to Create Delivery Groups.

For routing based on large ZIP, postal code, or other lead-field lists, see Client Settings – Distribution Lists.

Waterfall with Ping/Post

Waterfall distribution can also be used in sophisticated Ping/Post lead-distribution workflows.

Ping/Post allows LeadExec to evaluate buyer interest, eligibility, coverage, availability, pricing, and real-time responses before sending the complete lead.

A workflow may include:

Identify Eligible Buyers → Ping Buyer → Evaluate Response → Select Opportunity → Post Full Lead → Evaluate Delivery Response

If the selected opportunity cannot be completed, configured waterfall or fallback logic can determine whether LeadExec should continue to another eligible opportunity.

This is especially useful for lead sellers and marketplaces where buyer availability and demand can change from one lead to the next.

For a detailed explanation of Ping/Post, Ping Trees, buyer bidding, revenue requirements, coverage scanning, and lead-delivery validation, see Ping Post Lead Distribution Explained.

For technical setup, see Setting Up a Ping Post Lead Delivery in LeadExec.

Delivery Responses & Fallback Logic

A critical part of waterfall distribution is understanding what happened during a delivery attempt.

LeadExec can use configured response handling to identify whether a buyer successfully accepted the lead or whether distribution should continue.

Depending on the workflow, fallback behavior can respond to conditions including:

Buyer Rejection

The buyer explicitly rejects the lead according to its configured response criteria.

No Coverage

The buyer does not service the consumer's location or does not meet the applicable geographic requirements.

No Sale

The configured workflow determines that the opportunity did not result in a completed sale and additional distribution should be considered.

Failed Delivery

The receiving endpoint fails to receive or process the lead.

Timeout

The receiving system does not respond within the configured timeout period.

Capacity Limit

A buyer may no longer be eligible because it has reached an applicable lead or order capacity.

LeadExec can use these responses and eligibility conditions to determine whether another buyer or delivery opportunity should be evaluated.

For more information about how LeadExec sends leads to buyers, see Delivery Methods Overview.

Retry Logic vs. Waterfall Logic

Retry and waterfall behavior solve different delivery problems.

Retry logic attempts to deliver the lead again to the same destination when a delivery fails according to the configured retry settings.

Waterfall logic moves the lead to another eligible buyer or distribution opportunity when the current opportunity cannot be completed and the configured rules allow distribution to continue.

For example:

Delivery Attempt → Buyer A Endpoint Fails → Retry Buyer A → Retry Fails → Continue Waterfall → Attempt Buyer B

This allows LeadExec to distinguish between a temporary technical delivery problem and a buyer opportunity that should be bypassed.

LeadExec Delivery Methods support configurable retry attempts and failure handling. See Getting Started – Delivery Methods: Creating a New Delivery Method.

Timeouts in Waterfall Distribution

LeadExec can also use delivery timeouts to prevent an unresponsive buyer endpoint from indefinitely delaying lead distribution.

A timeout determines how long LeadExec waits for the receiving system to respond before the delivery attempt is treated according to the configured response and fallback rules.

This is especially important in real-time lead distribution, where delivery speed can affect buyer value and the ability to reach the consumer quickly.

For Ping/Post deliveries, timeout settings can be configured as part of the buyer endpoint configuration. See Ping Post URL Endpoint Tab.

Waterfall Distribution and Maximum Delivery Count

Waterfall routing can also work with LeadExec's Maximum Delivery Count.

Maximum Delivery Count determines the maximum number of clients to which a lead can be successfully delivered.

This allows organizations to control how many buyers may ultimately receive the same lead while still allowing LeadExec to evaluate additional opportunities when previous delivery attempts are unsuccessful.

For example, a campaign configured for a single successful delivery may evaluate several eligible buyers in a waterfall but stop once a buyer accepts the lead.

A shared-lead campaign can support multiple successful deliveries, subject to its configured Maximum Delivery Count.

For campaign configuration details, see Creating a Web Lead Campaign.

Waterfall Distribution for Lead Sellers

Waterfall distribution is particularly useful for lead generation companies and lead sellers managing multiple buyers.

Buyer demand can vary by:

Lead Type • Geography • Price • Schedule • Capacity • Coverage • Buyer Criteria • Real-Time Availability

A lead that cannot be sold or delivered to one buyer may still have value to another qualified buyer.

By combining buyer qualification, pricing, waterfall routing, Ping/Post, geographic coverage, response handling, retries, and delivery limits, LeadExec enables lead sellers to create distribution workflows that continue evaluating qualified revenue opportunities when an earlier opportunity cannot be completed.

LeadExec records lead distribution activity so users can review what happened throughout the delivery process.

The Distribution screen provides visibility into delivered, rejected, returned, and other distribution outcomes and allows users to investigate individual lead activity.

This helps users understand:

Which buyer received the lead • Whether delivery succeeded • Whether the lead was rejected • Which buyer paid for the lead • Lead return activity • Distribution history

See Distribution – How to Use This Screen.

Waterfall distribution is a component of LeadExec's broader advanced lead-routing engine.

LeadExec can combine waterfall logic with:

Price-Based Routing • Priority • Weighted Distribution • Percentage Distribution • Round Robin • Revenue Optimization • Ping/Post • Geographic Routing • Distribution Lists • Concurrent Delivery • Buyer Qualification • Lead Quality Rules • Retry Logic • Custom Routing Logic

This allows organizations to build lead distribution workflows that account for both who should receive a lead first and what should happen when that opportunity cannot be completed.

For the complete routing model, see Advanced Lead Routing in LeadExec.