What is the difference between lead qualification and lead scoring?

Scoring answers questions well when the answer is in the data: is this the right kind of company by size, industry, and geography, have they shown repeated interest, and should this be prioritised above the other forty leads today. It is fast, consistent, and cheap.

Scoring is also blind to anything the person did not do on your website. It cannot ask what they are actually trying to fix, whether the timeline is real, who else is involved, or what happens if they do nothing. Those answers only come from a conversation.

The useful pattern is both. Score to decide who is worth a conversation, then have the conversation immediately, by voice or chat, while the intent is still live. A score cannot ask a follow up question, so the score sorts and the conversation qualifies.