What is shared vs exclusive leads?
An exclusive lead is sold to one buyer. A shared lead is sold to several buyers simultaneously, so the consumer is contacted by multiple agents and each buyer competes for the same person.
Exclusive leads cost more and generally convert better, because the consumer is not fielding calls from four other agents. Shared leads cost less and can still be economic if the buyer responds quickly, since speed to contact matters disproportionately on shared inventory.
The number of buyers matters more than the label. 'Shared' sold to three buyers and 'shared' sold to ten are different products at the same name, and vendors do not always volunteer the distinction. It is worth specifying the cap contractually rather than accepting the category.
Scoring interacts with this directly. On shared inventory, the value of a lead depends not only on conversion propensity but on the probability of reaching the consumer first, which is why some buyers bid aggressively on high-scoring shared leads and decline the rest entirely.
Related terms
- Ping-post — Ping-post is a two-step lead transaction: the publisher first sends a minimal record (the ping) so buyers can bid without seeing the full lead, then sends the complete record (the post) to whichever buyer wins.
- Recycled lead — A recycled lead is a genuine but older consumer inquiry that is resold as though it were new, without disclosing how long ago the original inquiry was made or how many buyers already received it.