Lead Routing in Lead Prosper: Distribution Methods Explained

Within a Direct Post campaign, the Distribution Method controls how leads are routed to buyers. Each method has its own behavior, advantages, and trade-offs. Choosing the right one depends on your buyer relationships, pricing strategy, and how you want leads prioritized.

There are six Distribution Methods available:

1. Waterfall
2. Highest Bidder
3. Send to All
4. Round Robin
5. Weighted Round Robin
6. Buyer Groups

Waterfall

Waterfall is the simplest and default distribution method.

Buyers are arranged in a fixed order, and the system attempts to sell the lead sequentially — starting from the top and moving down the list until:

• A buyer accepts the lead, or
• All buyers are exhausted and the lead remains unsold

Best used when:

You want strict control over buyer priority and a predictable routing order.

Highest Bidder

Highest Bidder is an auction-based distribution method.

When a lead is received, all eligible buyers are evaluated and assigned a bid price based on their pricing model:

• Static pricing — a fixed price.
• Conditional pricing — pricing that adjusts based on rules.
• Real-time pricing — the bid price returned on the PING from a Ping Post buyer.

Buyers are then sorted from highest to lowest bid, and the system attempts to sell the lead in that order until it is accepted or unsold.

Best used when:

You want to prioritize revenue by always attempting to sell to the highest-paying buyer first.

Read more about Highest Bidder here.

Send to All

Send to All attempts to sell the lead to every eligible buyer in the campaign.

By default, the system works through buyers in order and attempts delivery to each one. You can optionally apply a sell limit to cap how many buyers the lead is sold to.

Once the limit is reached, distribution stops.

Best used when:

You want to maximize lead exposure and allow multiple buyers to purchase the same lead.

Round Robin

Round Robin distributes leads evenly across all eligible buyers.

Each time a buyer receives a lead, they are moved to the back of the rotation. The next lead is then offered to the next buyer in line.

This creates a rotating sequence designed to balance lead distribution across buyers over time.

By default Round Robin will try all eligible buyers and attempt to sell the lead one time, however you can adjust the settings to allow Round Robin to sell the lead to multiple buyers.

Best used when:

You want fair and balanced distribution across buyers.

Weighted Round Robin

Weighted Round Robin is a variation of Round Robin that allows you to prioritize certain buyers by assigning them a higher share of the rotation.

Instead of equal distribution, buyers receive leads based on their assigned weighting.

By default Weighted Round Robin will try all eligible buyers and attempt to sell the lead one time, however you can adjust the settings to allow Weighted Round Robin to sell the lead to multiple buyers.

Best used when:

You want mostly balanced distribution, but with preference given to specific buyers.

Buyer Groups

Buyer Groups let you organize buyers into individual groups, each with its own distribution method — Waterfall, Highest Bidder, Send to All, or Round Robin. Leads flow through groups sequentially, and you control whether the flow stops after a group sells the lead or continues to the next group.

This gives you fine-grained control over how leads are distributed. Use Buyer Groups when you need more control than a single distribution method can provide:

• Multi-tier buyer strategies — Organize buyers into priority tiers (e.g., premium first, fallback second). Try selling exclusively to premium buyers first, and only fall back to shared buyers if they all reject.
• Streamline real-time and DQ campaign configuration — Consolidate complex buyer setups into a single, organized campaign instead of managing multiple campaigns or workarounds.
• Mix exclusive and shared selling — Sell exclusively to one group, then shared to another, all within the same campaign. Combine different distribution strategies (e.g., Waterfall in one tier, Send to All in another).

Read more about Buyer Groups.

Choosing the Right Distribution Method

The best distribution method depends on your campaign objectives:

• Revenue-focused: Highest Bidder
• Strict priority control: Waterfall
• Maximum exposure: Send to All
• Fair distribution: Round Robin
• Weighted prioritization: Weighted Round Robin
• Advanced strategies: Buyer Groups

In the end though the right distribution method depends on your campaign goals. Distribution Methods are a core part of how leads are processed and sold in Lead Prosper, and each method offers a different approach to balancing revenue, buyer relationships, and lead flow control.

By understanding how each one works, you can design campaigns that align with your specific goals and optimize overall performance.

If you’re unsure which setup is best for your use case, or need help configuring your campaign, reach out to support@leadprosper.io and our team will be happy to help.