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This month's tech tip demonstrates how easy it is to validate business leads generated from online forms. In this example, we will show you how a server-side PHP form can validate contact data in real-time, adding corrected contact information and a lead quality score to the lead, without the need for human evaluation.

PHP 5 enabled web-server, a DOTS Lead Validation trial key, and the PHP SOAP extensioned must be installed and enabled on the server to perform the following example. A free evaluation version of Service Objects DOTS Lead Validation is available for download by clicking here.

First, you will need to set-up the development environment for the sample code by following the steps below (the code samples follow the structure of other Service Objects examples, specifically):

• Set trial license information
• Set the server path and WSDL path
• Set Working Variables
• Instantiate the SOAP Object
• Invoke the remote web XML service
• Define error handling
• Parse the output parameters
• Complete with the release of resources

To run the provided DOTS Lead Validation PHP example, the PHP 5 server must have SOAP extensions enabled. When the object is loaded the sample code will detect proper configuration of this extension. It is also required that you have a valid working license key for the DOTS Lead Validation Web Service.

All of Service Objects DOTS services run on a unique combination of data, algorithms, and server hardware. DOTS Lead Validation is Service Objects' newest XML web service that provides comprehensive validation and correction of lead data in real-time. The result is an enhanced lead with a numeric quality score from 0-100. The score is based on the lead's six components (business name, consumer name, street address, phone, email, Internet address) and the correlation between them. It can be used behind the scenes of a web form for point-of-entry validation, requiring your users to input valid data. Alternatively, it can be integrated with any CRM or internal system to improve overall business processes. DOTS Lead Validation is the industry's only comprehensive validation solution that cross-validates all six critical components, yet remains simple by encapsulating all the complex scoring logic into an easy to use overall score.

Example 'Accept' Lead - Address Check, Phone Check, Name Check, Email Check, IP Check & Cross-Validation Check Verify Contact Data Quality.

Dowload full PHP5 example code by clicking here. (ZIP)

Many incoming online leads are fraudulent and bogus, costing your company thousands of dollars in wasted telesales and CRM/SFA marketing efforts. Poor lead quality also creates dissention between Sales and Marketing, and convoluted metrics make it difficult for management to make good business decisions. By implementing the real-time DOTS Lead Validation solution to score and enhance lead data quality, your company can avoid these problems on the front end- for mere pennies per lead.