Delivery Channels

A delivery channel is how a partner receives their leads. Leadflip supports three channels: email, webhook, and partner portal. You choose per partner.

Comparing the three channels

Email delivery

Email delivery sends each lead as a formatted email to one or more partner addresses.

Configuration

1. Open the Distribution Profile and select the partner.
2. Set Delivery method to Email.
3. Enter:
   • Recipient address(es). One or more comma-separated email addresses.
   • Subject template. Supports variables like {{ lead.first_name }} and any other lead field.
   • Body template. HTML or plain text, with variable support.
4. Choose which fields to include in the rendered body (or include all).
5. Save.

Prerequisites

Your account-level SMTP server must be configured. See Email Setup. If SMTP is not configured, distribution jobs targeting email delivery move to Failed status.

Use this when

• The partner doesn't have technical infrastructure to consume an API
• The partner manually triages incoming leads
• The volume is low enough that one email per lead is reasonable

Webhook delivery

Webhook delivery POSTs each lead to a partner-provided URL as soon as the lead is routed.

Configuration

1. Open the Distribution Profile and select the partner.
2. Set Delivery method to Webhook.
3. Enter:
   • URL. The partner's endpoint, e.g. https://partner.example.com/leads/intake.
   • Method. POST (default).
   • Payload format. JSON (default) or form-encoded.
   • Custom headers. Optional, for authentication (e.g. X-API-Key: ...) or content negotiation.
4. Choose which fields to include in the payload.
5. Save.

How retries work

• HTTP 2xx response = delivered, recorded as Delivered in Logs.
• HTTP 4xx or 5xx response, timeout, or network error = retried with exponential backoff.
• After the retry budget is exhausted, the job is marked Failed.

Security

• Always use HTTPS. Leadflip will deliver to HTTP URLs, but lead data sent in cleartext is a compliance and integrity risk.
• Authenticate with a header. Most partners' endpoints accept an API key, bearer token, or signed timestamp via headers. Configure these in the Custom headers field.
• Validate signatures on the partner side. If you support HMAC signing, document it for the partner. Leadflip can add a signing header to outgoing webhooks.

Use this when

• The partner has a CRM, lead-management system, or custom intake endpoint
• You need real-time delivery (seconds, not minutes)
• You want machine-parseable structured data with retries on failure

Partner portal delivery

Partner portal delivery does not push leads at all. The partner logs into their portal and pulls the leads they need. See Partner Portal for the full flow.

Configuration

Set Delivery method to Portal on the partner. Each delivered lead appears in their portal feed, where they can mark it accepted, rejected, or download a CSV.

Use this when

• The partner wants control over when they accept new leads
• You want a visual audit trail that the partner has reviewed each lead
• The partner doesn't want a real-time push but also doesn't want emails cluttering their inbox

Field mapping

Across all three channels, you control which fields go to which partner. Two common patterns:

• Send everything. Default. The partner receives every field on the lead.
• Send a subset. Tick only the fields the partner needs. Useful when leads carry sensitive internal fields (lead score, notes, internal pricing) that you don't want to leak.

Encrypted fields

By design, encrypted fields are decrypted before delivery so the partner can use them. Make sure your data-sharing agreement with the partner covers any sensitive personal data you're sending. See Field Encryption for what gets encrypted at rest.

Switching a partner's delivery channel

You can change a partner's delivery method at any time. The change takes effect for the next distribution job. Already-completed deliveries are not retroactively re-sent.

Related articles

• How Distribution Works
• Distribution Profiles
• Partner Management
• Partner Portal
• Email Setup, SMTP prerequisite for email delivery