Trestle Real Contact is lead validation software that integrates with CRMs, dialers, and lead distribution platforms.
Generally speaking, Trestle solves the problem of not knowing if your contact information is good before you try to use it.
More specifically, it addresses these business problems:
Real Contact is a single API that inspects the contact fields on a lead and returns machine-readable assessments. Two signals anchor the output:
Phone Activity Score (PAS) is Trestle’s way of turning raw carrier/telecom signals into a 0–100 indicator of how recently and how consistently a phone number has been active, not just whether it exists. A score near 100 reflects steady, recent activity; a score near 0 points to a disconnected or dormant line.
Because PAS captures real use patterns, it’s a better indicator of connect likelihood than validity alone. It can be used at capture, in the router, or in dialers to prioritize numbers that are likely to answer and de-emphasize dormant or risky numbers.
PAS is updated continuously based on recent telecom patterns.
Contact Grade (A–F) uses multiple signals: Phone Activity Score, line type, and ownership/identity match, and creates a single rating of overall contact quality. An A typically reflects recent use, a favorable line type (e.g., mobile), and clean identity alignment; an F indicates disconnected or mismatched records and elevated risk.
Supporting fields provide context. Line type and carrier metadata tell you whether a number is mobile, landline, or non-fixed VoIP, which often determines channel and consent rules. Identity match signals compare the submitted name, email, and address to determine if the contact details are likely to belong to the same person. An optional Known Litigator Risk flag identifies numbers associated with frequent TCPA litigants.
Trestle Real Contact evaluates contact information through four main analysis methods:
Carrier Network Verification: The system checks live carrier databases to verify phone number status and identify disconnected lines, ported numbers, or service changes that basic validation might miss.
Activity Pattern Analysis: Recent usage patterns help distinguish between active numbers and dormant ones. A technically valid number might show no recent activity, indicating low contact probability.
Identity Cross-Referencing: The system matches phone numbers, email addresses, and names to ensure they belong to the same person. This helps catch data entry errors and strengthens consent documentation.
Risk Assessment: Continuous monitoring identifies contact information associated with individuals who frequently file TCPA lawsuits or consumer complaints.
These analyses combine to create the Contact Grade (A-F) and supporting data points that help you make informed decisions about each lead.
The Contact Grade (A through F) represents a composite assessment that weighs multiple factors:
Real Contact returns normalized fields—Contact Grade (A–F), Phone Activity Score (0–100), line type, identity match, and optional Litigator Risk—so you can route leads with a few simple rules instead of custom scoring.
For example, you might route A/B grades to phone‑first outreach; treat C as verify‑then‑nurture; move D/F to quarantine or suppression lists.
Use PAS to fine‑tune. A low‑PAS but assigned number gets a quick SMS/email check before any call, while a high‑PAS mobile goes straight to a sales rep’s queue. Because these are standard fields, you set the rules in your forms, router, dialer, or CRM. Every decision can be logged for a clean audit trail.
Real-Time Validation: Check leads as they come in through web forms. This catches bad data immediately and can prompt users to correct information before it enters your system.
Batch Processing: Run Trestle on your existing lead database to identify which contacts are worth pursuing. This helps you focus efforts on your best existing leads.
CRM Integration: Automatically score every new lead that enters your CRM system. New leads get graded without changing your current workflow.
Dialer Routing: Send high-grade leads to phone campaigns and lower-grade leads to email or text campaigns based on their scores.
Instead of just accepting or rejecting leads, create different paths:
Use the litigator risk flag to automatically route high-risk leads to email-only campaigns or reject them entirely.
Use line type information to choose the right contact method. Mobile numbers can get calls and texts, while landlines get calls only.
LeadExec users can integrate Trestle Real Contact through a straightforward configuration process that enables automatic lead validation and routing decisions.
The integration requires three main configuration steps within LeadExec:
Enable the Trestle Real Contact integration in your LeadExec Integrations section using your Trestle API key. This establishes the connection between the platforms and allows data exchange.
Map your incoming lead fields to Trestle's validation fields, ensuring phone numbers, names, and other relevant data points are properly connected. This step also allows you to enable optional add-on features like litigator risk checking and email deliverability validation.
Configure which Trestle response data you want stored in your lead records. This includes contact grades, activity scores, line types, name matches, and any add-on results you've enabled.
Once configured, you can establish integration criteria that automatically handle leads based on Trestle's assessment. Standard automation rules include:
All Trestle validation results are stored within the lead record in LeadExec, accessible through the Integrations tab. This provides complete visibility into validation decisions and creates an audit trail for compliance purposes. The stored data includes both the assessment results and the specific criteria that determined the lead's routing or rejection.
Trestle Real Contact is part of a broader suite of data validation and enrichment tools designed for different contact intelligence needs.
For lead processing and CRM integration, the Real Contact API is the most comprehensive, as it combines validation, enrichment, and risk assessment. Organizations with specific needs might use other Trestle products individually or in combination based on their data quality requirements.
Trestle Real Contact works best for organizations with high lead volumes, strict compliance requirements, or teams spending significant time on bad contact data.
Trestle offers a free trial that lets you test the platform with your existing leads before making any commitment. Pricing starts at $0.03 per query, but custom pricing is available for high volume and enterprise accounts.
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