# Grading profiles, criteria and letter grades

*Marketing Cloud Account Engagement Specialist Study Guide · Lead Management · Last updated November 3, 2026 · https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/marketing-cloud-account-engagement-specialist/lead-management/grading-profiles-criteria-and-letter-grades*

How a prospect grade measures fit on the A+ to F scale, how profiles and weighted criteria move it in thirds of a letter, the ways to assign profiles and match criteria, and how grade differs from score.

- Certification: Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement Specialist
- Exam section: Lead Management
- Study guide: https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/marketing-cloud-account-engagement-specialist

**Official exam objective:**

> Explain what a Grade measures and how grading is managed.

## What the exam expects

- Explain that a grade measures how well a prospect fits your ideal customer, and contrast it with the activity-based score.
- Read the A+ to F scale and predict a grade change from a criterion's weight.
- Create and edit profiles, including what you can't do to the Default profile and what editing criteria triggers.
- Choose a way to assign a profile and a way to match criteria, including automation rules with Matches, Does Not Match and Not Known.
- Diagnose a missing or unchanged grade.

Key terms:
- **Grade**: a letter from A+ to F showing how well a prospect fits the criteria of its profile.
- **Profile**: a set of criteria describing one ideal customer type; every prospect has one.
- **Criterion**: one fit condition in a profile, with a grade adjustment of one-third, two-thirds or a full letter.
- **Default profile**: the profile every prospect belongs to until assigned another.

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Grade measures | Fit against profile criteria | [Grading Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Scale | A+ to F, each step one-third of a letter | [Grading Guidelines](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_guidelines.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Starting grade | D when the prospect converts | [Grading Guidelines](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_guidelines.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Criterion weights | 1/3, 2/3 or 3/3 of a letter | [Automation Rules to Grade Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000317364&language=en_US&mode=1&type=1) |
| Default profile | Every prospect until reassigned; can't be renamed or deleted | [Grading Guidelines](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_guidelines.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Editing criteria | Regrades the associated prospects | [Grading Guidelines](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_guidelines.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Create a profile | Administrator or Marketing role; Prospects, Segmentation, Profiles | [Create a Profile](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_profiles_create.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Assign a profile | Manual edit, Set Profile completion action, automation rule, profile JavaScript | [Using Profiles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_profiles.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| Not Known | No impact on the grade | [Using Profiles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_profiles.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |
| One rule or two | Separate rules for assigning a profile and matching criteria | [Using Profiles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_profiles.htm&type=5&language=en_US) |

## Check yourself

- Which five criteria does the Default profile start with, according to Trailhead?
- Why can one automation rule cover several job titles for a single criterion?
- When a sales rep wants to grade one prospect by hand, where do they do it?
- How far does a B- prospect fall after failing a criterion worth two-thirds of a letter?

## Sources

- [Grading Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading.htm&type=5&language=en_US)
- [Guidelines for Grading Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_guidelines.htm&type=5&language=en_US)
- [Using Profiles to Grade Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_profiles.htm&type=5&language=en_US)
- [Create a Profile for Grading](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_grading_profiles_create.htm&type=5&language=en_US)
- [Use Account Engagement Automation Rules to Grade Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000317364&language=en_US&mode=1&type=1)
- [Lead Grading: Get Started with Lead Grading](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/lead-scoring-and-grading-in-account-engagement/get-started-with-lead-grading)
- [Scoring Prospects](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_leadqual_scoring.htm&type=5&language=en_US)
- [Page Actions](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_automation_page_actions.htm&type=5&language=en_US)
- [Einstein Key Accounts Identification for Account Engagement](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.pardot_einstein_key_accounts.htm&type=5&language=en_US)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 10 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Marketing Cloud Account Engagement Specialist pack (USD $19): https://www.certifyforce.com/practice-exams