In today’s competitive marketplace, the old mantra of “more leads, more sales” no longer holds true. Instead, successful teams are shifting their focus from sheer volume to lead quality. This change isn’t just about working smarter—it’s about ensuring your pipeline is filled with leads that are truly ready to convert.
Why Lead Quality Matters More Than Ever
For marketers, the frustration often starts with the numbers:
“We’re generating plenty of leads, but sales keeps saying they aren’t good enough.”
Meanwhile, sales teams are stuck trying to make progress with unqualified prospects.
“I’m wasting so much time chasing leads that go nowhere.”
This disconnect wastes valuable time and resources. By setting new standards for lead qualification, both teams can align their efforts and focus on what really matters—leads that convert.
For Marketers: Improve Lead Scoring
A robust lead scoring system can make all the difference. Here’s how to get started:
1. Define the Ideal Customer Profile: Work with sales to identify the attributes of high-quality leads, such as industry, company size, or role.
2. Track Engagement Metrics: Assign scores based on actions like website visits, content downloads, or email interactions.
3. Use Behavioural Data: Evaluate readiness to buy by tracking intent signals, such as visits to pricing pages or demo requests.
4. Refine Regularly: Continuously evaluate and adjust your scoring model based on performance data.
By using a clear, data-driven lead scoring system, marketers can confidently deliver leads that sales teams are eager to pursue.
For Sales: Use Playbooks to Qualify Leads
Once marketing hands over the leads, it’s up to sales to validate their readiness. Tools like BANT (Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline) or SCOTSMAN (Solution, Competition, Originality, Timescales, Size, Money, Authority, Need) offer structured frameworks to assess whether a lead is worth pursuing.
Here’s how these playbooks can help:
Aligning for Success
The shift to quality over quantity requires collaboration. Marketing and sales must regularly communicate to refine lead scoring criteria and qualification frameworks. Shared definitions of funnel stages, such as Marketing Qualified Opportunities (MQOs), can help both teams stay aligned and focused on mutual success.
Next Steps
Change isn’t always easy, but it’s necessary. Start small by reviewing your current lead scoring model or implementing a simple qualification framework. From there, work with your teams to ensure alignment and transparency.
By focusing on quality over quantity, you’ll build a healthier pipeline, strengthen team collaboration, and ultimately close more deals.