What are sales leads?

If suspects are companies or people who fit an ideal customer profile and prospects are companies or people who have expressed an interest in what you offer then what are leads?

Originally Posted by realtor If suspects are companies or people who fit an ideal customer profile and prospects are companies or people who have expressed an interest in what you offer then what are leads?

The best way to put it: Somebody that has expressed interest, has not been closed, with all of the necessary information for contact to proceed with the next step in the sales process.

Good question. I have a hunch you're going to get a variety of replies because I don't think there is a universally accepted definition of "sales lead".

Some generally accepted defintions:
1. "Prospects" are accounts which have expressed an interest in your offering, are capable of making the decision (timing) and have the budget to move forward (generally there is a time line associated such as "60 day prospect"); and,
2. "Suspects" are less defined but fit the mold of a potential client (for example, some companies define anyone outside of a 60-day window a suspect); and,
3. "Leads" are typically generated by marketing campaigns (either internal or external) and, until qualified, they have little value ... they are time sensitive and must be qualified ASAP.

At various points in my career, I've devoted portions of my marketing budget to the generation of leads by 3rd party companies. We would work through a script for them, commit to contract terms, and go for it. They would call a "qualified list" of customers which they've nurtured and would go thru the script with each of them. Any leads would be forwarded to the appropriate SM who would assign each to the proper SR. Then, the SR would have 'X' days to follow-up. It works for some but I've never experienced any success with this approach!

I hope this helps.

Good luck & Good selling!
Pat

Originally Posted by realtor If suspects are companies or people who fit an ideal customer profile and prospects are companies or people who have expressed an interest in what you offer then what are leads?

Here's how I see this...

The quality of sales leads vary and can be graded on a scale ranging from low to high based on the sales lead’s match to qualifying criteria with the highest grade of sales lead being a qualified lead (aka Prospect).

The qualifying criteria for a "Prospect" can vary from company to company but generally if a sales lead has expressed a want/need for the product or service being offered, the authority to make the purchase decision, the financial ability to complete the sale and a purchase timeline that falls within predetermined limits set by the company the sales lead is considered Qualified.

Thank you everyone.

AZ what about suspects and how do you grade the leads?

The sales leads can be graded (sorted) according to a company’s agreed upon qualifying criteria. Such criteria might include:

• Reachable.
• Meets minimum requirements to purchase. (Ex; +$1M Gross Annual Revenues)
• Authority to make the purchase decision.
• Financial ability to complete the sale.
• Want/need for the product or service being offered.
• Purchase time frame within established limits.

The highest-grade sales leads are those that meet all of the agreed upon qualifying criteria. These sales leads are classified as Prospects and are to be contacted/ followed-up on first.

Originally Posted by AZBroker The sales leads can be graded (sorted) according to a company’s agreed upon qualifying criteria.

How many grades are there? Where do the best leads come from?

Originally Posted by realtor How many grades are there? Where do the best leads come from?

How many grades and the terminology to identify each is a decision each company will have to make for themselves. One company might classify sales leads as one of two (2) grades, High-grade or Low-grade, while another company uses three (3) High, Medium or Low. Other companies might factor in additional criteria such as engagement (Buyer initiated contact vs. Seller initiated contact), which requires breaking this down even further.

Sales lead sources is another ball of wax.

Originally Posted by AZBroker Sales lead sources is another ball of wax.

Maybe I'll start another thread on lead sources.

THANK YOU!