Sales Qualified Lead (SQL)
A lead that has been vetted by the sales development team and confirmed to have budget, authority, need, and timeline. The point where a lead becomes a legitimate sales opportunity.
SQL Is Where Marketing Ends and Sales Begins
The SQL is the moment a lead stops being marketing’s responsibility and becomes sales’s asset. It is the handoff point where someone has confirmed — through actual conversation — that this prospect has a real problem, real budget, and real intent to solve it. Everything before this is noise reduction.
The Qualification Conversation
An SDR typically converts an MQL to SQL through a 10-15 minute discovery call. They validate: Is this person at a company that fits our ICP? Do they have the problem we solve? Is there budget? Who makes the decision? What is the timeline? If the answers check out, it is an SQL and gets routed to an AE.
SQL Quality Over Quantity
A common mistake is incentivizing SDRs on SQL volume. This creates a flood of low-quality SQLs that waste AE time and destroy win rates. Better: comp SDRs on qualified pipeline value or SQL-to-opportunity conversion. You want fewer, better SQLs — not more, worse ones.
The SLA Between Marketing and Sales
Define clear SLA terms around SQLs. Marketing commits to deliver X SQLs per month at a minimum quality bar. Sales commits to follow up within Y hours and provide feedback on quality. This feedback loop is what improves MQL criteria and SQL conversion over time.
Frequently Asked Questions
What qualifies a lead as SQL?
An SQL has been contacted by an SDR, confirmed to have a genuine need, has decision-making authority or access to it, has budget or can secure it, and has a realistic timeline. Common frameworks include BANT, MEDDIC, or CHAMP. The key is that a human has validated the opportunity — it is not just a score.
What is a good MQL to SQL conversion rate?
20-30% for B2B SaaS is typical. Enterprise deals often see lower conversion (15-20%) because more MQLs get disqualified on budget and timeline. High-velocity SMB models can achieve 30-40%. If conversion is below 15%, either MQL criteria are too loose or SDR qualification is too strict.
