MQL vs SQL: definitions and handoff

The short answer: a marketing qualified lead (MQL) is a lead marketing has judged likely to be a fit and ready for a sales conversation. A sales qualified lead (SQL) is one the sales team has accepted and agreed is worth pursuing. There is no universal definition, so the useful part is agreeing yours in writing, in the CRM, and measuring the handoff between them.

The definitions

• Lead: any contact who has shown some interest, such as a form fill.
• MQL: a lead that meets criteria you set, usually a mix of fit (company size, role, industry) and engagement (a demo request, repeated visits).
• SQL: an MQL that sales has reviewed or spoken to and accepted as a real opportunity to pursue.
• Opportunity: a qualified deal in the pipeline, with a value and a stage.

Getting the handoff right

• Write the MQL criteria down, and have sales agree to them.
• Set a response time for new MQLs, and record when sales first acted.
• Require a reason when sales rejects a lead, so you learn what marketing is sending.
• Keep stage names identical in the CRM, reports and forms, so numbers match across teams.
• Review the criteria on a schedule, using what actually closed.

What to measure

• Lead-to-MQL rate and MQL-to-SQL rate, by source.
• Time to first response and time in stage.
• Rejection reasons, to find channels that send poor fits.
• SQL-to-won rate, to check that qualification predicts closing.

Measured by source, these stage rates show which channels send leads sales wants. They connect directly to the funnel calculator and to cost per lead. If your CRM stages are inconsistent, the free pipeline and automation audit checks them.

Common mistakes

• MQL rules based only on activity, such as downloads, with no fit criteria.
• Sales and marketing using different definitions, so reports disagree.
• Never reviewing MQL criteria against closed deals.
• Skipping the rejection reason, so the same poor leads keep arriving.

Questions people ask