Think MQLs Don’t Work? It’s Time to Rethink Your Marketing Approach

MQL is dead. They are the bubbles on the surface of your marketing feed.

Not exactly.

MQLs are little more than surface-level indicators. They represent value for prospects who’ve shown genuine interest through actions like downloading content.

Unlike general leads, MQLs are more engaged and significantly more likely to convert.

Read this blog to discover why MQLs still matter.

Understanding the Concept of a Marketing Qualified Lead

A Marketing Qualified Lead is the term for prospects who actively engage with your content and meet specific criteria, indicating they are more likely to become customers.

Unlike general leads, MQLs interact with your marketing efforts in a meaningful way, such as clicking on an ad, filling out a form, or attending a webinar.

But does this mean that every lead who engages with your content qualifies as an MQL?

Not necessarily.

Probably, these leads aren’t yet ready for direct engagement.

What qualifies leads as MQLs? You need to evaluate both their behavioral data and firmographics. This indicates that the lead is genuinely prepared for further interaction with your sales team.

Characteristics of a Marketing Qualified Lead

Not all leads are created equal, and MQLs have distinctive characteristics that set them apart from other types of leads.

Here are some key traits of MQLs:

• Engagement: MQLs interact with your content, like downloading a guide or filling out a form.
• Interest in Solutions: They show interest by visiting product pages or attending webinars.
• Favorable Demographics: MQLs align with your ideal customer profile (ICP).
• Behavioral Triggers: Frequent site visits or engaging with high-value content signal they could be MQLs.

More MQLs don’t always lead to better outcomes. Think. If your sales team is flooded with unqualified leads, it results in wasted time and effort. To avoid this, prioritize quality over quantity.

In fact, 68% of successful marketers use lead scoring systems to identify and prioritize MQLs (Gartner).

Refine your lead scoring system to ensure that MQLs meet key characteristics before they are passed on to sales.

How to Identify and Score Marketing Qualified Leads

Identifying and scoring MQLs is critical for maximizing the efficiency of your marketing and sales teams.

Several strategies can be used to pinpoint and evaluate MQLs effectively.

Establishing a Lead Scoring System

A lead scoring system assigns points to leads based on their interactions with your business, helping prioritize those most likely to convert.

These interactions might include downloading content, attending webinars, or visiting pricing pages.

The more a lead engages, the higher their score.

For example:

• Downloading a whitepaper: +10 points
• Opening a marketing email: +5 points
• Attending a webinar: +15 points

Successful lead scoring is not a one-time event but an ongoing process of optimization, constantly refining your scoring model to match the buyer’s journey.

— David Raab, Founder of the CDP Institute.

A static lead scoring system can quickly become outdated, leading to missed opportunities and wasted effort.

Regularly review and update your lead scoring model.

This ensures your scoring model accurately reflects changing customer behaviors and market conditions.

Leveraging Marketing Automation Tools

Leverage marketing automation tools such as HubSpot, Marketo, and Pardot. It’s a great way to assist in tracking and scoring leads.

These tools monitor behavior, automate lead nurturing processes, and alert the sales team when a lead becomes an MQL.

53% of top-performing companies use marketing automation tools like Marketo, HubSpot, and Pardot to manage MQLs effectively (Salesforce).

However, relying solely on automation can backfire—human oversight is crucial.

Sure, automation excels at repetitive tasks but can overlook subtle nuances in lead behavior.

To tackle this, use automation as a support tool and complement it with human insights.

Remember to add personalization and further refine the process where necessary.

Using Demographics and Firmographics

Keep demographics and firmographics in mind while identifying MQLs.

By understanding key attributes like industry, company size, job role, and location, you can better determine whether a lead aligns with your ideal customer profile (ICP).

In other words, behavioral data and firmographics should be used together to identify true intent.

The best approach is to use firmographics as a filter, while relying on engagement data to qualify leads more accurately.

Importance of Marketing Qualified Leads in the Sales Funnel

MQLs are the lifeblood of the sales funnel. Since they’ve shown interest in your product or service, they are more likely to convert into Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs).

However, 79% of marketing leads never convert into sales, often due to poor lead nurturing (Forrester Research).

On the other hand, companies that excel in lead nurturing generate 50% more sales-ready leads at 33% lower cost (Marketo).

A smooth handoff is key. Poor transitions between marketing and sales can result in missed opportunities.

You need to ensure continuous communication between marketing and sales.

Refine MQL criteria — and most importantly hand off leads at the right time to minimize friction and boost conversion rates.

Strategies to Nurture Marketing Qualified Leads

You’ve identified MQLs —now it’s time to nurture them and move them further down the funnel.

Understanding the MQL to SQL conversion rate is crucial; When done effectively, 27% of MQLs typically convert into SQLs, underscoring the importance of proper lead qualification (HubSpot).

Tailored Content Marketing

Keep MQLs engaged in the buyer’s journey by providing them with personalized content.

Providing tailored content such as case studies, how-to guides, and product comparisons, helps ensure your MQLs get the information they need to progress

However, most businesses fail to personalize their content. Sending generic messages often results in disengagement.

In fact, 93% of B2B buyers want personalized content, and 73% are more likely to make a purchase based on personalized recommendations (Demand Gen Report).

That’s why you should segment your leads and offer tailored content that speaks directly to their needs and pain points.

Drip Campaigns and Email Marketing

Drip email campaigns help guide your MQLs closer to the point where they’re ready for direct sales engagement.

Companies using drip campaigns generate 80% more sales at 33% lower costs (HubSpot).

By sending a series of automated, pre-written emails over time, you can keep MQLs engaged with your brand, answer their questions, and offer valuable resources.

Personalization and Engagement

Your personalized outreach to MQLs—based on their interests and behavior—should make them feel like the message is written just for them.

At times, personalization can become repetitive and time-consuming. AI tools can help.

Leverage AI-driven chatbots or dynamic email content to automate and scale personalization.

This allows you to offer a more customized experience, helping you connect with MQLs on a deeper, more personal level.

Best Practices for Effective MQL Management

To optimize your MQL management, consider implementing the following best practices:

• Maintain Sales and Marketing Alignment: Regular communication between marketing and sales ensures seamless lead handovers.
• Refine Your Lead Scoring System: Continuously review and adjust your lead scoring criteria to ensure accuracy.
• Use Data to Inform Decisions: Leverage data from your CRM and automation tools to refine your MQL criteria and improve conversion rates.

Tools and Platforms for Managing MQLs

Does managing MQLs feel hard?

You’ll want to consider some popular platforms that help with MQL management:

• HubSpot: A comprehensive marketing automation platform that helps manage MQLs through lead scoring, email marketing, and CRM integration.
• Marketo: A leading solution for managing marketing automation and lead nurturing.
• Pardot: Salesforce’s B2B marketing automation tool, known for its lead nurturing and scoring capabilities.
• ActiveCampaign: Combines email marketing, automation, and sales CRM to help businesses manage their MQL pipeline.

Conclusion & Key Takeaways

B2B companies are constantly striving to attract a large volume of leads to their sites, often investing significant resources to do so.

But this doesn’t have to be the case. By implementing clear criteria for what qualifies as an MQL and an SQL, you can determine which leads are ready to pass on to sales and which are still in the education stage.

This approach helps you avoid wasting time and resources on unqualified leads. Once you establish a clear distinction between MQLs and SQLs, you’ll have a solid foundation for driving conversions and generating revenue for your business.

Vikas Bhatt

Vikas Bhatt is the Co-Founder of ONLY B2B, a premium B2B lead generation company that specializes in helping businesses achieve their growth objectives through targeted marketing & sales campaigns. With 10+ years of experience in the industry, Vikas has a deep understanding of the challenges faced by businesses today and has developed a unique approach to lead generation that has helped clients across a range of industries around the globe. As a thought leader in the B2B marketing community, ONLY B2B specializes in demand generation, content syndication, database services and more.