Imagine this: your sales funnel is buzzing with activity. Every day, 20, 50, maybe even 200 leads trickle in, eager to learn more about your product or service. Out of these, perhaps 10% are ready to make a purchase after a few clarifications, while another 20% are genuinely interested but not quite ready to commit. And the rest, i.e. the majority are merely exploring, curious to know what you do.
Not every lead has the interest, urgency, or ability to buy solutions like yours. Asking the right questions to potential leads is tricky but necessary.
That’s where efficient b2b sales qualification comes in. This blog uncovers the best strategies to do it right.
Let’s dive deep!
Must Read: Sales Qualified Leads: The Definitive Guide
But first: What’s B2B Sales Qualification?
Table of Contents
B2B sales qualification is a process that determines whether a potential customer is worth pursuing based on their likelihood to convert into a paying customer.
A well-structured lead qualification process helps companies anticipate revenue and monitor sales goals. It enables your B2B business to focus on the most promising leads, optimizing resources, improving conversion rates, and driving revenue growth.
And a well-thought-out qualification process indicates readiness and interest in buying your product or service. It allows you to identify high-quality leads early, so that your sales teams don’t waste time on prospects unlikely to generate revenue.
Must Read: How to Generate Leads for B2B Sales
Why is it important to Qualify Leads?
Qualifying the leads or hiring more salespeople- which is crucial to close deals? The answer is Qualifying the leads. Let’s see why.
It enhances sales efficiency
You might have Account Executives (AEs) working with warm or hot leads to drive closures. Great. But what if there’s a high volume of inbound leads? Knowing how to qualify inbound leads properly becomes crucial.
Is it sensible to dedicate each AE to each lead, knowing that 79% of marketing leads (MQLs) never convert into sales?
Instead, having Sales Development Representatives (SDRs) qualify leads will increase efficiency and effectiveness, converting more leads and driving in more revenue.
Improves the closing rates.
Chasing after companies that don’t need your offer wastes time. It’s like preparing elaborate calls only to discover that the company is not a good fit for your services.
Apart from improved closing rates, it allows you to focus on the leads that help:
Build Genuine Connections: Focus on establishing authentic connections and rapport with prospects, which increases the likelihood of securing higher-value deals and accelerates the closing process.
Leverage Customer Insights: Gather valuable customer data about competing solutions, pain points, and desired features during interactions. Use these insights to inform your product roadmap and refine marketing strategies.
What are Challenges in B2B Sales Qualification
- Complex B2B buying process.
- Low quality data.
These are two major challenges in the B2B buying process. Unlike B2C sales, where decisions are often made by individuals or small groups, B2B sales typically involve multiple stakeholders, each with their own priorities and concerns. This complexity can make it difficult to accurately assess your lead’s potential.
Another challenge is the quality of data used in the qualification process. Inaccurate or incomplete data can lead to poor decision-making, resulting in the pursuit of leads that are unlikely to convert.
Additionally, the pressure to meet sales targets can sometimes cause sales teams to rush through the qualification process, leading to suboptimal outcomes.
Importance of B2B Sales Qualification
Maximizing Sales Efficiency
Efficiency is key in sales. By prioritizing qualified leads, your sales teams can focus their efforts on prospects most likely to convert, thereby improving their chances of closing deals.
Not only does this increase the efficiency of the sales process, but it also helps maximize return on investment (ROI).
Companies with well-structured sales qualification processes experience higher conversion rates and shorter sales cycles. With advancements in technology, AI now assists in lead qualification, making it easier to identify high-quality leads.
And qualified leads are more likely to progress through the sales funnel quickly—so you spend less time chasing and more time closing.
Improving Customer Experience
Adopting a customer mindset is crucial in B2B dealings. But challenges in gathering real-time information can trip you up, especially with a large volume of leads.
CRM systems and data analytics tools can help. They allow your sales teams to understand customer needs on a deeper level. This helps you to provide the customer with genuinely personalized experiences.
Reducing Sales Cycle Length
“Time kills deals. The longer a sales cycle drags on, the less likely it is to close.”
— Mark Roberge, Chief Revenue Officer at HubSpot
Sales cycle length and likelihood of conversion are closely linked. How can you shorten the sales cycle effectively?
It’s not about pushing prospects to make quicker decisions—pressuring them can backfire and risk losing their interest. Lead scoring and BANT analysis helps. It can identify leads that are ready to move quickly through the funnel.
Plus, by focusing on these leads and addressing their pain points early, sales teams can maintain momentum without sacrificing the quality of the relationship.
You can also use automation tools to keep the process on track- reducing delays and ensuring continuous engagement.
The B2B Sales Qualification Process
1. Initial Lead Scoring
Lead scoring is the first step to evaluating the potential value of sales opportunities that can ultimately lead to a sales appointment.
Lead scoring involves the following criteria:
- Determine the likelihood of a lead converting into a paying customer.
- Identify which leads require further activation efforts.
- Filter out leads unlikely to convert and can be removed from the nurturing list.
And if your goal is to cultivate buying intent and convert it into sales opportunities, you must incorporate this strategy.
But remember, lead scoring is not a set-it-and-forget-it process. Lead scoring systems can become outdated if not regularly reviewed, leading to inaccurate prioritization and wasted effort.
To reflect current market conditions and business goals, regularly update lead scoring criteria. Incorporate machine learning algorithms that adapt in real-time, so that your scoring models remain relevant.
Must Read: How to Use Intent Data to Identify Sales Qualified Leads
2. BANT Analysis
BANT is a widely used framework that determines if the prospect is a good fit or not. This framework gives your sales teams the clear picture of whether a lead has the budget to purchase the product- the authority to make a purchasing decision- a clear need for the solution, and a timeline for making a decision.
Definition is pretty clear. But how do you implement it successfully?
Complement BANT with other qualification methods to provide a more flexible framework. And even if some BANT criteria are unmet, don’t overlook leads that may not meet all criteria. It could still be valuable in the long term.
3. Discovery Call
The discovery call is where deals are won or lost. It’s both an art and a science. During this call, the sales representative learns more about the lead’s needs, challenges, and goals.
This information is invaluable for determining whether the lead is a good fit for the product or service.
Nevertheless, discovery calls can be time-consuming and may not always yield the needed insights, especially if the sales rep lacks experience or if the lead is hesitant to share details.
You must equip your sales teams with structured call scripts featuring open-ended questions that uncover deeper insights.
Moreover, role-playing and continuous training help reps steer conversations more effectively, ensuring valuable information is gathered. Recording and analyzing calls can provide feedback for improving future interactions.
4. Qualification Meeting
Next step: Schedule a qualification meeting. This meeting provides an opportunity to delve deeper into the lead’s needs and concerns.
Make sure you properly address the concerns or objections that the lead may have. Otherwise, it can result in lost deals or unmet expectations later in the sales process.
And by the end of the meeting, the sales representative should have a clear understanding of whether the lead is qualified to move forward in the sales process, which can ultimately help increase sales-qualified leads.
Sales team is expected to prepare thoroughly for qualification meetings by researching the lead’s business and industry. Furthermore, providing case studies or testimonials from similar customers can help build credibility.
5. Decision-Making Process
Understanding the lead’s decision-making process is the final stage in the sales qualification process. This includes identifying the key stakeholders involved in the decision, understanding their roles, and determining the timeline for making a decision.
Consider using CRM tools to map out the organization’s decision-making structure early in the process. Further to gain a clear understanding of the key stakeholders and their concerns, your sales reps should ask direct questions about the decision-making process during discovery calls and qualification meetings.
Lastly, follow-ups and clear communication are essential to align all stakeholders and keep the sales process moving forward.
Must Read: MQL vs. SQL: Which Lead Matters More and When?
Final thoughts:
If you’re just starting to develop your B2B lead qualification strategy, begin with a simple approach. Start by creating detailed properties in your CRM records to collect as much data as possible about your leads.
When doing so, it’s essential to understand the differences between lead generation vs. lead qualification to avoid confusion in your process.
Then, collaborate with your sales reps to determine the value of each property, considering its impact on deal closing rates. With this foundation, you can implement a lead scoring system and continuously refine it over time.
This will help elevate your discovery calls, boost revenue per lead, and shorten the overall sales cycle. By taking these steps, you’ll build a robust qualification strategy that drives consistent growth and success.
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.
