Sales-Qualified Lead (SQL)
A lead vetted by an actual conversation — real need, budget, timeline. The stage where pipelines earn their forecasts.
Free · no signup · last reviewed August 29, 2026
The definition
A lead vetted by an actual conversation — real need, budget, timeline. The stage where pipelines earn their forecasts.
Why it matters to an owner
The MQL→SQL drop-off is a message-match report for your marketing: if half your 'qualified' leads evaporate on the first call, your ads are promising something your intake disproves.
Keep going
Marketing-Qualified Lead (MQL)A lead meeting marketing's threshold of fit and interest, worth sales effort. The B2B pipe…PipelineYour leads arranged by stage — new, contacted, quoted, won/lost — with a value attached. T…Close RateThe share of leads (or quotes) that become customers. The multiplier connecting marketing …
This is the work. Want it done?
Everything here is free to use yourself — that’s the point. If you’d rather a senior marketer just handle it, in your accounts and your name: 20-minute call, no pitch deck.