Is the MQL really dead?
I'd like to argue the MQL is very much alive if:
After reading articles claiming "The MQL is Dead" your first instinct might be to jump on the bandwagon and start chanting, "Kill the MQL - Kill the MQL!" Let's adopt a new marketing acronym and start calling our conversation ready leads by a new acronym, CRLs.
But, after thinking about it more, you may not want to kill the MQL after all.
The MQL is alive as long as you are updating the meaning to fit your business needs and optimizing processes to fit customer needs.
The business needs can be informed by sales feedback, historical data, and future business goals.
From day one of demand generation, the definition of an MQL was to be agreed upon by sales and marketing; and evolve as needed. This alignment is critical or your program won't work.
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Marketing should never define what an MQL is without sales leading the conversation and complete alignment.
So, if your business is unable to convert leads meeting a behavioral and firmographic score threshold, for example, then work with sales update the definition of MQL.
Or, adapt your lead lifecycle processes to optimize the customer experience.
Perhaps you're only converting conversation ready leads (define that too, BTW) that also meet ICP criteria. If so, then make this the new MQL definition. Then, all of the leads who aren't ready to talk, will be nurtured to a conversation ready place (where they raise their hand) and then become an MQL.
The model is constantly evolving and we will need to update the definition of an MQL often so that we can continue increasing results in terms of opportunities, pipeline acceleration, and conversion rates.
I'd love to see the industry pump the breaks on killing the MQL.
Let's save the MQL instead!