Why have marketing qualified leads (MQLs) become so controversial lately? Doug and Jess unpack some of the common misconceptions around MQLs and provide clarity on why properly defining and using MQLs can still provide value.
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Show Notes:
Pre-Show Banter:
- Doug is confused on the scheduled recording time.
- Jess is super excited about all of the Disney updates – especially having Villians in Magic Kingdom.
- Doug asks Jess some follow up questions about Disney and says he would make for a great guest on Jess’ Disney podcast.
This all started with a LinkedIn post that Doug saw on the topic of MQLs, and it got him pretty fired up. The topic has already driven him crazy over the last 2 years. People continue to talk about the death of MQLs or that MQLs are bad. Candidly, Doug has always felt like MQLs were overrated, but now he doesn’t understand how the idea of MQLs has become this controversial of a topic.
Main Discussion Points:
- MQLs are not inherently bad, but poor application and scoring approaches have given them a bad reputation.
- The lack of alignment between sales and marketing on what constitutes an MQL is a core issue.
- MQLs were tied to the rise of inbound marketing, but inbound was and has never been enough on its own.
- Clearly defining lifecycle stages and not treating the process as linear is critical.
- Qualifying the account, not just the contact is key for success.
- Understanding your market and aligning your go-to-market strategy is foundational.
- There is too much focus on the net new versus nurturing existing leads and contacts.
Jess’s Takeaways:
- It’s not a linear process. Don’t only focus on net new and forget the leads that you have.
- Having an account map built and understanding your market are important.
- It’s not a label; it’s the definition and having a clear framework and structure for what you’re doing. Call it an MQL. Call it a banana. Call it what you want. It’s about having really clear definitions and a framework around it.
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