Not All Small Business Leads Are Considered Equal

The terms “inquiry,” “lead,” and “qualified lead” are often thrown around interchangeably. Unfortunately, few firms take the time to define any of them and fall into the trap of assuming that any inquiry is automatically a qualified small business lead.

The confusion surrounding these terms isn’t surprising. I’ve even seen mailing list vendors who offer to sell you lists of “qualified leads.” Yeah, right. If only it were that easy.

An article by Mac McIntosh over at WebProNews did a great job of defining what a qualified lead is:

Although the definition changes from company to company (and rightfully so), generally you need the answers to the following “BANTS” questions to determine if a lead is qualified:

Do they have an appropriate BUDGET for the purchase? (Or can they find the funding?)

Do have the AUTHORITY to move the purchase forward?

Do they have a NEED or application for your product or service?

Do they have a reasonable TIMEFRAME in mind for buying?

Is the SIZE of the opportunity large enough to warrant sales attention?

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