Lifecycle Stage Definitions

Complete templates for lead lifecycle stages, MQL criteria by business type, SLAs, and rejection/recycling workflows.

Stage Templates

Subscriber

Entry criteria:

Opted in to blog, newsletter, or content updates
No company information required

Exit criteria:

Provides company information via form or enrichment
Visits 3+ pages in a session
Downloads gated content

Owner: Marketing (automated)

Actions on entry:

Add to newsletter nurture
Begin tracking engagement score

Lead

Entry criteria:

Identified contact with name + email + company
May come from form fill, enrichment, or import

Exit criteria:

Reaches MQL threshold (fit + engagement)
Manually qualified by marketing/SDR

Owner: Marketing

Actions on entry:

Enrich contact data (company size, industry, role)
Begin scoring
Add to relevant nurture sequence

MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead)

Entry criteria:

Meets fit score threshold AND engagement score threshold
OR triggers high-intent action (demo request, pricing page + form fill)

Exit criteria:

Sales accepts (becomes SQL)
Sales rejects (recycled to nurture with reason code)
No response within SLA (escalated to manager)

Owner: Marketing → Sales (handoff)

Actions on entry:

Instant alert to assigned sales rep
Create follow-up task with 4-hour SLA
Pause marketing nurture sequences
Log all recent activity for sales context

SQL (Sales Qualified Lead)

Entry criteria:

Sales rep has had qualifying conversation
Confirmed: budget, authority, need, or timeline (at least 2 of 4)

Exit criteria:

Opportunity created with projected value
Disqualified (recycled with reason code)

Owner: Sales (SDR or AE)

Actions on entry:

Update lifecycle stage in CRM
Notify AE if SDR-qualified
Begin sales sequence if not already in conversation

Opportunity

Entry criteria:

Formal opportunity created in CRM
Deal value, close date, and stage assigned

Exit criteria:

Closed-won or closed-lost

Owner: Sales (AE)

Actions on entry:

Add to pipeline reporting
Create deal tasks (proposal, demo, etc.)
Notify CS if deal is likely to close

Customer

Entry criteria:

Closed-won deal
Contract signed and payment terms set

Exit criteria:

Churns, expands, or renews

Owner: Customer Success / Account Management

Actions on entry:

Trigger onboarding sequence
Assign CS manager
Schedule kickoff call
Remove from all sales sequences

Evangelist

Entry criteria:

NPS score 9-10, or active referral behavior
Agreed to case study, testimonial, or referral program

Exit criteria:

Ongoing program participation

Owner: Customer Success + Marketing

Actions on entry:

Add to advocacy program
Request case study or testimonial
Invite to referral program
Feature in marketing campaigns (with permission)

MQL Criteria Templates by Business Type

PLG (Product-Led Growth)

Fit score (40% weight):

Attribute	Points
Company size 10-500	+15
Company size 500-5000	+20
Target industry	+10
Decision-maker role	+15
Uses complementary tool	+10

Engagement score (60% weight) — weight product usage heavily:

Signal	Points
Created free account	+15
Completed onboarding	+20
Used core feature 3+ times	+25
Invited team member	+20
Hit usage limit	+15
Visited pricing page	+10

MQL threshold: 65 points

Sales-Led (Enterprise)

Fit score (60% weight) — weight fit heavily:

Attribute	Points
Company size 500+	+20
Target industry	+15
VP+ title	+20
Budget authority confirmed	+15
Uses competitor product	+10

Engagement score (40% weight):

Signal	Points
Requested demo	+25
Attended webinar	+10
Downloaded whitepaper	+10
Visited pricing page 2+ times	+15
Engaged with sales email	+10

MQL threshold: 70 points

Mid-Market (Balanced)

Fit score (50% weight):

Attribute	Points
Company size 50-1000	+15
Target industry	+10
Manager+ title	+15
Target geography	+10

Engagement score (50% weight):

Signal	Points
Demo request	+25
Free trial signup	+20
Pricing page visit	+10
Content download (2+)	+10
Email click (3+)	+10
Webinar attendance	+10

MQL threshold: 60 points

SLA Templates

MQL-to-SQL SLA

Metric	Target	Escalation
First contact attempt	Within 4 business hours	Alert to sales manager at 4 hours
Qualification decision	Within 48 hours	Auto-escalate at 48 hours
Meeting scheduled (if qualified)	Within 5 business days	Weekly pipeline review flag

SQL-to-Opportunity SLA

Metric	Target	Escalation
Discovery call completed	Within 3 business days of SQL	Alert to AE manager
Opportunity created	Within 5 business days of SQL	Pipeline review flag

Opportunity-to-Close SLA

Metric	Target	Escalation
Proposal delivered	Within 5 business days of demo	AE manager alert
Deal stale in stage	2x average days for that stage	Pipeline review flag
Close date pushed 2+ times	Immediate	Forecast review required

Lead Rejection and Recycling

Rejection Reason Codes

Code	Reason	Recycle Action
FIT-01	Company too small	Nurture; re-score if company grows
FIT-02	Wrong industry	Archive; do not recycle
FIT-03	Wrong role / no authority	Nurture; monitor for org changes
ENG-01	No response after 3 attempts	Recycle to nurture in 90 days
ENG-02	Interested but bad timing	Recycle to nurture; re-engage in 60 days
QUAL-01	No budget	Recycle to nurture in 90 days
QUAL-02	Using competitor, locked in	Recycle; trigger before contract renewal
QUAL-03	Not a real project	Archive; do not recycle

Recycling Workflow

Sales rejects MQL with reason code
CRM updates lifecycle stage to "Recycled"
Lead enters recycling nurture sequence (different from original nurture)
Engagement score resets to baseline (keep fit score)
If lead re-engages and crosses MQL threshold, re-route to sales with "Recycled MQL" flag
Track recycled MQL conversion rate separately

Recycling Nurture Sequence

Frequency: Bi-weekly or monthly (lower frequency than initial nurture)
Content: Industry insights, case studies, product updates
Duration: 6 months, then archive if no engagement
Re-MQL trigger: High-intent action (demo request, pricing page revisit)