Lead Management

---
context: fork
name: lead-management
description: "Manages lead lifecycle including lead scoring, qualification, nurture sequences, CRM workflows, MQL/SQL handoff, and pipeline optimization. Use when user asks about lead management, lead scoring, lead qualification, MQL, SQL, lead nurture, pipeline, CRM workflow, 리드 관리, 리드 스코어링, or 리드 육성."
lang: [en, ko]
level: 3
triggers:
  - "lead"
  - "lead generation"
  - "lead scoring"
  - "CRM"
  - "pipeline"
  - "prospect"
  - "lead nurture"
platforms: [claude-code, gemini-cli, codex-cli, cursor]
agents:
  - "backend-developer"
  - "code-reviewer"
tokens: "~4K"
category: "marketing"
source_hash: fa392769
whenNotToUse: "Product analytics or user retention work that does not involve a sales pipeline, CRM handoff, or lead qualification stage — use data-analysis or marketing-analytics instead."
---

# Lead Management

## Contents
- [When This Skill Applies](#when-this-skill-applies)
- [Core Guidance](#core-guidance)
- [Output Format](#output-format)
- [Quick Reference](#quick-reference)
- [References](#references)

## When This Skill Applies
- Designing lead scoring and qualification models
- Building lead nurture workflows and automation
- Defining MQL/SQL criteria and handoff processes
- Optimizing lead-to-customer conversion pipelines
- Planning lead routing and assignment rules

## Core Guidance

### 1. Lead Management Process
```
Capture -> Score -> Qualify -> Route -> Nurture -> Handoff -> Follow-up -> Convert -> Analyze
```

### 2. Lead Lifecycle Stages

| Stage | Definition | Owner | Actions |
|-------|-----------|-------|---------|
| Raw Lead | Form fill, contact info only | Marketing | Data enrichment, initial scoring |
| MQL | Meets marketing criteria | Marketing | Nurture sequence, content delivery |
| SAL | Sales accepted, agrees to work | Sales (BDR) | Initial outreach, qualification |
| SQL | Sales qualified, ready for pipeline | Sales (AE) | Discovery call, needs assessment |
| Opportunity | Active deal in pipeline | Sales (AE) | Demo, proposal, negotiation |
| Customer | Closed-won | CS/Account | Onboarding, expansion |

### 3. Lead Scoring Model

#### Explicit Score (Fit)
| Factor | Signal | Points |
|--------|--------|--------|
| Title | C-level | +25 |
| | VP/Director | +20 |
| | Manager | +10 |
| | Individual contributor | +5 |
| Company Size | 500+ employees | +20 |
| | 100-499 | +15 |
| | 20-99 | +10 |
| | <20 | +5 |
| Industry | Target industry | +15 |
| | Adjacent industry | +10 |
| Geography | Primary market | +10 |

#### Implicit Score (Engagement)
| Factor | Signal | Points |
|--------|--------|--------|
| Web | Pricing page view | +20 |
| | Product page view | +10 |
| | Blog post view | +3 |
| | 3+ pages/session | +5 |
| Email | Email open | +2 |
| | Email click | +5 |
| | Unsubscribe | -20 |
| Content | Whitepaper download | +10 |
| | Webinar registration | +15 |
| | Webinar attendance | +20 |
| | Case study download | +15 |
| Direct | Demo request | +30 |
| | Contact form | +25 |
| | Free trial signup | +25 |
| Negative | 30+ days inactive | -15 |
| | Competitor email domain | -30 |
| | Student/free email | -10 |

#### Score Thresholds
| Score Range | Stage | Action |
|-------------|-------|--------|
| 0-20 | Cold | Awareness content, retargeting |
| 21-40 | Warm | Nurture sequence |
| 41-60 | MQL | Marketing nurture + BDR notification |
| 61-80 | SAL | BDR outreach within 24h |
| 81-100 | SQL | AE engagement, demo scheduling |

### 4. Lead Routing Rules

| Rule Type | Logic | Example |
|-----------|-------|---------|
| Round-robin | Distribute evenly | New leads alternate between BDRs |
| Territory | Geographic assignment | APAC leads -> APAC team |
| Account-based | Existing accounts | Lead from existing account -> assigned AE |
| Size-based | Company size routing | Enterprise -> dedicated AE |
| Score-based | Priority routing | Score >80 -> senior AE |
| Specialty | Product/industry match | Fintech leads -> fintech specialist |

**SLA**: Respond to MQLs within 5 minutes (conversion drops 80% after 5 min).

### 5. Nurture Sequence Design

| Sequence | Target | Duration | Emails | Goal |
|----------|--------|----------|--------|------|
| New Lead | Raw leads | 2-3 weeks | 4-5 | Qualify to MQL |
| MQL Nurture | MQLs | 3-4 weeks | 5-7 | Move to SAL |
| Re-engagement | Stale leads | 2 weeks | 3 | Reactivate or archive |
| Post-demo | Post-demo leads | 1-2 weeks | 3-4 | Close decision |
| Lost deal | Lost opportunities | 2-3 months | 4-6 | Re-enter pipeline |

### 6. MQL-to-SQL Handoff Process

```
1. Marketing scores lead to MQL threshold
2. Automated notification to assigned BDR
3. BDR reviews lead within SLA (<5 min for hot, <1 hour for warm)
4. BDR performs qualification call (BANT/MEDDIC)
5. Qualified -> Convert to SQL, assign to AE
   Not qualified -> Return to marketing with reason code
6. AE accepts SQL within 24h
7. AE conducts discovery, moves to Opportunity
```

**BANT Qualification**:
- **Budget**: Can they afford the solution?
- **Authority**: Is this the decision maker?
- **Need**: Do they have a real pain point?
- **Timeline**: When do they need to solve this?

### 7. Pipeline Metrics

| Metric | Formula | Good Benchmark |
|--------|---------|---------------|
| MQL-to-SQL Rate | SQLs / MQLs * 100 | 15-25% |
| SQL-to-Opp Rate | Opps / SQLs * 100 | 30-50% |
| Win Rate | Closed-Won / Total Opps * 100 | 20-30% |
| Sales Cycle | Avg days from SQL to close | 30-90 days (B2B) |
| Pipeline Velocity | (Opps * Win% * ACV) / Cycle Days | Higher = better |
| Lead Response Time | Time from MQL to first contact | <5 min ideal |

### 8. Lead Data Hygiene

| Task | Frequency | Impact |
|------|-----------|--------|
| Deduplication | Weekly | Prevents double outreach |
| Enrichment | On capture | Better scoring, routing |
| Decay scoring | Monthly | Reflects engagement freshness |
| Archive inactive | Quarterly | Clean database, lower costs |
| Validation | On capture | Valid email, phone |
| Merge accounts | Monthly | Unified view per company |

## Output Format
```
LEAD MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
=========================
Pipeline:   [stages defined]
Scoring:    [model type]
Routing:    [assignment method]

SCORING MODEL
-------------
Category     | Signal              | Points
-------------|---------------------|--------
[category]   | [signal]            | [+/- pts]

Thresholds:
  Cold:  [0-X]    -> [action]
  MQL:   [X-Y]    -> [action]
  SAL:   [Y-Z]    -> [action]
  SQL:   [Z-100]  -> [action]

ROUTING RULES
-------------
Rule         | Criteria            | Assignment
-------------|---------------------|------------
[rule]       | [condition]         | [team/person]

NURTURE SEQUENCES
-----------------
Sequence: [name]
  Target: [audience]
  Duration: [timeframe]
  Emails: [count]
  Goal: [objective]

HANDOFF PROCESS
---------------
[Step-by-step MQL-to-SQL process]

PIPELINE METRICS
----------------
Metric              | Target  | Current
--------------------|---------|--------
[metric]            | [value] | [value]
```

## Quick Reference

**Lifecycle**: Raw Lead -> MQL -> SAL -> SQL -> Opportunity -> Customer
**Scoring**: Explicit (fit) + Implicit (engagement), threshold-based stages
**SLA**: Respond to MQLs <5 minutes (80% conversion drop after)
**Qualification**: BANT (Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline)
**Key Metric**: Pipeline Velocity = (Opps * Win% * ACV) / Cycle Days

---

## References

- See `${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/references/lead-lifecycle-stages.md` for lead lifecycle stages and BANT qualification framework
- See `${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/references/lead-scoring-model.md` for lead scoring model and pipeline metrics


## Rationalizations

The following table captures common excuses agents make to skip the rigor of this marketing practice, paired with factual rebuttals.

| Excuse | Rebuttal |
|--------|----------|
| "All leads go straight to sales." | Unqualified leads waste sales capacity and train reps to ignore marketing handoffs; MQL criteria and nurture must gate transfer. |
| "Lead scoring is a set-and-forget model." | Scoring weights drift as buyer behavior shifts; models must be recalibrated quarterly against closed-won data. |
| "Speed-to-lead doesn't matter for B2B." | Response within 5 minutes increases conversion 9x vs. 30 minutes; B2B is not exempt from decay curves. |
| "We don't need SLAs between marketing and sales." | Without SLAs on response time and follow-up count, leads leak at the handoff and attribution arguments dominate meetings. |
| "Nurture sequences are just drip emails." | Effective nurture branches on behavior signals and routes to sales on intent triggers; linear drips produce <10% of segmented performance. |