Lead management involves tracking and managing leads through the sales funnel, from initial identification to when they become paying customers.
Prospecting and generating new leads is essential for any sales organization. However, without the right systems in place, those potential customers might never convert, dropping out of the funnel and opting for one of your competitors.
With proper lead management software, you can align your marketing and sales so you spend more time with qualified leads and close more deals.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to document and implement a lead management system in your business.
1. Define your ideal customer profile (ICP)
Many salespeople try to get as many leads as possible into the top of the sales funnel, reasoning that reaching out to more leads will result in more customers. Unfortunately, this can lead to stretched resources and low-value prospects.
Prioritizing quality over quantity lets you focus on the leads most likely to become customers. Start with a clear definition of your ideal prospect to avoid wasting resources on leads that will never become customers.
Instead of guessing what your ideal customer might look like, start by reviewing your existing customers:
Which types of businesses have the highest conversion rates?
Which customers have benefited the most from your product or service?
Which have been with you the longest and have the highest lifetime value?
Who always leaves you positive reviews and recommends you to others?
As you compare your top existing customers, look for commonalities across relevant demographics and firmographics, such as:
Job title
Industry
Company size
Location
Annual revenue
Hopefully, you’re storing all this information in your customer relationship management (CRM) software. If you don’t yet have a CRM system, or you’re not using it to record this information, then it’s time to do some research.
You’ll find many of these details on sites like LinkedIn and Crunchbase. For anything else you need to learn, this is a great opportunity to jump on the phone and catch up with your favorite customers.
How Pipedrive can help
When you’ve created your ICP, use Pipedrive to filter existing customers and learn which meet your criteria.
Sort by criteria like the most referrals or the shortest sales cycles (won time).
Your marketing and sales teams must collaborate during this process since the results impact the whole customer experience. When both teams align, your marketing content and sales outreach will be consistent and complement each other.
Download your ideal customer profile template
2. Identify potential customers with lead generation
The next step is to find and generate leads matching your definition. The best CRM lead management solution allows businesses to organize and manage their new leads by simplifying lead generation. The key is using a combination of inbound and outbound methodologies.
For example, inbound leads could come from people completing web forms on a landing page or engaging with your content on social media. Inbound leads identify themselves as potential customers, but the marketing team still has to create content that grabs their interest based on that ideal lead definition.
Sales teams typically generate outbound leads using the lead definition to determine the best places to find high-quality leads. Reps can then reach out to those leads through standard channels such as email marketing, phone calls, social media and direct mail.
Note: Remember your existing customers when trying to find the right prospects. For example, if you’re offering a new product or service, talk to customers who already use your solutions and trust you. These customers can also be a great source of sales referrals, introducing you to other companies that would enjoy your offer and are likely to pull out their credit card.
How Pipedrive can help
Use Pipedrive’s LeadBooster add-on to find leads that match specific criteria. LeadBooster has four components that help you find and engage qualified leads:
Chatbot to engage website visitors 24/7 and route leads to sales reps
Live Chat to pick up where the chatbot left off and add a human touch
Prospector to source quality leads from a database of over 400 million profiles
Web Forms to share or embed customizable surveys
These tools can simplify the customer experience and help you identify qualified leads faster.
3. Qualify leads to see who’s in a position to buy
Whether you’re dealing with inbound inquiries or chasing down leads, you’ll still need to qualify each one before proceeding.
There are two main types of leads:
Marketing qualified leads (MQLs). These leads have engaged with your marketing campaigns but are not yet in the sales funnel.
Sales qualified leads (SQLs). These leads are in the funnel, and your sales team is working to close them as customers.
Both marketing and sales need to agree on the lead qualification criteria, especially when an MQL becomes an SQL, so everyone is clear when responsibility shifts from marketing to sales.
Lead scoring is one popular method. To rank and prioritize leads, assign a score to actions that indicate buyer intent (such as downloading a white paper or spending time on a sales page). Score leads throughout the sales funnel to determine when someone is ready to move to the next stage.
Use this alongside qualification frameworks, such as:
BANT. Budget, Authority, Need and Timeframe.
MEDDIC. Metrics, Economic buyer, Decision criteria, Decision process, Identify pain and Champion.
FAINT. Funds, Authority, Interest, Need and Timing.
Budget | Can the lead afford your product or service’s pricing? |
Authority | Do they have the authority to make a purchase decision? |
Need | Does your product or service fill a pressing need? |
Timeframe | When will they be ready to purchase? |
Automate some aspects of lead qualification, such as collating customer information.
A CRM solution enables faster lead capturing since all your prospects’ details are available to the entire team. In turn, they can understand who the decision-makers are and build rapport.
How Pipedrive can help
Some CRM systems can streamline the qualification process by integrating relevant available data, such as contact information and company details.
Pipedrive’s Smart Contact Data feature can reduce the time your sales team spends on lead research.
Get valuable insights about contacts with one click from sources like LinkedIn. Close deals in less time and focus on the right leads.
4. Assign leads to your sales team
Once you’ve qualified leads, you must decide who will lead them through the sales funnel.
Some sales managers take a hands-on approach, relying on their in-depth knowledge of the team’s strengths and skills and assigning leads to the reps they think are best suited. Others prefer to add leads to a pool and allow reps to pick them on a “first come, first served” basis.
While manual routing might be enough for small business needs, it’s challenging to scale and time-consuming on bigger sales teams. Alternatively, you can automate the process. For example, a round-robin system can assign new leads to the next rep in the queue. Other systems take your reps’ skill sets into account. That extra know-how can be the deciding factor for organizations looking to break into new markets.
How Pipedrive can help
Another way to automate lead distribution functions is to integrate a routing mobile app, such as RouterJet or Lead Assign, with your CRM. Alternatively, you can create a workflow automation in Pipedrive to route new leads to different reps.
Pipedrive auto-creates deals when you add a qualified lead and tracks activities as they move along the pipeline (e.g., automated and personalized email campaigns). Transfer deal ownership between different reps and create workflows for sales teams to attract and retain customers.
In Pipedrive’s latest State of Sales and Marketing report, 81% of respondents reported using CRM software with automation capabilities. Knowing how to deploy these tools is a must for lead and pipeline management.
5. Nurture and track leads through the sales funnel
Only a small number of your qualified leads will be ready to buy immediately. A successful lead nurturing strategy will help you build those relationships by keeping your leads warm and engaged.
Sales teams sometimes make the mistake of bombarding leads with sales messages and offers, but this kind of one-way traffic only gets limited results.
Effective lead nurturing is about listening to your leads. Engage with them to learn more about their wants, needs and pain points. Use that information to offer relevant value and solve their biggest problems.
Create tailored content based on your leads’ challenges and where they are in the customer journey. Use marketing automation to deliver the right content at the right time, such as when the prospect takes specific actions or meets predetermined criteria.
For example, you can send a follow-up email when someone downloads a resource, views your LinkedIn profile or visits a sales page on your site, as Wyzowl does here.
Organizing those leads is essential to ensure none slip through the cracks.
Reliable tracking is necessary for accurate sales forecasting, but that can be difficult without a CRM tool to organize leads. A CRM tool aids forecasting by allowing you to look back and see which leads were successful. By capturing each action and task, you can make better forecasts and reduce unpleasant surprises.
How Pipedrive can help
Pipedrive allows you to track leads on a visual pipeline to see where they are in the sales process. The AI Sales Assistant can analyze the pipeline and suggest actions to keep leads moving through the funnel.
This accurate real-time data helps you make intelligent decisions. If things go wrong, you can change plans accordingly.
6. Convert leads into customers
A lead management and nurturing process aims to convert leads into happy paying customers.
Personal attention is key. Each lead is unique, so your sales team must address their individual objections and concerns. With the increasing popularity of remote sales teams, managers are always looking for ways to add that personal touch even when you can’t be in the same room.
How Pipedrive can help
Pipedrive integrates with video calling apps like Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet so reps can manage communication and engage with potential customers quickly and easily. Integrating these features also ensures your sales team has all relevant notes and contact details to hand on the call.
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Integrating video also increases productivity since you can schedule, join and manage meetings right from the CRM.
7. Recycle non-converting leads
For leads who still haven’t converted, a dedicated “recycling” nurture track can help you stay in contact and top-of-mind.
As you engage with past prospects, stay alert for any big changes at the company. For example, the lead may have a new title, their team has expanded recently or the company has opened a new site.
On the other hand, you might be the one who changed. Maybe your product has new features, or you’ve expanded your service, making it an even better solution for the lead.
These changes could mean the time is right for your product or service. Approach these people and see if they’re ready to move forward.
One of the benefits of recycling previous sales leads is that you know them. You’ve already done a lot of the necessary research and engaged with them as they moved through the sales funnel. Build on that to make a compelling offer that addresses their unique challenges while considering any changes to their circumstances.
Whatever the reason, a salesperson needs to be able to catch up on all previous interactions and touchpoints, such as contact history and why the person didn’t convert. Most sales CRM platforms allow you to add notes to a deal or contact, so use that to record all the relevant information.
How Pipedrive can help
Pipedrive’s dashboards give you a detailed view of every deal from the first contact to the end. Track all events and movements throughout the sales process.
When you keep your CRM up to date with all your email and communications, reps can ensure any future messaging is relevant and personalized.
Find more of the best leads fast with your lead qualification ebook
8. Evaluate your lead management strategy
As with any part of the sales process, it’s essential to measure the effectiveness of your CRM lead management software and use what you learn to optimize future strategies.
Ensure you’re tracking key metrics related to the different stages of lead management. For example, measuring the conversion rate for each step of the sales funnel can help you determine if there are any gaps in your lead management process.
Your customer lifetime value (CLV) will help you determine whether you’re targeting the right leads. Customer satisfaction (CSAT) and net promoter score (NPS) can reveal whether converted leads are happy with the customer support offered throughout the process.
Having a CRM helps evaluation by allowing you to store and record key information, insights and completed tasks.
How Pipedrive can help
Tracking metrics in Pipedrive allows you to evaluate strategies. Use customizable dashboards to monitor the metrics that matter most to your business, with help from competitor analysis, attribution and market research reports.
Thorough analysis allows for continuous improvement, so every new campaign is better than the last one.
CRM lead management FAQ
Final thoughts
Lead management is integral to a successful sales process. It enables sales teams to define, identify and nurture leads until they’re ready to become customers.
While old-school methods work to a point, the right CRM software enhances lead management by providing better organization, accessible information storage and quality lead-tracking software. Combining practical lead management tools with a personal touch allows you to fill your sales pipeline with high-quality leads and close more deals.
Sign up for a free trial of Pipedrive to see how it can help with lead management.
