A marketing qualified lead (MQL) is a contact who has demonstrated meaningful engagement, indicating potential buying interest, and is the right ICP fit. While they’ve moved beyond initial awareness, MQLs are not yet ready for direct sales outreach. Instead, they typically enter a further stage of nurture, validation, or scoring to confirm intent and readiness.
Common MQL triggers include actions such as downloading gated content, attending webinars, or repeated interactions with high-value assets. These behaviours signal growing interest and help marketing teams prioritise where to focus next-step engagement efforts.
The definition of an MQL varies between organisations, but the goal remains the same: to identify leads that show clear potential, nurture them effectively, and ensure that only well-qualified, sales-ready opportunities are eventually passed to sales.
