1# Lifecycle Stage Definitions
2 
3Complete templates for lead lifecycle stages, MQL criteria by business type, SLAs, and rejection/recycling workflows.
4 
5## Stage Templates
6 
7### Subscriber
8 
9**Entry criteria:**
10- Opted in to blog, newsletter, or content updates
11- No company information required
12 
13**Exit criteria:**
14- Provides company information via form or enrichment
15- Visits 3+ pages in a session
16- Downloads gated content
17 
18**Owner:** Marketing (automated)
19 
20**Actions on entry:**
21- Add to newsletter nurture
22- Begin tracking engagement score
23 
24---
25 
26### Lead
27 
28**Entry criteria:**
29- Identified contact with name + email + company
30- May come from form fill, enrichment, or import
31 
32**Exit criteria:**
33- Reaches MQL threshold (fit + engagement)
34- Manually qualified by marketing/SDR
35 
36**Owner:** Marketing
37 
38**Actions on entry:**
39- Enrich contact data (company size, industry, role)
40- Begin scoring
41- Add to relevant nurture sequence
42 
43---
44 
45### MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead)
46 
47**Entry criteria:**
48- Meets fit score threshold AND engagement score threshold
49- OR triggers high-intent action (demo request, pricing page + form fill)
50 
51**Exit criteria:**
52- Sales accepts (becomes SQL)
53- Sales rejects (recycled to nurture with reason code)
54- No response within SLA (escalated to manager)
55 
56**Owner:** Marketing → Sales (handoff)
57 
58**Actions on entry:**
59- Instant alert to assigned sales rep
60- Create follow-up task with 4-hour SLA
61- Pause marketing nurture sequences
62- Log all recent activity for sales context
63 
64---
65 
66### SQL (Sales Qualified Lead)
67 
68**Entry criteria:**
69- Sales rep has had qualifying conversation
70- Confirmed: budget, authority, need, or timeline (at least 2 of 4)
71 
72**Exit criteria:**
73- Opportunity created with projected value
74- Disqualified (recycled with reason code)
75 
76**Owner:** Sales (SDR or AE)
77 
78**Actions on entry:**
79- Update lifecycle stage in CRM
80- Notify AE if SDR-qualified
81- Begin sales sequence if not already in conversation
82 
83---
84 
85### Opportunity
86 
87**Entry criteria:**
88- Formal opportunity created in CRM
89- Deal value, close date, and stage assigned
90 
91**Exit criteria:**
92- Closed-won or closed-lost
93 
94**Owner:** Sales (AE)
95 
96**Actions on entry:**
97- Add to pipeline reporting
98- Create deal tasks (proposal, demo, etc.)
99- Notify CS if deal is likely to close
100 
101---
102 
103### Customer
104 
105**Entry criteria:**
106- Closed-won deal
107- Contract signed and payment terms set
108 
109**Exit criteria:**
110- Churns, expands, or renews
111 
112**Owner:** Customer Success / Account Management
113 
114**Actions on entry:**
115- Trigger onboarding sequence
116- Assign CS manager
117- Schedule kickoff call
118- Remove from all sales sequences
119 
120---
121 
122### Evangelist
123 
124**Entry criteria:**
125- NPS score 9-10, or active referral behavior
126- Agreed to case study, testimonial, or referral program
127 
128**Exit criteria:**
129- Ongoing program participation
130 
131**Owner:** Customer Success + Marketing
132 
133**Actions on entry:**
134- Add to advocacy program
135- Request case study or testimonial
136- Invite to referral program
137- Feature in marketing campaigns (with permission)
138 
139---
140 
141## MQL Criteria Templates by Business Type
142 
143### PLG (Product-Led Growth)
144 
145**Fit score (40% weight):**
146 
147| Attribute | Points |
148|-----------|--------|
149| Company size 10-500 | +15 |
150| Company size 500-5000 | +20 |
151| Target industry | +10 |
152| Decision-maker role | +15 |
153| Uses complementary tool | +10 |
154 
155**Engagement score (60% weight) — weight product usage heavily:**
156 
157| Signal | Points |
158|--------|--------|
159| Created free account | +15 |
160| Completed onboarding | +20 |
161| Used core feature 3+ times | +25 |
162| Invited team member | +20 |
163| Hit usage limit | +15 |
164| Visited pricing page | +10 |
165 
166**MQL threshold:** 65 points
167 
168---
169 
170### Sales-Led (Enterprise)
171 
172**Fit score (60% weight) — weight fit heavily:**
173 
174| Attribute | Points |
175|-----------|--------|
176| Company size 500+ | +20 |
177| Target industry | +15 |
178| VP+ title | +20 |
179| Budget authority confirmed | +15 |
180| Uses competitor product | +10 |
181 
182**Engagement score (40% weight):**
183 
184| Signal | Points |
185|--------|--------|
186| Requested demo | +25 |
187| Attended webinar | +10 |
188| Downloaded whitepaper | +10 |
189| Visited pricing page 2+ times | +15 |
190| Engaged with sales email | +10 |
191 
192**MQL threshold:** 70 points
193 
194---
195 
196### Mid-Market (Balanced)
197 
198**Fit score (50% weight):**
199 
200| Attribute | Points |
201|-----------|--------|
202| Company size 50-1000 | +15 |
203| Target industry | +10 |
204| Manager+ title | +15 |
205| Target geography | +10 |
206 
207**Engagement score (50% weight):**
208 
209| Signal | Points |
210|--------|--------|
211| Demo request | +25 |
212| Free trial signup | +20 |
213| Pricing page visit | +10 |
214| Content download (2+) | +10 |
215| Email click (3+) | +10 |
216| Webinar attendance | +10 |
217 
218**MQL threshold:** 60 points
219 
220---
221 
222## SLA Templates
223 
224### MQL-to-SQL SLA
225 
226| Metric | Target | Escalation |
227|--------|--------|------------|
228| First contact attempt | Within 4 business hours | Alert to sales manager at 4 hours |
229| Qualification decision | Within 48 hours | Auto-escalate at 48 hours |
230| Meeting scheduled (if qualified) | Within 5 business days | Weekly pipeline review flag |
231 
232### SQL-to-Opportunity SLA
233 
234| Metric | Target | Escalation |
235|--------|--------|------------|
236| Discovery call completed | Within 3 business days of SQL | Alert to AE manager |
237| Opportunity created | Within 5 business days of SQL | Pipeline review flag |
238 
239### Opportunity-to-Close SLA
240 
241| Metric | Target | Escalation |
242|--------|--------|------------|
243| Proposal delivered | Within 5 business days of demo | AE manager alert |
244| Deal stale in stage | 2x average days for that stage | Pipeline review flag |
245| Close date pushed 2+ times | Immediate | Forecast review required |
246 
247---
248 
249## Lead Rejection and Recycling
250 
251### Rejection Reason Codes
252 
253| Code | Reason | Recycle Action |
254|------|--------|----------------|
255| **FIT-01** | Company too small | Nurture; re-score if company grows |
256| **FIT-02** | Wrong industry | Archive; do not recycle |
257| **FIT-03** | Wrong role / no authority | Nurture; monitor for org changes |
258| **ENG-01** | No response after 3 attempts | Recycle to nurture in 90 days |
259| **ENG-02** | Interested but bad timing | Recycle to nurture; re-engage in 60 days |
260| **QUAL-01** | No budget | Recycle to nurture in 90 days |
261| **QUAL-02** | Using competitor, locked in | Recycle; trigger before contract renewal |
262| **QUAL-03** | Not a real project | Archive; do not recycle |
263 
264### Recycling Workflow
265 
2661. Sales rejects MQL with reason code
2672. CRM updates lifecycle stage to "Recycled"
2683. Lead enters recycling nurture sequence (different from original nurture)
2694. Engagement score resets to baseline (keep fit score)
2705. If lead re-engages and crosses MQL threshold, re-route to sales with "Recycled MQL" flag
2716. Track recycled MQL conversion rate separately
272 
273### Recycling Nurture Sequence
274 
275- **Frequency:** Bi-weekly or monthly (lower frequency than initial nurture)
276- **Content:** Industry insights, case studies, product updates
277- **Duration:** 6 months, then archive if no engagement
278- **Re-MQL trigger:** High-intent action (demo request, pricing page revisit)
279