Qualify Fast, Disqualify Faster

Small businesses spend, on average, between $500 and $3,000 per month on lead generation services. This can include search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, social media advertising, and content marketing. There is a potential return on investment (ROI) with these services, however money and time are at risk of being wasted by neglecting a critical aspect of lead nurture: lead qualification.

The worst feeling is spending time with a lead that you think is going to end up being a customer and, then you get hit with, " I decided that it is no longer a priority" or "I want to move forward, but I have to talk to my manager about this.". It is in these situations that I do not blame the lead or the lead generation services that found the lead in the first place. This situation is on the business to be able to qualify the lead and determine if it makes sense to continue the lead down their sales process.

When qualifying leads that enter your funnel or pipeline, you want to qualify fast and disqualify faster to prevent you and your team from spending time with leads that are a distraction from the next deal that could close for you. What do you look for when qualifying a lead? There are four keys I look for in qualification and that acronym is B-A-N-T (BANT).

BANT stands for budget, authority, need, and timeline. You identify these four components by asking your leads questions to determine if they are a fit for the products or services that you offer. If you are unable to identify all four components of BANT, then your deal and your lead will either fall through the cracks, or you do not have a deal to begin with.

Lead qualification can save you time, make you money, and establish trust and credibility for your brand. In order to do that, you have to know how to qualify. If you find yourself in a situation where you have a lot of leads that are not converting, then you may have a lead qualification gap.

Cache Consulting is hosting a free webinar on October 16th, "Disqualify to Qualify", to educate and provide best practices on the art of lead qualification.

Sean Banks, is a Virginia-based business coach and writer. He recently joined the Marketing Junto editorial team to help provide some actionable content for our readers. Find out more and get schedule a discovery call with Sean and his team.