I've seen it countless times: sales teams burning through leads like they're going out of style, only to wonder why their conversion rates are abysmal. The problem isn't the quantity of leads—it's the quality of qualification.
After analyzing over 10,000 B2B SaaS sales conversations, I've identified the five most common (and costly) lead qualification mistakes. Fix these, and you'll see an immediate improvement in your conversion rates and sales efficiency.
1
Skipping Budget Qualification
The Mistake:
Spending weeks nurturing a prospect only to discover they have a $5K budget for your $50K solution.
I get it—asking about budget feels uncomfortable. But here's the reality: if they can't afford your solution, you're wasting everyone's time. The key is asking about budget in a way that doesn't feel pushy or salesy.
The Fix:
Instead of: "What's your budget?"
Try: "To make sure I'm recommending the right solution, can you help me understand what range you're comfortable investing in to solve this problem?"
Or: "Our solutions typically range from $X to $Y depending on your needs. Does that align with what you were expecting?"
2
Not Identifying the Decision Maker
The Mistake:
Spending months selling to someone who has zero authority to make the purchase decision.
This is especially common in enterprise sales where you might be talking to a manager who needs approval from their director, who needs approval from the VP, who needs approval from the C-suite. You need to map out the entire decision-making process early.
The MEDDIC Framework:
- Metrics - What success looks like
- Economic Buyer - Who controls the budget
- Decision Criteria - How they'll evaluate solutions
- Decision Process - Steps to get approval
- Identify Pain - Specific problems to solve
- Champion - Internal advocate for your solution