The Fishing Net and the Spear: Why MQLs and SQLs don’t always connect

Imagine a fishing boat. The marketing team casts a wide, efficient net—they haul in a massive catch of thousands of fish. This is their job: generate volume and interest. The sales team, however, isn't tasked with processing every single fish. They are the harpooners, looking for the specific, valuable tuna that will make the entire trip profitable. They need the right size, the right species, and a clear shot.

This is the fundamental relationship between a Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL) and a Sales Qualified Lead (SQL). The net (marketing) brings in a vast array of prospects, but the spear (sales) is only effective when aimed at the right target. The frustration begins when the crew in the net thinks they've caught a prize tuna, but the harpooner looks down and sees a dolphin—interesting, perhaps even valuable, but not what they're there to catch.

In the world of B2B revenue generation, understanding why these "catches" don't always align is key to fixing a leaky sales pipeline.

Defining the Players: MQL vs. SQL

First, let's establish what we're talking about.

• MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead): This is the fish the net brings in that looks promising. Marketing has deemed it ready for sales based on engagement. They've likely downloaded an ebook, attended a webinar, or repeatedly visited high-intent pages like pricing. The key here is interest and fit. Marketing believes this person has the potential to become a customer based on their profile and digital behavior.

• SQL (Sales Qualified Lead): This is the confirmed tuna. The sales team has made contact and believes it's a genuine, viable sales opportunity. They've confirmed the lead's budget, authority, need, and timeline (BANT or a modern variant). An SQL has a defined problem your product can solve and the means to purchase it.

The Usual Thresholds: How Leads Get Qualified

The criteria for moving a lead from one stage to the next are often encapsulated in a Service Level Agreement (SLA) between marketing and sales.

Thresholds for an MQL (The Net's Criteria):

• Profile Fit: Is it the right type of fish? Right industry? Right company size? Relevant job title?

• Engagement Score: A points-based system where actions are weighted.

  • +5 points: Downloaded a whitepaper

  • +10 points: Attended a webinar

  • +20 points: Requested a demo

  • +30 points: Visited the pricing page

• Lead Source: A fish caught in a targeted area (e.g., a webinar) might be prioritized over one from open water (a broad social ad).

Once a lead hits a pre-defined score, marketing flags them as an MQL.

Thresholds for an SQL (The Spear's Criteria):
Sales qualification is about the conversation. The threshold is a confirmed "yes" to key questions:

• Need: "Is this a pain point you are actively trying to solve?"

• Authority: "Are you the right person to evaluate a solution?"

• Budget: "Do you have the resources to solve this problem?"

• Timeline: "When do you need to have a solution in place?"

If confirmed, sales accepts it as an SQL and moves it into their active pipeline.

The Great Disconnect: Why the Net and Spear Miss Each Other

This is where the friction occurs. A promising fish in the net doesn't always line up with the spear's target.

1. The "Interest vs. Intent" Gap
This is the core issue. The net measures interest (engagement with bait). The spear needs intent (a desire to be caught). A lead might be very interested in your content but have no purchase intent—they could be a student, a competitor, or a researcher. Sales rejects these, frustrating marketing whose metrics are based on volume.

2. Inadequate or Incorrect Data
The net might bring in a fish that scores highly, but if the data is wrong (a fake email, wrong company) or the lead is outside your ideal profile, the lead is useless to sales.

3. Lack of Context in the Handoff
Marketing often shouts, "Fish on!" but doesn't say what kind. When a sales rep calls, they have no context. "I see you downloaded our ebook..." is a weak opening compared to, "I saw you were focused on the section about X. Is that a priority?" Without context, the conversation fails.

4. Timing is Everything
Intent has a shelf-life. A highly engaged lead one month might have been researching a project that has now ended. By the time sales gets to them, the need is gone. Marketing's scoring model often can't account for this decay.

5. Misaligned Goals
This is the root problem. If the net crew is rewarded on the weight of the catch (MQL volume), while the harpooners are rewarded on the value of the tuna (closed revenue), their incentives clash. Marketing will focus on a heavy net, even if it's full of low-value fish, and sales will ignore it.

Building a Better Vessel: From Friction to Flow

Fixing this requires intentional effort:

• Create a Unified Definition: The captain, net crew, and harpooners must agree on what a "tuna" looks like based on what has historically been valuable.

• Implement a SLA: Formalize the agreement. Marketing agrees to a certain quality of catch. Sales agrees to spear the leads within a set time (e.g., 24 hours).

• Enrich the Handoff: The net crew must radio ahead: "Large fish, looks like a tuna, took the demo bait!" This context empowers sales to have a relevant conversation.

• Establish Closed-Loop Reporting: The net crew must get reports on which of their catches were actually tuna. This allows them to adjust their nets and bait to catch more of the right fish, moving from measuring interest to predicting intent.

Ultimately, MQLs and SQLs are not just different stages; they are reflections of different functions. Recognizing that the handoff between net and spear requires communication, shared goals, and rich data is the first step to steering your revenue vessel toward success.