Reverse the funnel

Need 50 customers? Work out the leads.

Goal setting runs backwards: "We need 40 new customers this quarter. How many leads is that?" This is how pipeline targets and marketing budgets are actually built.

The move

Start from the goal and divide by each stage’s rate, walking up the funnel. Dividing by 25% is the same as multiplying by 4.

Worked example

Need 20 customers. 25% of SQLs close, 50% of MQLs become SQLs. MQLs needed?

  1. 20 ÷ 25% = 80 SQLs
  2. 80 ÷ 50% = 160 MQLs
  • ÷ 10% = × 10 · ÷ 20% = × 5 · ÷ 25% = × 4 · ÷ 50% = × 2
  • Round *up* when you’re planning. You can’t have half a lead.