10. Successful Lead Management: Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now

This chapter outlines the importance of lead management and its position within the organization. It is important to realize that the well-established AIDA model still provides a framework on the modern journey of a potential customer to a converted sale. The author gives an overview of the funnel concept including all funnel steps and their definitions, as well as details on how these are connected to marketing and sales. Further, the chapter describes B2B market specifics related to the funnel concept. The transitions between the funnel parts mark important states of the customer journey and reveal most critical KPIs. Successful lead management is only possible if the goals of the lead and marketing funnel are derived from sales targets. An organization is bound to fail if the aims of these important departments are not aligned. All aspects of lead management and the relationship between marketing and sales, are combined in the Lead Management Maturity Model. For the first time, publicized LMM Model provides a framework for the assessment and the development of company organizations. This scheme allows an organization to assess and act on striving toward the ideal state of marketing, lead management, and sales.