Understanding the difference between lead status and lifecycle stage in HubSpot is not just about keeping your database organized; it’s about making sure every lead counts and is propelling your business forward. It is crucial for targeting your efforts more effectively and ensuring that no opportunity slips through the cracks.
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Now let’s look at the differences between lifecycle stages and lead statuses, explore how they complement each other, and highlight the importance of comprehending both for successful lead management.
Understanding Lifecycle Stages
In marketing and sales, leads go through stages to become customers. Here's a closer look:
Subscriber Phase: Individuals opt in for regular updates.
Standard Lead: Contacts with potential interest in a product or service.
Marketing-qualified leads (MQLs): Lead who has indicated interest in a brand’s offering based on marketing efforts.
Sales-qualified leads (SQLs): Leads indicating readiness for direct sales engagement.
Opportunities: Represent top-tier leads prepared to make a purchase.
Customers: Have already sealed the deal.
Evangelists: Enthusiastic promoters actively advocating for your product.
The Role of Lead Status
Lead status refers to a property at the individual contact level that indicates the status of that particular contact in terms of their qualification as a lead. It manages and tracks whether a contact is qualified or unqualified based on predetermined criteria. Lead status helps users categorise and prioritise contacts within the system, facilitating more effective lead management and nurturing processes. Updating a lead status is the responsibility of the team/individual qualifying leads for the sales pipeline.
Distinguishing Lead Status from Lifecycle Stage on HubSpot
Lead status refers to a property at the contact level, indicating whether the contact is a qualified or unqualified lead. It's primarily used to manage the status of individual contacts. In contrast, the lifecycle stage illustrates a lead's progression beyond being qualified or unqualified. It tracks the journey of a contact from being a lead to becoming an opportunity, then a customer, and potentially an evangelist.
Here's an example: a contact gets added to your CRM, and your sales rep tries to get that lead onto a demo/meeting. This process is also termed lead qualification or lead management. During this process, the sales rep will update the Lead Status of that contact to reflect the status. This particular contact could have different lead statuses. However, its lifecycle stage will be Lead. If and when your sales rep marks this contact as qualified and adds a deal in the pipeline, the lead status is no longer relevant. Now, the Lifecycle stage of this contract will automatically be updated to Opportunity.
Remember, the Lead Status and Lifecycle Stage OVERLAPS! Here's a diagram which will help:
Automatic Lifecycle Stage Assignment
It's essential to understand that the lifecycle stage should not be manually updated. Instead, it should be automatically assigned based on the contact or company's source and stage.
For instance, when a contact is linked to a deal, HubSpot automatically designates its lifecycle stage as an "opportunity" for both the contact and the company. Likewise, if a contact is associated with a deal that has been successfully closed, their lifecycle stage will be automatically updated to "customer."
Growth Made Simple
Grasping the distinction between lead status and lifecycle stage is more than a best practice—it's a necessity for businesses looking to leverage HubSpot to its fullest potential. Armed with this knowledge, you're ready to refine your approach, align your teams, and unlock unprecedented growth.
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