Direct answer
A marketing-to-sales handoff works when both sides have agreed, in writing, what a lead is at the moment it passes across. That agreement has a definition, a minimum set of fields, a trigger, a way for sales to accept or reject, and a route for feedback to return to marketing. Without it, marketing hands over what it has and sales sorts through it, and each side concludes the other is the problem. This page describes the pieces. It does not claim that a better handoff improves lead quality or acceptance, and it gives no benchmark. It makes the criteria explicit so that disagreements become specific.
A shared lead definition
Write down what qualifies a contact as a lead the sales team will act on, in terms both teams can check from the record: the kind of company or person, the need expressed, the action they took and whatever else you agree. Keep it short. It is a working agreement rather than a scoring model, and where you want a fuller approach to assessing fit, see AI lead qualification.
Minimum fields
Agree the smallest set of fields that must be present before a lead is handed over:
- Contact details that let sales reach the person
- The company or context, where relevant
- The source and the campaign or page that produced it, following your [lead source tracking](/lead-source-tracking-setup/)
- What the person asked for or did, in their own words where possible
- Consent or permission status for follow-up
What triggers the handoff
Decide what event moves a lead from marketing to sales: a form submission, a request for contact, a status change made by marketing when the definition is met, or a rule that acts on fields. Make the trigger visible on the record. Once it fires, the lead needs an owner straight away, using your first-response rule so it does not sit unassigned.
Acceptance and rejection
Sales should be able to accept a lead or return it with a reason chosen from a short list, such as not the right fit, missing information or duplicate. A rejection is not a failure. It is information. Do not let leads disappear into an unknown state: every handed-over lead ends as accepted or returned, and returned ones go back to marketing with the reason recorded. Duplicates are handled as described in preventing duplicate leads.
The feedback loop
The reasons collected on returned leads are the feedback marketing needs. Review them together on a regular rhythm you choose and adjust either the definition or the marketing activity. Keep the review about the definition and the data on the records rather than about people. We make no promise about what the review will change.
Status on the record
Each lead should carry a clear status that both teams can see, for example with marketing, handed over, accepted, returned or in progress. Statuses should match your pipeline design (CRM pipeline stage design) so a lead does not need translating from one system of labels to another.
Who owns the definition, and scope
Someone must own the definition and the right to change it, and changes should be announced. Without an owner the definition drifts and each side works to its own version. LATYNEX configures the fields, trigger, statuses and return reasons in the CRM and marketing tools you already use, and documents the agreement. See AI sales operations automation for the wider service.
Questions
What is a marketing-qualified lead?+
Whatever your two teams agree it is. This page focuses on writing that definition down, in terms both can check, rather than adopting a generic label.
Will a better handoff improve lead quality?+
We make no such claim. It makes expectations explicit and gives you data on why leads are returned.
What if sales rejects most leads?+
Look at the recorded reasons. They usually point to either the definition or the marketing activity, and the feedback loop exists to sort out which.
Do we need a scoring model?+
Not to start. A short written definition and a minimum field set are enough for a working handoff.
Who should own the definition?+
One named person or role, with changes shared with both teams.