Many B2B companies chase more leads. More forms, more downloads, more touchpoints. But here’s the problem: more leads doesn’t automatically mean more revenue. In fact, an abundance of poor leads costs your sales team time, energy and trust.
The real challenge? Generating quality leads that match your ideal customer profile, feel urgency and actually want to have a conversation. In this article, you’ll discover how to shift focus from volume to quality, with concrete strategies that have immediate impact on your pipeline.
Why lead quality matters more than lead volume
Many B2B companies focus on volume. The goal: as many names in the database as possible, as many MQLs to sales as possible. But this model has a fundamental problem. If 80% of leads don’t match your offering or have no buying intent, you’re wasting capacity and budget.
Sales spends time on conversations that lead nowhere. Marketing optimises campaigns for clicks and form submissions, without knowing whether those contacts will ever convert. And the result? Frustration on both sides, low conversion rates and a gap between marketing and sales.
A focus on lead generation that revolves around quality changes that. You attract the right companies, filter faster on fit and buying readiness, and only pass leads to sales that genuinely have a chance.
Know exactly who your target audience is
The first step towards better leads begins before your first campaign. You need to know who your ideal customer is — and that requires more than a vague description like “B2B companies in the Benelux”.
Define your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) based on concrete characteristics. Think about company size, industry, revenue, technology stack and typical pain points. Look at your best current customers: which companies convert fastest? Which stay longest? Which generate the highest revenue?
A sharp ICP helps you set up campaigns more precisely. You create content that specifically addresses your target audience’s challenges. And you filter out leads early that fall outside your ideal profile.
Tip: Also create a buyer persona for the decision-makers within your ICP companies. This way, you align not only your targeting, but also your message.
Define together with sales what a quality lead is
One of the biggest causes of low lead quality is a lack of alignment between marketing and sales. Marketing passes on leads that meet their criteria, but sales finds them unsuitable. Or the reverse: sales complains about too few leads, while marketing delivers dozens per week.
The solution? Joint definitions. Determine together what a Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL) is and when a lead becomes a Sales Qualified Lead (SQL).
Set clear criteria. For example: an MQL must have viewed at least three pages, come from a company with more than 50 employees and be active in a relevant industry. An SQL must also have expressed a concrete question or need.
By establishing these criteria, you prevent discussions and ensure that sales only receives leads that are genuinely promising.
Use lead scoring to set priorities
Not every lead deserves the same attention. Lead scoring helps you determine which leads are warmest and therefore deserve priority.
An effective scoring model combines two types of data. Explicit data tells you whether a company fits your ICP — think industry, size or location. Implicit data shows behaviour that indicates buying intent — such as visiting your pricing page, downloading a whitepaper or returning to your website multiple times.
With a tool like Leadinfo, you can see exactly which companies visit your website, which pages they view and how often they return. This way, you identify companies with strong buying intent, even before they fill in a form. You can link these insights to your CRM, so sales can immediately approach the right companies.
Read more about how to turn lead generation into profit maximisation.
Choose the right channels for lead generation
Not every channel delivers the same quality leads. The key is to invest in channels that reach your ICP — and to stop with channels that mainly deliver volume without conversion.
For B2B lead generation, some channels are consistently effective. LinkedIn is often the most valuable, because you can target very precisely on job title, industry and company size. SEO and content marketing attract leads who are actively looking for solutions. And Google Ads works well for high-intent search queries, provided you bid on specific, relevant search terms.
Less effective for B2B are often broad display campaigns or social media channels where your target audience isn’t actively searching for solutions.
Review your current channels critically. Measure not only the number of leads per channel, but also the conversion rate to SQL and ultimately to customer. This way, you discover where your budget delivers the best return.
Want to specifically get started with LinkedIn? Then read how to approach LinkedIn advertising in B2B the right way.
Create value before asking for conversion
A common mistake in lead generation is pushing for conversion too quickly. A visitor who comes to your website for the first time is rarely ready for a sales conversation. Yet many companies immediately ask for a demo request or contact form.
More effective lead generation works in phases. In the first phase, you offer value without asking for anything in return — think blog articles, videos or tools. In the second phase, you ask for a small commitment, such as an email address for a whitepaper or newsletter. And only in the third phase, when the lead clearly shows interest, do you push for a conversation or demo.
This approach increases not only the quality of your leads, but also the conversion rate. Leads that move through your funnel are better informed and more engaged.
Ensure fast and personal follow-up
The speed and relevance of your follow-up often determine whether a lead converts. Research shows that leads who are contacted within five minutes convert five to ten times more often than leads who receive contact after an hour.
But speed alone isn’t enough. The follow-up must also be relevant. Use the information you have about the lead — which pages visited, which content downloaded, from which industry — to personalise your approach.
With a direct integration between your website data and your CRM, sales can immediately see which companies visit the website and with what intent. This way, your team can follow up proactively, even before a lead contacts you themselves.
Collect feedback and optimise continuously
Lead quality isn’t an endpoint, but an ongoing process. The market changes, your offering evolves and what’s a good lead today may be different tomorrow.
Build a feedback loop between marketing and sales. Have sales regularly report back which leads do and don’t convert, and why. Use those insights to adjust your targeting, content and scoring model.
Also analyse your data structurally. Which campaigns deliver the highest quality leads? Which content attracts the best companies? Where do leads drop off in the funnel? By continuously measuring and optimising, you improve your lead quality step by step.
How to generate better quality leads
Better lead quality starts with clarity about your target audience and ends with a data-driven, continuously improving approach. The key insights:
- Define a sharp ICP and create buyer personas to attract the right companies.
- Align with sales on what an MQL and SQL is, so only promising leads are passed on.
- Use lead scoring to prioritise leads with genuine buying intent.
- Invest in channels that reach your target audience — quality over volume.
- Follow up leads quickly and personally, with relevant information.
- Build a feedback loop and optimise continuously based on data.
Want to see which companies are already showing interest in your offering today? Start a free trial of Leadinfo and discover within 5 minutes which companies visit your website.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if a lead is high quality? A quality lead matches your ideal customer profile (ICP) and shows behaviour that indicates buying intent, such as visiting pricing or product pages. By combining explicit and implicit criteria in a scoring model, you can objectively determine which leads deserve priority.
Which channels deliver the best B2B leads? LinkedIn, SEO and Google Ads for high-intent search terms are generally most effective for B2B. Measure not only the number of leads per channel, but especially the conversion rate to customer — that determines the real value.
How do I improve collaboration between marketing and sales? Define together what an MQL and SQL is. Ensure a shared dashboard where both teams can track the status of leads. Schedule regular meetings to exchange feedback and adjust criteria.
How quickly should I follow up a lead? As quickly as possible — preferably within five minutes of the first signal. Leads that are approached quickly and relevantly convert significantly more often than leads that have to wait hours or days.
