[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":42},["ShallowReactive",2],{"glossary-sql":3},{"slug":4,"path":5,"title":6,"description":7,"term":8,"wordCount":9,"hasExample":10,"inboundLinks":11,"isPublished":10,"html":12,"data":13,"related":26,"lessons":39},"sql","/glossary/sql","What Is an SQL (Sales Qualified Lead)? Definition","An SQL (sales qualified lead) is a lead that has been vetted by sales and meets the qualification bar — real need, budget, authority, and timeline. It is ready for an AE to engage directly.","SQL (Sales Qualified Lead)",193,true,7,"\u003Cp>An SQL, or sales qualified lead, is a lead that has been vetted by sales and actually meets the bar: real need, budget, authority, and a timeline. It is the step past an \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/mql/\">MQL\u003C/a> — an MQL raised its hand, but an SQL has been spoken to and checked against the \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/icp/\">ICP\u003C/a>. The \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/sdr/\">SDR\u003C/a> who qualifies it passes it to an \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/account-executive/\">account executive\u003C/a> as a real opportunity, typically to become a \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/qualified-meeting/\">qualified meeting\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"in-plain-english\">In plain English\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>An SQL is a lead that passed the test. Someone from sales actually talked to them, asked the questions, and decided there is a real deal here — not just interest. Marketing says MQL, sales says SQL, and the difference is that one is a guess and the other has been checked.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"why-it-matters-to-you\">Why it matters to you\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>The whole value of the SDR role is turning interest into a checked, real opportunity — turning \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/mql/\">MQLs\u003C/a> into SQLs. A clean SQL is a meeting your \u003Ca href=\"/glossary/account-executive/\">account executive\u003C/a> actually wants, because the qualification already happened. Get good at this and you are not just booking calls; you are building the trusted pipeline that earns you the promotion.\u003C/p>\n",{"title":6,"description":7,"primaryQuery":14,"term":8,"publishedAt":15,"author":16,"reviewedAt":17,"example":18,"relatedTerms":19,"lessons":24},"what is an sql in sales","2026-09-10","closers","2026-09-24","\"I qualified the MQL — real pain, budget, and they want to talk this month — so I'm passing it as an SQL to the AE.\"",[20,21,22,23],"mql","icp","qualified-meeting","sdr",[25],"/academy/sdr/mql-vs-sql",[27,30,33,36],{"slug":20,"path":28,"title":29},"/glossary/mql","What Is an MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead)? Definition",{"slug":21,"path":31,"title":32},"/glossary/icp","What Is an ICP (Ideal Customer Profile)? Definition",{"slug":22,"path":34,"title":35},"/glossary/qualified-meeting","What Is a Qualified Meeting in Sales? Definition",{"slug":23,"path":37,"title":38},"/glossary/sdr","What Is an SDR? Sales Development Representative, Explained",[40],{"path":25,"title":41},"MQL vs SQL vs Lead vs Prospect: The Funnel Stages Explained",1792888525159]