Quadrant Analysis Framework for Sales Teams

Not all leads are created equal. Treating all inbound leads the same kills go-to-market efficiency—think reps wasting time on under-qualified demo calls, SDRs adding job seekers to email sequences, over-exuberant forecasting, and so on. So, let’s stop following up with leads in the same way and get more efficient. To do that, I’ve found it helpful to map out a quadrant (<3 quadrants) and establish rules of engagement for each quadrant square. Here’s the approach: Y-AXIS = INTENT Top of the axis is 🙋 Hand Raisers (high intent) and 🛞 Tire Kickers (low intent) on the bottom. Deciphering between the two depends on the expectations of the user. Hand Raisers expect a reciprocated response, whereas Tire Kickers dread one. 🙋 Hand Raiser actions: demo requested, product usage ceiling hit, support ticket created, live chat initiated 🛞 Tire Kicker actions: registered/attended webinar, video watched, product login, email clicked. === Far right axis is 🎯 High Fit and 🪫 Low Fit leads/accounts on the left. Determining who falls into which cohort depends on your product and GTM motion. But the gist here is to draw a line in the sand for what should go to sales and what to qualify out. 🎯 High Fit examples: director+ title at Fortune 500, HR lead at 50+ person company 🪫 Low Fit examples: student at local university, product signup from personal email, job applicant === With our quadrants defined, we can now establish rules of engagement to triage each. Let’s start with highest urgency on down: 🙋 Hand Raiser + 🎯 High Fit Action: Drop everything and book the meeting (even better if the requester can book a meeting directly with the rep mapped to their account) Owner: Calendar automation tool (e.g., Chili Piper) OR Inbound BDR/SDR SLA: < 5 mins 🙋 Hand Raiser + 🪫 Low Fit Action: Qualify in/out to book time with a rep Owner: Inbound BDR/SDR (ideal for user experience) SLA: Same business day (faster the better) **Note:** this quadrant stack ranked higher in the triage queue due to the expectation of a response on the user end) 🛞 Tire Kicker + 🎯 High Fit Action: Non-prescriptive (sorry). In most cases, a human should review and use the action as a signal to inform their approach to connecting with the account. Common Room can help with this. Owner: Outbound SDR team (because these leads are typically MUCH lower intent, they require an approach that’s closer to the outbound motion to generate pipeline. SLA: Ideally, under 48 hours. Hard to say. 🛞 Tire Kicker + 🪫 Low Fit Action: One of the following—qualify out, keep in automated nurture (e.g., product onboarding emails for self-serve), do nothing. Owner: Marketing automation SLA: ∞ === A final word… With all of the above mapped out, you’ll have a starting point for addressing inbound leads. As new leads enter your funnel, you can: plot them onto the quadrant, deliver clear guidance on rules of engagement, and stop wasting time on leads that will never result in revenue.

You don't miss quota because you suck at selling. You fail because you chase the wrong accounts. This framework will help you drive 200% performance. When I spoke with a CRO at a tech company he said: "We wasted 6 months chasing SMB accounts that never had budget for enterprise tools." After conversations with 100s of sales leaders, here's the signal-based framework that changed everything: The 4-Tier System: Tier 1 - Strategic (Top 5%) - $100M+ revenue, Series C+, recent acquisitions - Legacy tools creating bottlenecks, hitting platform limits - C-level researching solutions, attending demos - New sales leadership, missed quota 2+ quarters Tier 2 - Mid-Market Growth (Next 20%) - $20M-$100M revenue, Zoominfo expansion signals - Tech stack gaps, sales ops evaluating tools - Department-level intent, budget cycle alignment Tier 3 - Scale Prospects (25%) - $5M-$20M revenue, growing sales teams - Basic CRM, researching "best sales tools" - IC-level intent, competitor content engagement Tier 4 - Future Pipeline (Remaining 50%) - <$5M revenue, Crunchbase funding alerts - Minimal tech stack, downloading guides - First AE/SDR hire posted, early customer traction The Secret Sauce: Track 18+ data points weekly across: → Firmographics (ZoomInfo, Apollo, 6sense) → Intent surges (Bombora, G2) → Technographics (Clay, CRM, Stack) → Buying triggers (LinkedIn Sales Nav, Crunchbase) Why This Works: Timing = everything. Companies buy when they're: ↳ Scaling fast ↳ Missing targets ↳ Leadership changes. Layer the signals: Series B funding + VP Sales hire + intent surge = Tier 1 The compound effect: Focus 70% of your time on Tiers 1 & 2 ↳ they're 80% of your revenue with 40% shorter cycles. What's the strongest buying signal you've seen? 👇

I struggled with segmentation and channel effectiveness, and didn’t even realize it. I threw more budget at ads, tweaked messaging, and hoped for better results. But the real problem? I was not evaluating where their leads are actually coming from. And more importantly which ones were worth pursuing. I’ve seen companies waste months chasing the wrong segments while ignoring hidden goldmines. That’s why I love this simple 2x2 framework to evaluate segment and channel effectiveness. Side note: Get the step-by-step guide along with the spreadsheet template from my newsletter. Click the link in my profile to get a copy. I drop leads into one of these four categories: 🚀 Winner Segment (Where You Double Down) - High demo volume, high conversion rate - These personas and channels are proven to convert Action: Pour fuel on this fire—scale these campaigns, refine messaging, and ensure this segment remains strong 😬 Bleeder Segment (The Sneaky Budget Drain) - High demo volume, but low conversion rate - These channels look good on the surface but don’t close Action: Set strict timelines for improvement—fix qualification, messaging, or budget allocation before it bleeds you dry 🔥 Opportunity Segment (Your Untapped Goldmine) - Low demo volume, but high conversion rate - If these prospects are converting well, why aren’t more of them coming in? Action: Identify what’s working—then scale it up with better targeting and messaging 🙅♂️ Kill Segment (Stop Wasting Time Here) - Low demo volume, low conversion rate - These leads don’t convert, and there aren’t many of them Action: Cut these campaigns. Redirect effort into the other three quadrants. Ultimately, I understood not all pipeline is created equal. Some segments deserve more budget, some need fixing, and some should be eliminated altogether. Instead of treating all leads the same, use this 2x2 framework to prioritize, optimize, and scale the right efforts. Why? More focus = more predictable pipeline 🚀 👆Link to the template along with the full guide in my latest newsletter. Grab it by clicking on the link in my profile.