One Definition of "Interested"

Four reps. Four definitions of "interested". One pipeline report that meant nothing.

Rep one: anyone who replied. Rep two: anyone who agreed to a call. Rep three: anyone who said "sounds cool". Rep four: didn't mark anything, ever.

Same tool. Same campaigns. Same dashboard. Four different numbers for the same word.

Both obvious fixes fail.

"Count every reply" gives you 164 interested leads and a calendar with nothing in it. "Count only booked meetings" gives you a pipeline that shows up three weeks late, after the work already happened.

So we wrote one sentence and made it the rule:

Interested = the prospect wants to hear more about the product. Not the topic. Not the industry. Not "happy to connect". The product.

Then: marked in the outreach tool by the rep who had the conversation, synced to the CRM the same day, reviewed weekly.

First campaign under the new rule: 356 prospects, 41% accepted, 31 replied, 24 marked interested. 6.7% of the list.

That's the first number on that account we'd put in front of a board.

Before you fix your sequences, fix your definitions. Most teams have neither written down.

Why do pipeline reports disagree when every rep uses the same tool?

Same tool, same campaigns, same dashboard. Four different numbers for the same word.

Why don't the obvious fixes work?

What should "interested" mean?

Interested = the prospect wants to hear more about the product. Not the topic. Not the industry. Not "happy to connect". The product.

How do you make the definition stick?

1. Marked in the outreach tool, by the rep who had the conversation.
2. Synced to the CRM the same day.
3. Reviewed weekly.

What happened on the first campaign under the new rule?

The first number on that account we'd put in front of a board.

Before you fix your sequences, fix your definitions. Most teams have neither written down.