Guide to Hubspot Lifecycle Stages

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Table of Contents

• Hubspot Lifecycle Stage Breakdown
• Lifecycle Stage Criteria Worksheet
• Example Worksheet

HubSpot lifecycle stages are predefined categories that help businesses track the progression of their contacts from the initial point of interest to becoming loyal customers. These stages categorize contacts based on their relationship with the business, providing clarity on where each contact stands in the customer journey. Lifecycle stages are crucial because they enable sales and marketing teams to tailor their communication and strategies to each contact's stage, leading to more personalized interactions and higher conversion rates.

Hubspot Lifecycle Stages are important and used for:

• Clear Contact Segmentation: Lifecycle stages help categorize contacts based on their journey with your business, making it easier to tailor messaging and strategies for each group.
• Enhanced Marketing Efficiency: By knowing which stage a contact is in, marketing teams can create targeted campaigns that resonate with the contact's level of interest and engagement.
• Improved Sales Focus: Sales teams can prioritize outreach to contacts that are closer to making a purchase, such as Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs) or Opportunities.
• Accurate Reporting: Lifecycle stages allow businesses to track conversion rates and customer journey performance, providing insights into how effectively leads move through the sales funnel.
• Automated Workflows: Lifecycle stages can trigger automated marketing and sales actions, such as sending nurture emails to leads or notifying sales reps of new opportunities.

Hubspot Lifecycle Stage Breakdown

HubSpot lifecycle stages are categorized into two main types: Contact and Deal. The Contact lifecycle stages track the progression of individual contacts, while the Deal lifecycle stages focus on the revenue opportunities associated with those contacts.

Subscriber (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: a person who has opted in to receive communications (e.g., newsletter, blog updates) but hasn't yet engaged deeply.

Purpose: to build your audience and keep contacts informed with regular content.

Department Responsibilities

• Marketing: subscribers are the initial audience acquired through content marketing, social media, or other top-of-funnel efforts and the goal is to move them to Lead or MQL status through other marketing initiatives.

Examples:

• A visitor who subscribes to your blog or newsletter.
• Someone who signs up for basic updates without additional interactions.

Lead (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: a contact who has shown initial interest beyond simply subscribing, usually by engaging with content or filling out a form but isn't yet fully qualified.

Purpose: identify individuals who have taken a step toward engagement and need to be nurtured further.

Department Responsibilities

• Marketing: responsible for nurturing these contacts so that they become MQLs.
• Sales (Early Signal): may begin to track leads for potential follow-up, especially if there aren't enough MQLs to engage in the funnel.

Examples:

• Someone who attends a webinar without further qualification.
• A visitor who downloads a resource.
• Someone who creates an account without purchase.

Marketing Qualified Lead or MQL (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: a lead that has met predefined marketing criteria indicating a higher likelihood of conversion.

Purpose: to segment contacts that show high intent engagement and are ready for the sales team to contact/vet/prospect.

Department Responsibilities:

• Marketing: uses MQLs as a key metric for effective lead nurturing and campaign success. MQLs are the primary high quality leads that marketing passes to the sales team.
• Sales: views MQLs as quality prospects to initiate 1-on-1 sales conversations in order to vet and sell.

Examples:

• A contact who has engaged with multiple pieces of content (e.g., whitepapers, blog posts) or revisited key pages.
• Someone who fills out a high-value form that suggests interest in a specific solution.

Notes and considerations:

• MQL is the stage where the sales team takes over.

Sales Qualified Lead or SQL (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: an MQL that has been further vetted by the sales team and is deemed ready for a direct sales conversation. Usually, in order to be categorized as an SQL a salesperson must have contacted a prospect and determined they have Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline (BANT).

Purpose: to indicate that the contact has moved beyond general interest and is now a potential customer, warranting personalized and more intensive sales outreach.

Department Responsibilities:

• Sales: SQLs are crucial because they represent prospects that have been vetted and are highly likely to purchase from sales team engagement.
• Marketing: supports by ensuring that MQLs are quality, engaged and transition effectively to SQLs. Marketing supports Sales with enablement campaigns, content and playbooks.

Examples:

• A lead who, after an initial phone call or email, demonstrates a need, budget, and timeline.
• A contact that responds positively to a personalized sales outreach after nurturing.

Notes and considerations:

• If the SQL has interest in specific products, is quoted a specific price, and the sales rep thinks they have a good probability of purchasing by a certain date, then the SQL becomes a Deal/Opportunity.

Deal (Deal: Object)

Definition: deals are separate objects in HubSpot that track the revenue opportunity associated with a contact. In other CRMs, these are usually called “Opportunities”. Usually in order to open a deal, a prospect has demonstrated a clear buying interest such as requesting a demo/consult/proposal and a sales rep has determined estimated deal size, product/service fit, a timeline for closing.

Purpose(s):

• Monitor and reporting of sales progress through defined pipeline stages (Prospecting, Qualification, Proposal, Negotiation, Closed)
• Forecast revenue via deal specific tracking fields (deal value, probability of close, expected close dates)
• Manage sales activities by organizing and isolating follow-ups, calls, meetings, and other sales tasks within a specific opportunity.

Department Responsibilities:

• Sales: deals are tracked rigorously in the sales pipeline, as they represent tangible revenue potential. Closing deals is the primary focus for the sales team.
• Management & Finance: use deal data for forecasting revenue and performance analysis.

Examples:

• A contact who has scheduled a demo or meeting and has confirmed a clear need, budget, and timeline.
• When a sales-qualified lead (SQL) shows strong buying signals during a call or email exchange.
• After a qualifying conversation confirms that there's a tangible chance of closing a sale.

Notes and considerations:

• When a deal is created, the Contact field for Lifecycle Stage is updated to “Opportunity”.
• The Deal object is where the data lives for revenue/value, win/loss, close probability, and expected close date. This data is important for forecasting and tracking success.

Opportunity (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: the stage where there is a clear revenue potential; the contact is considered an active sales opportunity. This is usually a parallel step with Deals.

Purpose: to signal that a deal (sales opportunity) should be created or has been created. It marks a critical point in the sales funnel where a dedicated process begins.

Department Responsibilities:

• Sales: opportunities are tracked in the sales pipeline, as they represent tangible revenue potential.
• Marketing: provide sales team with enablement content to help close purchases.

Examples:

• A contact who requests a demo, pricing information, or a detailed proposal.
• When a sales rep confirms that a lead is ready to enter the revenue-generating phase.

Notes and considerations:

• Opportunities are similar to Deals, but are specific to the contact and only track the step in the prospect journey. This step does not track important data like value/revenue or wins/losses.

Customer (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: the contact has made a purchase or signed a contract.

Purpose: to track conversion success and manage ongoing customer relationships.

Department Responsibilities:

• Customer Success & Service: take over to ensure smooth onboarding, retention, and ongoing support.
• Marketing: send post-purchase campaigns to reduce cognitive dissonance, support onboarding/customer success, continue to reinforce perceived value, prime cross-sell of other products, and capture reviews.
• Sales: ensure the smooth transition to the Customer Success team to get the customer onboarded.

Examples:

• A lead that has converted to a paying customer.
• A contact that has signed an agreement for your product or service.

Evangelist (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: a customer who is not only satisfied but actively advocates for your brand.

Purpose: to identify and engage with those who can provide referrals, testimonials, or case studies.

Department Responsibilities:

• Customer Success: works to cultivate and maintain these high-value relationships.
• Marketing: leverages evangelists for testimonials, case studies, and referral programs.

Examples:

• A customer who leaves positive reviews or shares their success story.
• A contact who participates in referral programs or case studies.

Nurture (Contact: Lifecycle Stage: Custom)

Definition: a designated point in the contact lifecycle for prospects who were previously lost but still hold potential for future conversion when circumstances change (e.g., budget, timing, or needs).

Purpose: to identify lost prospects who are still valuable and engage them with marketing initiatives until their circumstances change and move them back into a Lead or MQL stage.

Department Responsibilities:

• Marketing: leverage the Nurture stage to design and implement reactivation campaigns, ensuring that no potential customer is entirely lost. Usually these prospects are segmented and can be enrolled in automated campaigns that are highly targeted.
• Sales: benefit by having a separate pipeline or view for these re-engagement prospects, allowing them to periodically review and assess if a previously lost contact is ready to be requalified.

Examples:

• A prospect who previously declined to buy due to budget constraints but has shown interest in industry insights or product updates remains a candidate for future sales when their situation improves.
• A contact not ready to purchase immediately (perhaps due to long buying cycles) is transitioned to Nurture, where periodic updates and relevant content keep them engaged until they're ready.

Notes and considerations:

• We don't move these contacts to Subscriber, Lead, or MQL because they are usually more valuable due to previous engagement with the brand.

Other (Contact: Lifecycle Stage)

Definition: a catch-all category for contacts that don't neatly fit into the standard stages.

Purpose: to ensure every contact is categorized, even if their engagement pattern is atypical.

Examples:

• A contact with incomplete information or unusual engagement patterns.
• An individual that doesn't follow the typical progression through your funnel.

Notes and considerations:

• This is generally not used unless necessary.

Lifecycle Stage Criteria Worksheet

Use the following steps to fill out the qualification criteria spreadsheet, which identifies what qualifies a contact for each lifecycle stage:

1. Open the Spreadsheet: Click the link above or paste the URL into your browser to access the live document.
2. Define Criteria: For each stage row, enter the specific conditions or actions (e.g., form submissions, engagement metrics) that a contact must meet to qualify.
3. Add Thresholds or Metrics: Where applicable, specify numeric or behavioral thresholds (e.g., “visited pricing page twice” or “clicked email link 3+ times”).
4. Include Notes: Use the Notes column to capture additional context—such as exceptions or departmental handoff instructions.
5. Save Your Changes: Confirm that all edits are saved so the team can reference the up-to-date criteria.
6. Notify Stakeholders: Once complete, share the updated spreadsheet link with your marketing and sales teams to align on qualification definitions.

Example Lifecycle Stage Worksheet

Here is an example of how the lifecycle stage criteria worksheet might look:

Lifecycle Stage	Criteria	Thresholds/Metrics	Notes
Subscriber	General email or newsletter sign up	N/A	Initial stage for all contacts.
Lead	Submits form for a guide download Submits an inquiry form at an in-person event or conference Signs up for a webinar	N/A	Needs nurturing to become MQL.
MQL	Submits form for consult or demo appointment Achieves a certain lead score based on engagement metrics	N/A	Ready for sales team contact.
SQL	Sales rep contacts and qualifies Confirms interest in a specific product or service Engages in a conversation about budget and timeline	Confirmed need, budget, and timeline	Use BANT criteria
Deal	Sales rep determines which protocols the prospect is interested in, gives an estimate, and has an idea of how likely they are to purchase on a consult call.	Estimated deal size, product fit	Tracked in sales pipeline.
Opportunity	When a deal is created, the contact is moved to Opportunity automatically	N/A	Parallel step with Deals.
Customer	Made a purchase or signed a contract	N/A	Transition to Customer Success.
Evangelist	Actively advocates for your brand	N/A	Can provide referrals or testimonials.
Nurture	When a Deal is marked closed lost, but the prospect is still interested in the product(s) but needs budget, more time, needs authority/buy-in, etc	N/A	Engaged with reactivation campaigns.
Other	Doesn't fit into standard stages	N/A	Catch-all category.