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When the Math Isn’t Mathing...Are MQLs Dead?

Picture of TLS Brand Whisperer

Count on me, Brand Wagoneers, to keep it reel (get ready for more puns) on marketing topics—and today, we’re zeroing in on metrics.
(And yes, I, Tricia, solemnly swear I’ve been using Shift+Option+Hyphen long before AI thought it was cool. )

Back to our math lesson.

Cue the chaotic budget-slashing headlines + AI fueling the FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt)…and you’ve got a formula where things just. aren't. adding. up.

Here’s the kicker: presumably, if we’re doing our jobs the write way (pun very much intended), hitching our dashboards to actual revenue metrics should help us avoid the cutting room floor.

So, what metrics actually matter now? (Cue the acronym parade.)

Once upon a time (re: yesterday 😉), the great debate was MQLs vs SQLs.
It used to be simple—sales and marketing held hands, sang “Kumbaya,” and agreed that lead scoring would declare when a marketing-qualified lead officially graduated to sales-qualified status.

Win/win, write?

Well, here’s your FUD wake-up call: that dance card is looking pretty empty these days.

Because it’s not just about volume of leads anymore, it’s about revenue alignment — for reel.  (Twice? You’re welcome for the nod, Insta—the OG.)

Metric

Formula

Tips to Survive the FUD

CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost)

Total Sales & Marketing Costs ÷ Number of New Customers Acquired

Include all costs: salaries, ads, tools.
Lower CAC over time = healthy growth.

LTV (Customer Lifetime Value)

(Average Purchase Value × Purchase Frequency) × Customer Lifespan

Focus on increasing LTV with loyalty programs, upsells, customer success.
High LTV with low CAC = YAY!

Pipeline Velocity

(Number of Qualified Opportunities × Win Rate × Average Deal Size) ÷ Sales Cycle Length (in days)

Faster pipeline = faster cash.
Improving velocity often means fixing early-stage friction.

ROmI (Return on Marketing Investment)

(Revenue Attributed to Marketing – Marketing Costs) ÷ Marketing Costs

Attribution is the hard part. Build reporting that tracks touches (multi-touch attribution beats first-touch or last-touch).
Positive ROmI = bragging rights. 

SQL-to-Won Rate

Number of Deals Closed ÷ Number of Sales-Qualified Leads (SQLs)

Tells you if you're feeding Sales good leads…or just vibes.
Low rate? Time to fix targeting or lead scoring fast.

Notice something? None of these metrics cares how many free eBooks got downloaded last quarter. 📚 (Yeah, I said it.)

Meanwhile, getting MQLs (aka people willing to give up their email address for a gated checklist) is why the whole “Is the MQL dead?” conversation is now gathering steam like a TikTok conspiracy theory.

(Thanks a lot, AI. And thanks even more to the bazillion lazy “Top 10 Ways to..." templates.)

So, Let’s Keep It Reel...📈

In my humble ROmI experience, good marketing is still a glorious mashup:
Art + Science + Psychology = Survival.

Humans still crave human interactions. (Until bots learn how to genuinely laugh at a bad joke, we’re safe. For now.)

So, to keep marketing off the chopping block:

  • Prove impact beyond vanity metrics.
  • Tie campaigns to pipeline and revenue, not just clicks and impressions.
  • Speak CFO language when it’s budget defense season. (It’s always budget defense season now.)

To sum it up: It's both magic AND math.

marketing metrics that matter these days (1)

P.S. My official stance on the "impressions" metric?
Sure, include it in the report…because if a tree falls in the forest...yada yada. 🌲
But don’t let your ROmI conversation derail there. Your brand deserves better math.

Want more marketing wake-up calls served with a side of sass?
Keep ridin' the Brand Wagon at: brandwhisperer.ai/blog
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