Sales qualified opportunity (SQO)
In short
A sales qualified opportunity (SQO) is a deal that a salesperson has vetted against agreed criteria and accepted as a real, winnable opportunity. It sits in the pipeline with an owner, an amount, and a close date.
It is the point where a conversation stops being a lead and becomes forecastable pipeline. The exact bar differs by company, so a written definition matters more than the label.
What makes an opportunity sales qualified
An opportunity is usually sales qualified when the rep has confirmed a handful of facts directly with the buyer, not inferred them from marketing data.
- Need: The buyer has a specific problem your product solves.
- Authority: You have spoken with someone who owns or influences the decision.
- Budget and timing: Money and a rough timeline exist, even if approximate.
- Next step: A dated next meeting is on the calendar.
SQO vs. related stages
The stage names are easy to confuse. The difference: a sales qualified lead is a person who is worth a rep conversation, while an SQO is a deal that has survived that conversation.
- Marketing qualified opportunity: Created from marketing-sourced interest, before a rep has validated it.
- Sales qualified lead: A contact accepted by sales, with no deal created yet.
- Sales qualified opportunity: A deal with confirmed need, a buyer, and a next step.
How to run SQO qualification
1. Write the criteria down
Agree on a checklist with marketing and RevOps. Make each item a CRM field or a required stage exit so reps cannot skip it.
2. Qualify in the first real call
Use discovery to test need and authority. If a rep cannot name the problem in the buyer's own words, the deal is not ready to be an SQO.
3. Review a sample regularly
Managers should audit a few new SQOs each week. Deals that stall early usually reveal a criterion that is too loose.
Example
Say an SDR books a meeting with a VP of Operations. In the call, the AE learns the team is replacing a manual reporting process this quarter, a director will join the evaluation, and a follow-up is set. The AE creates the opportunity and marks it sales qualified.
Common mistakes
- Inflating pipeline: Creating opportunities after a single meeting to hit a quota for pipeline creation.
- No shared definition: Marketing and sales count different things as SQOs, so conversion rates cannot be compared.
- Never disqualifying: Opportunities sit open for months because no one closes them out.
Sales qualified opportunity FAQs
What is a sales qualified opportunity (SQO)?
A sales qualified opportunity is a deal a rep has vetted against agreed criteria, such as confirmed need, a buyer, and a next step. It is accepted as real pipeline, owned by a rep, and included in forecasts and pipeline reporting.
What is the difference between an SQL and a sales qualified opportunity?
A sales qualified lead is a contact that sales agrees is worth pursuing, usually before any deal exists. A sales qualified opportunity is a deal created after a rep has confirmed need, authority, and timing with the buyer in conversation.
Who decides when an opportunity becomes sales qualified?
The owning sales rep makes the call, using criteria agreed with sales leadership and RevOps. Marketing can influence the inputs, but acceptance should rest with sales so that pipeline numbers reflect real, rep-confirmed deals.
What criteria should a sales qualified opportunity meet?
Common criteria are a confirmed business problem, contact with a decision maker or influencer, an approximate budget and timeline, and a scheduled next step. Each team should write its own checklist and enforce it through required CRM fields.
