Qualification is the process of evaluating whether a lead or prospect meets the necessary criteria to move forward in the sales pipeline. It determines if the person or company has the need, authority, budget, and intent to buy, allowing sales teams to focus their time and efforts on the most promising opportunities.

Sales teams often use qualification frameworks such as:

• BANT (Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline)
• CHAMP (Challenges, Authority, Money, Prioritization)
• MEDDIC (Metrics, Economic buyer, Decision criteria, Decision process, Identify pain, Champion)

Qualification typically happens early in the sales cycle (often during discovery) and helps sales reps tailor their approach while filtering out poor-fit leads.