Tracking Lifecycle Stage progressions over time

[fonzieMT]

Hi team - question about Lifecycle Stage progression tracking

As a marketing team, we're trying to track lead progressions over time, and we meet every 2 weeks to go over the numbers. 

Our lifecycle stage definitions at the moment:

- MQL -> Any ICP-match account that fills a form on our website

- SQL -> We have spoken to them, gone over BANT, and qualified them as a Deal

- Opportunity -> We have done the demo and sent across a proposal. 

Problem: 

MQL data is something we can find out instantly by simply going through their website and determining if a business matches our ICP. However, as you might expect, SQL and Opportunity mature over time. Since we meet every 2 weeks, the leads which come in in those 2 weeks usually don't have enough time to mature beyond MQL (We're a $20,000+ SaaS product with a 60-90 day sales cycle). 

What's the best way to handle the reporting for this? Do I need to build monthly cohorts and track their progressions for the coming 90 days? Trying to figure out a template to use over time

Hope I was able to explain the problem well. Thanks in advance! 

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @fonzieMT,

A s a starting point (also to better understand the time needed for maturation), I'd recommend creating one report per lifecycle stage that displays how many contacts entered that lifecycle stage, when they did and which lifecycle stage they have now.

This will show you the date information, the volume, the conversion rates, and provide insights about that maturation time frame.

Here's how you would do this:

1. Pick a lifecycle stage, e.g. MQL
2. Create a custom report: https://knowledge.hubspot.com/reports/create-reports-with-the-custom-report-builder
3. Choose Contacts as data source
4. Set up the report like this
   
5. Set up filters like this
   
6. Repeat and start again from step 1 for all other lifecycle stages
7. Place all reports on a dashboard: https://knowledge.hubspot.com/dashboards/manage-your-dashboards

These reports are now telling you how many MQLs, for example, you generated in a given month, and which lifecycle stage they have now. By hovering over a bar, you'll see the conversion rate from MQL to each other lifecycle stage. By comparing bars and looking further to the bars on the left, you'll get an understanding of the maturation period.

Let me know if you have any follow-up questions!