B2B pipeline generation terms, defined
Pipeline conversations break down when marketing, sales and leadership use the same words for different things. These are the definitions Lemniscate Growth agrees with every client before a program starts, so reports mean the same thing to everyone reading them.
Each service page explains the metrics for its own stage, from account-based marketing to conversion rate optimization.
- Revenue pipeline: the total value of open, qualified sales opportunities in the CRM.
- Pipeline generation: the work of creating those opportunities across visibility, engagement and conversion.
- Full funnel: every stage from GTM foundations and visibility through account engagement to held meetings and opportunities.
- MQL (marketing qualified lead): a lead that meets marketing's fit and engagement criteria, before sales has spoken to them.
- SQL (sales qualified lead): a lead sales has accepted after a conversation confirms fit and interest.
- Qualified meeting: a held meeting with an ICP-fit decision-maker who has a relevant problem or project.
- Opportunity: a deal sales has opened in the CRM with a value, stage and expected close.
- Sourced pipeline: opportunities where a program created the first qualified conversation.
- Influenced pipeline: opportunities where a program was a material touch, under agreed attribution rules.
- Pipeline coverage: open pipeline divided by the revenue target for the period.
- Win rate and sales cycle: the share of opportunities that close and how long they take, which set how much pipeline is needed.


























Salesforce partners
ServiceNow partners
SAP partners
Snowflake partners
Databricks partners
MuleSoft partners
Oracle partners
AWS partners