How to Qualify and Follow Up With Leads (And Why WhatsApp Is the Perfect Tool for It)

Qualifying leads and following up with them are two critical stops on the road to closing deals.

If you don’t qualify leads properly, you waste time chasing unfit prospects. If you don’t follow up consistently, you risk losing hard-earned leads. They’re simple facts in writing, but in reality, they’re frustrating, time-consuming, and can lead to missed opportunities. That’s why you need a tool to help you with both steps. And what better tool to do that than WhatsApp?

Believe it or not, WhatsApp offers multiple features that can help you, like automated replies, chatbots, broadcast messages, and flows.

In this article, we’ll show you how to qualify and follow up with leads properly and how WhatsApp can help you with both steps.

The basics of lead qualification #

To build a solid lead qualification strategy, you need to know the difference between qualified and unqualified leads, understand lead scoring, and learn the types of leads.

Qualified leads vs. unqualified leads: What’s the difference? #

Qualified leads are prospects who fit the ideal customer persona of a business and who have shown interest in the product and intent to purchase. They’re qualified based on criteria that each business puts, such as budget. Unqualified leads are prospects who don’t fit the ideal target audience of a business.

Here’s a short comparison between the two:

Focusing on qualified leads makes all the difference when it comes to closing deals. It’s more efficient because you concentrate on leads who are more likely to convert and don’t waste time on those who aren’t ready or aren’t the right fit.

An example of this is spending time following up with a lead who’s just browsing and hasn’t shown interest in buying. At the end of your conversation, you realize that their budget doesn’t fit your product at all. In the meantime, you might miss out on a lead who’s looking for a solution and is willing to buy.

If you’ve identified the first lead as unqualified from the beginning, you might have won a deal with the second lead, who is qualified. That’s why identifying qualified leads is important; it helps you close more deals and improve your conversion rates.

Lead scoring vs. lead qualification #

Lead qualification is the process of determining how likely a prospect is to buy your product in the future based on a set of criteria. Lead scoring, on the other hand, is evaluating the quality of leads by giving them scores based on specific behaviors. The scores indicate how likely each lead is to convert.

Both actions can help you build a solid sales strategy. Lead scoring comes first, giving you a quick way to filter through large volumes of leads and identify those worth further evaluation. Once a lead reaches a certain score, you can then apply lead qualification to determine if they intend to buy.

Why is it important to do both together? Because, for example, a prospect who downloads multiple resources and attends a webinar may get a high lead score. However, during qualification, you may discover they don’t have the budget or decision-making power. It ensures that you don’t waste time on leads that seem engaged but aren’t a good fit.

Types of qualified leads #

Not all qualified leads are the same. They have varying degrees of interest and different places in the sales funnel. Here are three common types of qualified leads and where they fall in the funnel:

• Marketing qualified leads (MQLs): Leads who know your product and have engaged with your marketing content, for example, subscribed to your newsletter. They’re not necessarily ready to buy and need nurturing to make the decision, so they belong in the middle of the sales funnel.
• Sales qualified leads (SQLs): Leads who have shown intent to buy your product through requesting demos or asking about your pricing plans. They’re usually at the bottom of the funnel and are the closest to making a purchase.
• Product qualified leads (PQLs): Leads who have used your product and are familiar with the features. They might have tried it in a free plan, for instance. They belong in the middle of the funnel, as they’re still discovering and evaluating the product.

Why lead follow-up matters #

Most leads aren’t ready to buy right away. How do you get them to the bottom of the sales funnel? By following up with them.

Following up with leads helps you build a stronger relationship with them, which translates to brand loyalty and, eventually, sales. It also gives you a chance to address any concerns early in the sales funnel and set your product apart from competitors.

It’s simple: following up gives you more sales and helps you reach your target faster.

Persistence is also a must, but it’s important to strike the right balance between staying engaged and not being pushy. A well-timed follow-up shows prospects you’re invested in their needs, not just making a sale, increasing the chances of conversion and long-term loyalty.

Best practices for lead follow-up #

Here are a few tips to help you follow up with your leads properly:

• Segment your leads: Separate your leads based on where they are in the sales funnel so that you know how to follow up with them. A one-size-fits-all approach won’t work if one lead is still in the discovery stage and the other has intent to buy.
• Prioritize your leads: Use lead scoring to prioritize the leads who fit your target persona the most. This way, you target the leads most likely to convert, and your time and effort don’t go to waste.
• Follow up quickly: Don’t wait for too long after a demo or a customer inquiry to follow up with a lead. Timely communication is key to a strong relationship with your customers, and it helps you answer any questions they have before they lose interest in your product.
• Personalize your follow-up efforts: Personalization shows your leads that you care about their specific pain points, which translates to a stronger relationship and more loyalty.
• Follow up consistently: Leads won’t turn into buyers after the first or second time you follow up with them. It might take you up to eight follow-ups to get a purchase, so you need to stay consistent. Don’t lose hope early, and create a schedule to avoid forgetting a lead or two among the crowd.

Using WhatsApp for lead qualification and follow-up #

Lead qualification and follow-up are important steps that’ll get you closer to your selling goals, but they can be hard to manage on your own. What would help, in this case? Having a tool that allows quick and direct communication, automation of some repetitive tasks, and team collaboration.

In other words, WhatsApp Business.

Why WhatsApp is ideal for lead engagement #

Out of all the channels available today for communication, why use WhatsApp to engage and follow up with leads?

• High open and engagement rates: WhatsApp is where everybody’s friends and families are, so its messages get open more than any other slower platforms, like email. Leads are more likely to reply to you on it, giving you high engagement rates and increasing your chances of closing the deal.
• Instant communication: Calls can be missed, and emails can go to spam folders or take a long time to get opened, but not WhatsApp. WhatsApp allows for quick communication, which is sometimes key to closing a sale before the prospect loses interest.
• Personalized interactions: WhatsApp lets you get close and personal with your prospects, which helps you build stronger relationships that later translate to loyalty and sales. It also allows you to send voice notes and multimedia files, making your pitch feel personal to almost any customer you communicate with.

WhatsApp also bridges the gap between lead qualification and follow-up.

Suppose you’re qualifying a lead who recently signed up for a demo but hasn’t shared much about their needs. Instead of waiting for an email response, you send a quick WhatsApp message:

“Hey [Name], I saw you checked out our demo! What’s the biggest challenge you’re trying to solve? I’d love to help you find the best solution.”

The customer responds with their challenges, and you can see they fit your target persona. A few days later, instead of sending an email that goes unopened, you send a WhatsApp message that feels personal.

“Hey [Name], I remember you were concerned about integrations. Here’s a short video showing how our tool connects with [existing software]. Let me know if you’d like a quick call to go over it!”

This approach keeps the conversation going, directly addresses the customer’s concerns, and increases the chances of conversion without feeling pushy.

How to qualify leads on WhatsApp #

WhatsApp Business has many features that can help you qualify leads in less time. Some are available on the free app, and some are only available on the priced WhatsApp Business API.

Here’s a quick look at how you can use them to qualify leads.

Use chatbots for automation #

Using the WhatsApp Business API gives you access to chatbots, which can help you automate lead qualification, but how? You can build a chatbot that asks your leads a set of questions and then qualify them based on their answers.

You can include questions about their budget, goals, and business size. The answers will show you whether they’re qualified or unqualified, and you can take it from there instead of handling the conversation from the very beginning.

To build a chatbot, you need to use a WhatsApp Business API third-party tool that has a chatbot builder, like Rasayel.

Rasayel is a shared team inbox that helps you communicate with your customers over WhatsApp. Building a chatbot on it requires no coding knowledge. All you have to do is choose triggers and responses to build a flow, and it’s a drag-and-drop builder, like shown in the screenshot below.

Use WhatsApp Flows #

WhatsApp Flows are like interactive forms within a chat. They guide leads through a series of questions to gather essential information, such as their needs and budget. For instance, you can set up a flow that asks about the lead’s main challenge, desired solution, and buying timeline.

As leads answer, the flow collects and stores this data, helping you quickly assess if they’re a good fit. It’s an easy and efficient way to qualify leads without needing you to step in right away.

WhatsApp Flows are also an API feature, so you can’t use them if you’re using the WhatsApp Business app.

Segment leads using labels #

The WhatsApp Business app has a labeling feature that lets you segment the customers you’re talking to. You can use this feature to label your leads based on how likely they are to convert. For instance, you can use these labels: hot lead and cold lead.

This way, you’ll know at a glance which leads to pursue first so that you don’t waste too much effort and time on leads who aren’t interested enough in your product.

Here’s an example of a list of labels on WhatsApp Business:

How to follow up with leads on WhatsApp #

Now that you’ve qualified leads through WhatsApp, how do you follow up with them?

Use broadcast lists #

The WhatsApp Business app allows you to send personalized follow-ups to multiple leads at once using broadcast lists. Unlike group chats, each recipient gets the message as a private conversation, making it feel more personal.

You can use broadcast lists to send updates about new features to a list of warm leads or re-engage with inactive leads. It’s easier and faster than following up with each lead on their own.

Integrate WhatsApp with your CRM #

Connecting the CRM you use, whether it’s HubSpot, Salesforce, or else, helps you centralize your customer conversations and data in one place. You can set up the integration so that it notifies you when a lead replies to your messages. Better yet, you’ll be able to see the entire conversation history so that you gain context on how interested the lead is and whether they’re worth pursuing.

Another advantage of this connection is that you can set up a workflow that automatically follows up with leads who have been dormant for a while. You can specify the number of days, after which the CRM sends the lead a message to re-engage.

CRM integrations are only available through the API, but they can make all the difference when it comes to lead management.

Set up WhatsApp reminders #

WhatsApp Business lets you schedule reminders that automatically get sent to customers when the time comes. This feature can help you follow up more efficiently, as you won’t have to do everything manually. WhatsApp will send the reminders, and if a lead replies, you’ll be there to answer.

This is especially helpful if you deal with international leads in different time zones. Instead of contacting them at irrelevant times, you can set up reminders at times when they’re active.

Use a shared inbox for collaboration #

Using a WhatsApp shared inbox like Rasayel means that your entire team can collaborate on follow-ups and manage leads more efficiently. For starters, a shared inbox lets you assign follow-ups to specific sales agents to avoid duplicate efforts.

Also, it reduces the chance of dropped leads because instead of using multiple devices and separate applications, all of the interactions will be synced on one platform. At a glance, you can know which leads got responses and which ones are still awaiting.

Conclusion #

If you’re having a hard time qualifying leads and following up with them properly, you need a tool to help you automate some interactions, like WhatsApp Business.

The direct and quick communication makes the purchasing journey shorter without back-and-forth, which can help you close more deals before leads lose interest. Also, you can personalize your interactions, build strong relationships with the customers, and eventually get higher conversions.

Next up, learn how to use WhatsApp to close more deals and win more sales in this guide!

About the author

Hania Elmessiry

Hania is a content writer with four years of experience, driven by deep passion for writing and reading. She helps B2B companies market their products and boost their sales using one of the most powerful tools of mankind: words. Writing has always been her way of connecting with people, sharing her ideas, and leaving an impact.

@Hania Elmessiry on LinkedIn