Lead Generation (page 5)

Definitions of the B2B lead generation terms sales teams use. To see how SalesHive runs a full outbound pipeline, visit our Lead Generation page.

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Impression

An impression is a single exposure of a person to your brand or message, such as seeing an email in their inbox, an ad in a feed, or a banner on a website. In B2B sales development, impressions sit at the very top of the funnel and measure outreach reach, frequency, and efficiency across channels before replies, meetings, or opportunities are created.

Guerilla Marketing

Guerilla marketing is the use of unconventional, creative, low-cost tactics to grab attention and make a memorable impression, often in unexpected places. In B2B sales development, guerilla campaigns target specific accounts or decision-makers with surprising touchpoints that integrate with outbound channels to spark conversations and book qualified meetings at a higher ROI.

Growth Hacking

Growth hacking is a data-driven, experiment-heavy approach to finding fast, low-cost ways to grow. In B2B sales development, it applies that approach to generating pipeline, with SDR teams rapidly testing and iterating on channels, messaging, offers, and processes to find outsized results, combining analytics, automation, and creativity to improve cold outreach, meeting rates, and revenue.

Funnel

A funnel is a model of the stages people move through from first awareness to a final action, like a purchase. In B2B sales development, a funnel maps how prospects move from cold lead to qualified opportunity to closed customer, showing how many accounts sit at each step so you can measure conversion rates, forecast revenue, and optimize prospecting, outreach, and qualification.

Exit Intent Popup

An exit intent popup is an on-site message that appears when a visitor’s behavior suggests they’re about to leave your website, such as moving the cursor toward the browser bar or closing a tab. In B2B sales development, it’s used to capture high-intent leads at the last moment, offering content, demos, or callbacks, to feed SDR teams with additional qualified conversations instead of letting visitors bounce unnoticed.

Event Marketing

Event marketing is the use of in-person, virtual, and hybrid events to engage an audience and build relationships. In B2B sales development, it uses conferences, trade shows, webinars, and field events to generate qualified leads, accelerate pipeline, and deepen relationships with target accounts, aligning sales and marketing around pre-event prospecting, on-site engagement, and post-event follow-up.

Email Cadences

Email cadences are structured sequences of outbound sales emails (often combined with calls and social touches) used by SDRs and BDRs to contact prospects over a defined period. In B2B sales development, a cadence specifies the timing, channel mix, and messaging for each touch, so teams can systematically generate pipeline instead of sending one-off, ad-hoc emails.

Display Advertising

Display advertising is the use of visual, banner-style ads shown across websites, apps, and social platforms to build awareness and drive engagement. In B2B sales development, display ads are typically bought programmatically, support account-based marketing (ABM), and help generate and warm up leads by retargeting buyers and keeping your brand visible throughout long B2B sales cycles.

Discovery Call

A discovery call is an early-stage B2B sales conversation, usually led by an SDR or account executive, to qualify a prospect, understand their business context, and assess mutual fit. In lead generation programs, it is the first scheduled meeting that moves a cold or warm lead into a true sales opportunity by uncovering pain points, priorities, stakeholders, and next steps.

Direct Marketing B2B

Direct Marketing B2B is a targeted, one-to-one outreach approach where sales and marketing teams contact specific business decision-makers directly through channels like email, phone, LinkedIn, and direct mail. In B2B sales development, it focuses on highly segmented lists, personalized messaging, and clear calls to action to generate qualified meetings, pipeline, and revenue efficiently.

Direct Mail Prospecting

Direct mail prospecting is a B2B outbound sales tactic where SDRs and sales teams send highly targeted physical mail, such as letters, kits, or packages, to specific accounts and decision makers to spark conversations and book meetings. It’s usually orchestrated alongside cold calling, email outreach, and digital touchpoints to stand out from crowded inboxes and drive higher response rates from high-value prospects.

Direct Mail Marketing

Direct mail marketing is the practice of sending physical mail, such as letters, postcards, or packages, to a targeted audience to prompt a response. In B2B sales development, it targets specific companies and decision-makers alongside cold calling, email, and digital touchpoints to break through inbox noise, create memorable moments, and lift response rates from high-value accounts.

Direct Mail Companies

Direct mail companies are specialized service providers that plan, produce, and deliver physical mail pieces, such as letters, postcards, dimensional packages, and catalogs, to targeted B2B decision-makers. In sales development, they help revenue teams reach hard-to-engage prospects, coordinate campaigns with digital outreach, and track responses using modern data, personalization, and automation platforms.

Direct Mail Agency

A direct mail agency is a specialized partner that plans, designs, produces, and sends physical mail campaigns to targeted B2B accounts to generate qualified leads and pipeline. In modern sales development, these agencies connect data, creative, printing, and postal logistics with your CRM and SDR team so direct mail becomes a measurable, multi-touch channel alongside cold calling, email, and digital outreach.

Direct Mail

Direct mail is physical promotional material, such as letters, postcards, or packages, sent through the post to a targeted audience. In B2B sales development, it is sent to specific companies and decision-makers to start or advance sales conversations. As a targeted outbound channel, it complements cold calling and email with a tangible, personalized touch that cuts through digital noise and lifts response and meeting rates for SDR teams.

Deal Source

Deal source is the field used in CRM and sales systems to record where a qualified opportunity originated, such as an outbound call, cold email, partner referral, or trade show. In B2B sales development, it goes beyond basic lead source by tying actual pipeline and revenue back to the specific channel, motion, or campaign that generated the opportunity, so teams can optimize go-to-market investments and SDR activity.

Corporate Gifting Policy

A corporate gifting policy is a formal set of rules that govern when and how employees can give or receive business gifts, swag, hospitality, or incentives with clients, prospects, and partners. In B2B sales development, it defines acceptable gift types, value limits, approval workflows, and documentation so SDRs and AEs can use gifting to drive meetings and pipeline while staying compliant with anti-bribery laws and buyer company rules.

Conversion Rate Optimization

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is the systematic practice of increasing the share of people who take a desired action, a discipline rooted in marketing and web analytics. In B2B sales development, it improves how efficiently prospecting activities (cold emails, calls, landing pages, forms, and sequences) turn target accounts into qualified meetings and opportunities. It combines data analysis, testing, and continuous refinement of messaging, channels, and workflows to advance more prospects to the next stage.

Conversion

A conversion is when someone completes a desired action, such as a click, sign-up, reply, or purchase, that moves them to the next step in a funnel. In B2B sales development, a conversion is tied to account-based activities and sales-qualified milestones, like replying to an email, accepting a meeting, or becoming a qualified opportunity across long, multi-touch buying journeys.

Bottom Of The Funnel (BOFU)

Bottom Of The Funnel (BOFU) refers to the final stage of the B2B sales funnel where highly qualified prospects are evaluating vendors, negotiating terms, and making purchase decisions. In sales development, BOFU activity focuses on converting Sales Qualified Opportunities into closed-won deals through targeted outreach, tailored proof, and tight coordination between SDRs and AEs.

Best B2B Direct Mail Campaigns

Best B2B direct mail campaigns are highly targeted, data-driven physical mail programs designed to generate qualified sales pipeline from business accounts. They combine precise list building, personalized messaging, and clear calls to action with modern tracking and integration into SDR cadences (email, calls, and social). When executed well, these campaigns cut through digital noise, spark conversations, and convert high-value prospects into booked meetings for B2B sales teams.

BANT

BANT is a classic B2B sales qualification framework that helps SDRs and account executives quickly assess whether a prospect is worth pursuing based on Budget, Authority, Need, and Timeline. By standardizing these four factors in discovery calls, outbound sequences, and CRM fields, BANT enables sales development teams to prioritize high-intent accounts, reduce wasted activity, and create a more predictable pipeline in complex B2B environments.

B2B Lead Generation Company

A B2B lead generation company is a specialized partner that builds and manages outbound and inbound programs to identify, qualify, and book meetings with decision-makers at other businesses. Using tactics like targeted prospecting, list building, cold email, cold calling, and multi-channel outreach, these firms deliver sales-ready opportunities so internal sales teams can focus on running pipeline and closing deals.

B2B Lead Generation

B2B lead generation is the structured process of identifying, engaging, and qualifying organizations that are likely to buy your product or service, then converting them into sales opportunities. In B2B sales development, this typically means SDR teams using targeted outreach (cold calling, email, and social) to turn ideal prospects into sales-qualified meetings and pipeline for account executives.