What SLAs Should Exist Between Sales and Marketing?
Codify the handoffs that drive revenue: speed-to-lead, accept/reject, meetings, recycling, and feedback—owned in one scorecard.
By Pedowitz Group RevOps Practice • 200+ GTM transformations
Explore RevOps Solutions Benchmark with the Revenue Marketing Index
Executive Summary
Direct answer: Establish SLAs for speed-to-lead, accept/reject timing, follow-up attempts, meeting booking, recycle & nurture returns, feedback & disposition quality, content/enablement turnaround, and reporting cadence. Enforce via queues, alerts, required fields, and weekly reviews on one shared scorecard.
Guiding Principles
Core Sales–Marketing SLAs (Templates & Targets)
| SLA | Definition | Target | Owner | Enforcement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speed-to-lead | Time from MQL creation to first outreach | Hot ≤ 15 min; Standard ≤ 2 hrs (business) | Sales Development | Queues, alerts, timers, breach report |
| Accept/Reject | Rep must accept or reject MQL | Within 24 hrs; reason codes required | Sales Development | Required disposition field |
| Follow-up sequence | Minimum touches across channels | 5–8 touches over 7–10 days | Sales Development | Sequencer policy + audits |
| Meeting booking | Time to book or recycle after acceptance | ≤ 7 days to booked or recycle | SDR Manager | Aging dashboard & auto-recycle |
| Recycle & nurture | When to return to nurture | No fit/timing → recycle within 24 hrs | SDR + MOPs | Reason codes trigger program |
| Qualification to SQL/SQO | Criteria met to promote opportunity | Stage rules 100% adoption | Sales Management | Required fields; audits |
| Feedback to Marketing | Quality feedback on disqualified leads | Reason + notes on 100% rejects | Sales Development | Mandatory fields; weekly review |
| Content/enablement turnaround | Time to deliver requested asset/play | Brief to draft ≤ 5 biz days | Marketing + Enablement | Intake queue + SLAs |
| Attribution & campaign tagging | Proper tagging before launch | 100% campaigns tagged pre-flight | MOPs | Release checklist |
| Reporting cadence | Shared meeting to review SLAs | Weekly; breaches with owners & actions | RevOps | Scorecard distribution |
Metrics to Monitor SLA Health
| Metric | Formula | Target/Range | Stage | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speed-to-lead median | Median mins from MQL → first touch | Trending down; inside targets | Response | Segment by source/region |
| MQL accept rate | Accepted ÷ Routed MQLs | 70–90% (fit-dependent) | Handoff | Investigate low-fit sources |
| Booked meeting rate | Meetings ÷ Accepted MQLs | 30–60% by segment | Conversion | Tied to sequence quality |
| Recycle return rate | Recycled that re-MQL within 90 days | Rising trend | Nurture | Signals nurture effectiveness |
| Disposition completeness | Records with valid reason codes | 100% | Quality | Gate compensation if needed |
Do / Don’t When Implementing SLAs
| Do | Don’t | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Enforce with automation, not email reminders | Hope compliance happens organically | Consistency and speed |
| Publish one scorecard weekly | Run separate sales and marketing reports | Shared truth drives alignment |
| Localize targets by segment/region | Set one-size-fits-all thresholds | Context improves fairness and focus |
| Close the loop with reason codes | Accept “bad leads” without details | Improves targeting and content |
| Tie compensation to SLA adherence | Separate behavior from rewards | Aligns incentives |
60–90 Day Rollout Playbook
| Step | What to do | Output | Owner | Timeframe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 — Define | Agree on dictionary and targets per segment | SLA pack v1.0 | RevOps + CRO/CMO | Week 1 |
| 2 — Automate | Implement queues, timers, alerts, required fields | Operational SLAs | MOPs/Sales Ops | Weeks 2–4 |
| 3 — Enable | Train teams; publish playbooks and sequences | Certified reps | Enablement | Weeks 3–5 |
| 4 — Instrument | Launch weekly scorecard and breach reports | SLA dashboard | Analytics | Weeks 4–6 |
| 5 — Improve | Run weekly reviews; fix root causes; tune targets | SLA v1.1 with actions | CRO + CMO + RevOps | Weeks 6–12 |
Deeper Detail
Routing & segmentation: pair SLAs with smart routing (ICP fit, territory, product interest) so reps get the right work. Use auto-recycle for aging, and protect calendars with scheduling links and pooled availability.
AI & automation: let governed AI agents draft outreach, monitor SLA breaches, and propose fixes (sequence tweaks, time-of-day sends). Keep sensitive actions approval-gated; log all decisions for audit.
TPG POV: We standardize SLAs, automate enforcement across HubSpot, Salesforce, Marketo, and outreach tools, and publish one scorecard—so handoffs are fast, fair, and forecastable.
Related resources: Marketing Operations • Revenue Operations • Revenue Marketing Index.
Additional Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Inbound needs faster response (minutes–hours). Outbound can run longer sequences with priority by ICP and intent.
RevOps logs breaches; SDR and Marketing leaders own remediation; CRO/CMO review weekly with actions and deadlines.
Yes—use the same accept/reject and follow-up rules, with custom sources and slightly extended response times if needed.
Quarterly, and whenever routing, territory, or product strategy changes. Adjust by segment based on observed conversion.
Use audit logs, required notes on overrides, and measure quality outcomes (meetings, SQLs) to align incentives with behavior.