Clear Distinction between Leads and Contacts

[jakariabd@]

Leads: Unqualified prospects at the early stages of engagement, not yet associated with an Account in Salesforce.
Contacts: Qualified individuals who are associated with a specific Account (company). Once a Lead is qualified, they are converted into a Contact and linked to an Account (or a new Account is created). Salesforce-ready often implies knowing whether a record should be a Lead or a Contact.
Associated with Accounts (for Contacts): Every Contact in Salesforce must be linked to an Account. If your list is for Contacts, ensure you have accurate company names that can either match existing Salesforce Accounts or be used to create new ones during import.
Mapped to Salesforce Fields: Your data columns should align with standard Salesforce fields (e.g., "Company Name" maps to "Account Name," "Job Title" maps to "Title"). For custom fields in Salesforce, ensure your data has corresponding columns.
Qualification Status:

While not strictly "data format," knowing the qualification denmark mobile database status helps determine if a record should be imported as a Lead (if unqualified) or a Contact (if qualified).
Lead Source: Crucial for attribution and marketing analytics. Knowing where the contact came from (e.g., website, trade show, referral, purchased list) is vital.
Why Are Salesforce-Ready Contacts Important?
Improved Sales Efficiency: Sales reps don't waste time on incomplete, inaccurate, or duplicate records. They can immediately focus on outreach.
Accurate Reporting & Analytics: Clean data leads to reliable dashboards and reports, enabling better decision-making on marketing campaign effectiveness, sales pipeline health, and forecasting.
Effective Personalization: Complete and accurate data allows for highly personalized outreach and communication.
Enhanced Customer Experience: A unified, accurate view of the customer across sales, service, and marketing teams ensures consistent and relevant interactions.