A record your next colleague can understand
A useful handover answers four questions: does the business fit, what have we learned, what interest was expressed, and what happens next? This template is a starting framework from The Lead Agency, not a validated prediction of a sale.
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The same working fields and guidance, arranged as Section, Field, Your entry and Notes. Import the UTF-8 CSV into your spreadsheet tool, enter your information in the blank column and keep the notes beside it. Duplicate relevant rows when you need more than one observation.
This is a record to adapt, not an automated scoring model, validated benchmark or forecast. It contains no formulas, real prospect records or client results. The Markdown version remains available above if you prefer a document.
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Check the account fit
Write down the criteria you agreed before outreach. These may include the business model, market, scale, operating context or an explicit exclusion. Only use criteria that are relevant to your offer; a large company is not automatically a good prospect.
- Which required criteria does the account meet?
- What evidence supports each statement, and when was it checked?
- Is the business already a customer, an active opportunity or on a do-not-contact list?
- What is missing or contradictory?
Decision: if an essential criterion is not met, do not mark the record qualified. If the evidence is missing, mark it for review. Account research helps build this evidence before a conversation starts.
Separate their words from your interpretation
Record the person’s role and the business context they actually shared. Keep direct statements distinct from hypotheses. “They said their teams use separate trackers” and “we think collaboration is inefficient” are different kinds of information.
- What problem, priority or current approach did the person describe?
- What is their role in this conversation?
- Which other people may need to be involved?
- Are timing, budget or authority known, or still unknown?
Decision: do not populate an unknown field just to complete the record. A useful handover can identify the exact question the next person should ask.
Record the actual expression of interest
An email open is not a buying conversation. A reply may be a request to stop, a referral, a polite acknowledgment or a genuine request to explore something. Preserve those differences.
- What did the person request or agree to?
- Which part of the proposition was relevant to them?
- Did they express an objection or say the timing was wrong?
- Have they asked not to be contacted again?
Decision: classify the response before progressing. Do not label “send a brochure” as a confirmed need, and do not count a stop request as engagement worth pursuing.
Give the next action an owner
A next step needs an action, a responsible person and a timeframe. It may be a short call, a requested document or an agreed follow-up. Record what was actually agreed rather than assuming the prospect has committed to your preferred sales process.
- What happens next, and who agreed it?
- Who on your team owns the action?
- When should it happen?
- What context or document must accompany the handover?
Decision: if there is no agreed next action, mark the conversation accordingly. Keep “awaiting clarification” separate from “ready for sales.”
Three fictional situations, three different decisions
The following examples are invented to explain the framework. They are not client results or real prospect records.
“Send me something.”
The company appears to fit, but no need or next discussion is established. Record an information request. Send only what was agreed, then clarify whether a further conversation is useful.
“We are comparing approaches. Our operations lead can join Tuesday.”
There may be a relevant next conversation if account fit, purpose and permission are confirmed. Record the exact context and who will attend. Budget and purchasing authority remain unknown unless discussed.
“Please remove me.”
Stop contact and record the preference in the appropriate workflow. Do not turn this into a follow-up task or a positive-response metric.
Adapt the checklist before using it as a rule
Agree which fields are mandatory with the people who receive handovers. A complex enterprise sale and a short, focused service engagement may require different evidence. Review why sales accepts or returns a record instead of adding points to a score without a clear reason.
For this framework, use four plain statuses: ready for handover, needs clarification, not now and not a fit / stop contact. Keep the reason alongside the status. A status is an operational decision, not a prediction that a deal will close.
If you want help defining the process, explore our B2B lead qualification service or see the illustrative campaign from research to handover. The value is in making your criteria explicit, not forcing every business into one sales model.