Strategy & Positioning / ICP & Segment Definition / Targeting & Qualification
ICP & SEGMENT DEFINITION · SAMPLE ARTIFACT

Turning Market Strategy Into Operational Account Decisions

Operational guidance for audience creation, suppression, routing, qualification, and account progression.

The targeting and qualification guide gives marketing, sales development, sales, and revenue operations one shared system for deciding which accounts enter each motion, who owns the next action, what must be validated, and when the account may advance.

View the Sample Targeting & Qualification Guide Back to ICP & Segment Definition
Deliverable
Playbook, Routing Logic & Governance
Typical Format
12 to 16 pages

The Fairway Account Progression System™

Move accounts from market eligibility to active opportunity through governed targeting, validation, routing, and evidence-based progression.

1

Establish Eligibility

Confirm that the account belongs in the target market and passes required fit rules.

2

Select the Motion

Assign account to appropriate high-touch, segment, trigger, or nurture path.

3

Route the Action

Send account/signal to correct owner with context, priority, and response expectation.

4

Validate Qualification

Confirm account problem, value, stakeholders, timing, and readiness.

5

Progress or Recycle

Advance the account when evidence is sufficient or move it into nurture/research.

Why Targeting & Qualification Guidance Matters

Without shared operating rules, marketing may activate accounts sales considers poor fit, sales may pursue engagement without validating account suitability, and revenue operations may route records based on incomplete or conflicting logic.

Common Symptoms Solved

  • × Each campaign rebuilds audiences from different filters
  • × Target lists contain customers or active opportunities
  • × Engagement triggers handoff before fit is confirmed
  • × Lead routing and account routing follow different logic
  • × Sales acceptance criteria vary by representative
  • × Opportunities advance based on activity, not buyer evidence

Strategic Decisions Enabled

  • ✓ Which accounts belong in each audience or motion
  • ✓ Which accounts and contacts must be suppressed
  • ✓ Which owner receives each account, lead, or alert
  • ✓ What must be known before handing account to sales
  • ✓ What sales must validate before creating opportunity
  • ✓ When an account should be recycled or disqualified

What Is Included

Audience Eligibility Rules

Account, segment, tier, signal, and readiness requirements for entering each motion.

Suppression Framework

Conditions that prevent activation in one or more channels.

Routing Logic

Ownership, priority, and response rules applied after a qualifying event.

Qualification Standards

Evidence required for sales acceptance and opportunity creation.

Account Progression

Conditions to move from identified account to active evaluation.

Recycle & Re-entry

Conditions determining when an account returns to nurture or research.

Fictional Client Example: AeroGrid Systems

View the Sample Targeting & Qualification Guide

Explore the representative pages that turn AeroGrid’s account strategy into audience, suppression, routing, qualification, progression, recycle, and governance rules.

Document Structure
  • Page 01 T&Q Summary
  • Page 02 Audience Eligibility
  • Page 03 Audience Construction
  • Page 04 Suppression Framework
  • Page 05 Routing Architecture
  • Page 06 Priority & SLAs
  • Page 07 Marketing Qualification
  • Page 08 Sales Qualification
  • Page 09 Progression Model
  • Page 10 Stage Evidence Reqs
  • Page 11 Recycle Framework
  • Page 12 Disqualification
  • Page 13 Account Journey Ex.
  • Page 14 System Requirements
  • Page 15 Measurement
  • Page 16 Governance
Revenue Operations Playbook

AeroGrid Targeting & Qualification Guide

Operational rules for audience creation, suppression, routing, qualification, and account progression.

Page 01

Targeting & Qualification Summary

The Operating Model in One View

1. Market Account
Decision: Does account meet ICP criteria?

Outcomes: Eligible, Research Required, Non-ICP.

2. Targetable Account
Decision: Which segment & tier rules apply?

Outcomes: Tier 1 Motion, Tier 2 Segment, Trigger Mon., Suppressed.

3. Activated Account
Decision: Has a qualifying event occurred?

Outcomes: Route to AE, Route to SDR, Research Task, Nurture.

4. Qualified Account
Decision: Are fit, problem, timing & readiness validated?

Outcomes: Create Opp, Continue Dev, Recycle, Disqualify.

5. Active Opp.
Decision: Does buyer evidence support stage progression?

Outcomes: Advance, Hold, Recycle, Closed Lost.

Page 02

Audience Eligibility Framework

Which Accounts Enter Each Motion

Motion Required Acct Conditions Preferred Conditions Excluded Conditions
Tier 1 Named Account Priority ICP, Tier 1 Status, Confirmed Confidence, No Active Suppression, Named Owner. Current business trigger, Buying-group coverage, Exec relevance. Non-ICP, Unresolved critical risk, No ownership, Customer conflict.
Tier 2 Segment Campaign Core/Priority ICP, Tier 2 Status, Approved Segment, No Active Suppression. Role coverage, Relevant content interest, Recent trigger. Research Required, Non-ICP, Duplicate active sequence.
Trigger-Based Activation Priority/Core ICP, Verified current trigger, Documented source/date. Relevant buying role identified, Existing engagement. Expired trigger, Low-confidence fit, Confirmed Non-ICP.
Adjacent Market Test Approved test cohort, Minimum structural-fit criteria, Named owner. Strong problem equivalence, Pilot readiness. Hard disqualifier, No learning objective.
Rule: Every audience should be generated from governed account and contact states rather than manually assembled from partial platform data.
Page 03

Audience Construction Logic

How Target Lists Are Built

1. Start With Eligible Accounts

Passes ICP, segment, geo, and operational rules.

2. Apply Account Tier

Limit/prioritize based on approved investment level.

3. Apply Signal/Condition

Add triggers, intent, or readiness criteria.

4. Apply Acct Suppression

Remove customers, opps, competitors, restrictions.

5. Select Buying Roles

Identify contacts whose function match the motion.

6. Apply Contact Suppression

Remove invalid, unsubscribed, or over-contacted.

7. Validate Ownership/Capacity

Confirm SLA capacity and sequence conflicts.

Page 04

Suppression Framework

When Accounts & Contacts Should Not Be Activated

Account Suppressions
  • Current Customer: Suppress from acquisition motions (unless expansion).
  • Active Opportunity: Suppress automated/uncoordinated campaigns.
  • Open Sales Convo: Suppress parallel automated outreach.
  • Competitor/Partner: Suppress standard acquisition/sensitive content.
  • Dup Coverage: Suppress if another owner/territory is active.
Contact Suppressions
  • Opted Out: Restrict communication channels as required.
  • Invalid/Unverified: Suppress outbound email/automation.
  • Recent Active Convo: Suppress duplicate automated outreach.
  • Over-Contacted: Wait until cooling period expires.
  • Restricted Role: Suppress campaigns where role is irrelevant.
Page 05 & 06

Routing Architecture & SLAs

Who Owns the Next Action & When

Routing Condition Action SLA (Review Standard)
Existing Named Owner Route all account signals & qualified contacts to named owner. Tier-dependent
Active Opportunity Route to opp owner; suppress independent handoff. Immediate notification for material signals.
Tier 1 Acct (No Active Opp) Route to AE and account-dev owner. Within 2 business days.
Tier 2 + Qualified Signal Route to SDR or assigned territory owner. Within 1 business day.
Tier 3 + Engagement Validate fit/signal before seller handoff. Research before routing.
Research Required Route to data-operations queue. According to campaign deadline.
Non-ICP / Suppressed Do not route to sales automatically. No action (unless exception).
Rule: Routing should provide the recipient with the reason for the handoff, the evidence behind it, and the expected next action.
Page 07

Marketing Qualification Standard

What Must Be True Before Sales Handoff

Definition: An eligible account with sufficient fit, role relevance, engagement, timing, or trigger evidence to justify direct sales review.

Required Conditions
  • • Priority/Core ICP (or approved exception)
  • • Tier 1/2 status (or Tier 3 + high-value signal)
  • • No active suppression preventing sales action
  • • ≥1 contact with relevant buying role
  • • Verified direct engagement, intent, or trigger
  • • Clear account/territory owner
  • • Handoff includes context and next action
Non-Qualifying Events (Hold)
  • × One low-intent page view
  • × Generic content download from poor-fit account
  • × 3rd-party intent without fit validation
  • × Contact record without account resolution
  • × High engagement from competitor/customer
Page 08

Sales Acceptance & Qualification

What Sales Must Validate Before Pipeline

1. Fit

Matches required structural/operating conditions.

2. Problem

Meaningful portfolio energy-performance issue recognized.

3. Value

Potential outcome substantial enough to justify action.

4. Ownership

Confirmed problem owner and operational owner.

5. Buying Group

Initial role map and path to economic/tech stakeholders.

6. Timing & Risk

Credible evaluation window; no fundamental feasibility block.

Page 09 & 10

Account Progression Model & Stage Gates

Evidence Required at Each Stage

Stage Buyer Evidence Required Hold Condition
Discovery Confirmed problem owner, recognized problem, initial business consequence. Seller hasn't spoken with an accountable stakeholder.
Qualified Strong fit, champion identified, economic/tech roles mapped, credible timing. Opp remains single-threaded or value/timing unclear.
Evaluation Role-specific eval criteria, tech validation in progress, relevant stakeholders engaged. Critical evaluator/approver has not been engaged.
Business Case Financial assumptions reviewed, econ buyer engaged, implementation scope defined. Business case exists only internally at AeroGrid.
Approval Decision process/date known, procurement path clear, exec sponsorship. Late-stage gatekeepers remain unknown.
Commit Shared outcome, mutual action plan, confirmed implementation resources. Buyer commitment depends on one individual.
Rule: Opportunity stages should advance only when buyer evidence changes, not when the seller completes an activity (like sending a proposal).
Page 11 & 12

Recycle and Disqualification Framework

When Accounts Exit Active Pursuit

Recycle Reasons (Not Ready)
  • No Current Priority: Needs verified cost/margin/expansion trigger to re-enter.
  • Buying-Group Support: Champion enablement until exec/econ stakeholder engages.
  • Readiness Gap: Technical or workflow block. Nurture until process feasible.
  • Budget Timing: Date-based follow-up for next planning cycle.
  • No Response: Cooling period. Re-enter on new engagement.
Disqualification (Exit)
  • Non-ICP Structure: Fails required market/scale/control rules.
  • No Ability to Act: Org cannot influence operating conditions.
  • No Data Access: Cannot integrate required info.
  • No Business Value: Outcome doesn't justify investment.
  • Competitive Decision: Chose another approach/status quo.
Page 14

Data and CRM Requirements

Operationalizing Targeting and Qualification

Account Fields
  • Targeting Eligibility (Eligible, Conditional, Ineligible)
  • Active Targeting Motion (Tier 1, Segment, Nurture, etc)
  • Account Progression State (Identified...Customer)
  • Qualification Status (Not Reviewed...Disqualified)
  • Suppression Status (Customer, Competitor, etc)
  • Routing Priority (Critical, High, Medium, Research)
Opportunity Fields
  • Qualification Gap (Fit, Value, Tech, Timing, etc)
  • Recycle Reason (No Priority, Budget, Readiness)
  • Re-Entry Condition (Trigger, Date, Tech Change)
  • Buying-Group Coverage Level (L0 to L4)
Page 15 & 16

Measurement & Governance

Maintaining the Operating System

Measurement Areas
  • Audience Quality: ICP rate, tier distribution, duplicate rate.
  • Routing Performance: Routing accuracy, time to review.
  • Marketing Qual: Sales review/acceptance rate, rejection reason.
  • Sales Qual: Opp creation rate, time to opp, critical role gaps.
  • Progression: Stage conversion, velocity, evidence completeness.
Governance & Change Triggers
  • • Owners: PMM (Strategy), RevOps (Logic), Demand Gen (Campaigns), Sales (Qualification).
  • • Triggers: Low sales acceptance, high recycle rate, routing conflicts, poor stage conversion.
  • • Cadence: Weekly routing review, Monthly audience quality, Quarterly progression review.

Note: AeroGrid Systems and all associated audience criteria, suppression rules, routing logic, and progression decisions are fictional. This sample demonstrates the structure of a Fairway engagement.

How Teams Use the Targeting & Qualification Guidance

The guide gives marketing, sales development, sales, and operations one shared system for moving accounts from eligibility to opportunity.

Product Marketing

Connect ICP, segment, and value strategy to operational qualification standards.

Demand Generation

Build audiences that reflect fit, tier, timing, role relevance, and suppression.

Marketing Operations

Implement audience logic, exclusions, campaign eligibility, and lifecycle controls.

Sales Development

Prioritize research, validate signals, engage roles, and create qualified context.

Account Executives

Evaluate quality, develop buying-group coverage, and progress buyer decisions.

Revenue Operations

Implement routing, ownership, SLAs, stage controls, history, and reporting.

Targeting & Qualification Review Checklist

Are the right accounts entering the right motions?

✓ Does every audience begin with governed account eligibility?
✓ Are suppressions applied before activation?
✓ Are target audiences connected to segment, tier, and role?
✓ Does routing account for current ownership and opp status?
✓ Does every handoff explain why the account matters?
✓ Are research-required accounts separated from sales-ready?
✓ Does marketing qual require more than isolated engagement?
✓ Does sales validate fit, problem, value, ownership & timing?
✓ Do opportunity stages require buyer-side evidence?
✓ Are recycle reasons and re-entry conditions documented?

Explore Related Artifacts

Previous Artifact

Scoring & Tiering Model

Defines the weighted priority method that informs routing and treatment.
Capability Overview

ICP & Segment Definition

Return to the complete capability overview and deliverable system.
Next Step

Start an Engagement

Connect with Fairway to define how accounts should route and progress.