The Marketing Millennials The Marketing Metrics Everyone Misunderstands with Emily Popson, VP of Marketing at CallRail | Ep. 376
Dec 19, 2025
Emily Popson, VP of Marketing at CallRail, enlightens listeners with her expertise in marketing analytics and B2B SaaS. She tackles the controversial topic of MQLs, arguing that the real issue lies in their definitions, not the metric itself. Emily advocates for blending various attribution methods to improve marketing insights and explains how conversational data can transform lead generation. Discover why trusting gut instincts and testing popular advice on LinkedIn can lead to better business strategies.
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Redefine The MQL, Don’t Kill It
- MQLs are a delivery system, not worthless labels that prove marketing failure.
- Emily Popson says the problem is how teams define MQLs, not the letters themselves.
Make MQLs Reflect Sales Readiness
- Redefine your MQL around ICP and real buying signals like trials or calls, not weak scoring heuristics.
- Bring MQLs closer to sales readiness to protect marketing credibility and resource efficiency.
Use MQLs As Internal Signals
- Use MQLs as an internal marketing delivery signal, not the sole KPI you send to sales or execs.
- Orchestrate experiences from MQLs inside marketing rather than dumping low-value leads to sales.