The B2B sales glossary
The language of outbound, defined.
Clear, practical definitions of the cold calling, email outreach, lead generation, and sales development terms that actually move pipeline. Written by the team that runs outbound every day.
438 terms and growing · 6 categories · Updated continuously
Bottom Of The Funnel (BOFU)Bottom Of The Funnel (BOFU) refers to the final stage of the B2B sales funnel where highly qualified prospects are evaluating vendors, negotiating...
Bounced EmailA bounced email is a message that is rejected by the recipient’s mail server and never reaches the inbox, typically returning an error notice to the...
Business Development ManagerA Business Development Manager (BDM) is a professional responsible for finding and growing new business opportunities, a role found across many...
Business Development Rep (BDR)A Business Development Rep (BDR) is a specialized B2B sales role focused on generating pipeline by identifying, prospecting, and qualifying potential...
Business IntelligenceBusiness Intelligence (BI) is the practice of collecting and analyzing data to support better business decisions, spanning reporting, dashboards, and...
Business To Business Direct MailBusiness to business direct mail is a targeted outbound prospecting tactic where physical letters, packages, or printed materials are sent to...
Buyer BehaviorBuyer behavior is the study of how people decide what to purchase, including the needs, motivations, and steps that shape a buying decision. In B2B...
Buyer PersonaA buyer persona is a research-based, semi-fictional profile of an ideal decision-maker or influencer within your target accounts. In B2B sales...
Buying CriteriaBuying criteria are the factors a buyer uses to evaluate options and decide what to purchase, including business, technical, financial, and risk...
Buying CycleThe buying cycle is the full journey a buyer takes from first recognizing a need through researching options, evaluating choices, getting approvals,...
Buying IntentBuying intent is the measurable likelihood that a person or company is actively researching and preparing to buy, inferred from behavioral signals...
Buying ProcessThe buying process is the series of steps a customer goes through to make a purchase, from recognizing a need to choosing and buying a product. In...
Buying SignalA buying signal is any action or data point suggesting that a person or company is moving toward a purchase. In B2B sales development, buying signals...
Buying TriggerA buying trigger is a specific event, signal, or change in a target account that indicates a higher likelihood they are entering an active buying...
Call CenterA B2B call center is a centralized, often distributed team of sales development reps (SDRs) who conduct high-volume outbound and inbound sales calls...
Caller IDCaller ID is the phone number, and sometimes the business name or logo, that displays on a recipient device when you place a call. In B2B sales...
Calling ScriptA calling script is a structured, research-backed talk track that guides B2B SDRs and account executives through cold calls, discovery calls, and...
Call RecordingCall recording is the capture and secure storage of a phone conversation for later playback, review, or compliance, typically via VoIP systems or...
Call SentimentCall sentiment is the qualitative and quantitative assessment of a prospect’s emotional tone, engagement level, and attitude during a sales call,...
Calls Per DayCalls Per Day is a core B2B sales development metric that measures how many outbound phone calls a sales development representative (SDR) completes...
Call to Action (CTA)A call to action, or CTA, is an explicit prompt telling the audience the specific next step to take, such as click, reply, or sign up. In B2B sales...
Call-to-Meeting RateCall-to-Meeting Rate is the percentage of outbound calls that result in a scheduled meeting, usually a qualified discovery or demo. In B2B sales...
CAN-SPAMCAN-SPAM (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003) is the US federal law that sets rules for commercial email,...
CASLCASL (Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation) is a federal law that regulates commercial electronic messages (CEMs) sent to or from Canadian recipients,...
Chief Revenue OfficerA Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) is the executive responsible for owning and orchestrating all revenue-generating activities across sales development,...
Churn RateChurn rate is the percentage of customers or revenue a B2B company loses over a given period, typically monthly or annually. In sales development, it...
Click-to-CallClick-to-Call (also called click-to-dial) is a telephony feature that lets B2B sales reps place a phone call by clicking a phone number in a CRM,...
Click TrackingClick tracking is the practice of measuring which links a person clicks by routing those links through tracking URLs that record each click. In B2B...
Client Case StudyA client case study is a structured, story-driven proof asset that documents how a specific B2B customer used your solution to solve a problem and...
Closed-LostClosed-Lost is a CRM deal status marking an opportunity that ended without a purchase, whether lost to a competitor, to the status quo, or to no...
Closed-WonClosed-Won is a CRM deal status marking an opportunity that ended in a signed agreement or firm purchase commitment. In B2B sales development, it is...
Closed Won RatioClosed Won Ratio is the percentage of qualified opportunities that end as Closed Won versus Closed Lost in a given period. In B2B sales development,...
CloserA closer is the sales professional responsible for converting qualified opportunities into signed deals and revenue. In B2B sales development, the...
Closing RatioClosing ratio is the percentage of qualified sales opportunities that become closed-won deals. In B2B sales development, it typically measures how...
Cloud-Based CRMA cloud-based CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system is a centrally hosted, subscription-based platform accessed via the internet that stores...
CMO OutsourcingCMO outsourcing is the practice of engaging an external, usually fractional or virtual, chief marketing officer (or CMO-level team) to own B2B...
CohortA cohort is a group of people or things that share a common characteristic over a defined period, a concept used widely in statistics, research, and...
Cold Call AnalysisCold call analysis is the systematic review of outbound sales calls to understand what’s working, what isn’t, and how to improve results. In B2B...
Cold CallerA cold caller is a sales development professional who uses outbound phone calls to engage previously uncontacted B2B prospects, qualify their needs,...
Cold CallingCold calling in B2B sales development is the process of proactively phoning targeted companies that have not previously expressed interest, with the...
About this glossary
A working reference, not a textbook
The short version is on the surface. Open any question to go deeper.
It is a practical reference for the language of B2B outbound sales. Every entry explains a cold calling, email outreach, lead generation, or sales development term in plain English, with the context and best practices that actually matter when you run campaigns.
They come from the SalesHive team, the same strategists and SDRs who run outbound campaigns for thousands of clients every day. The goal is working knowledge you can apply, not textbook theory.
Search by name at the top of the page, filter by category, or browse the A to Z list below. Each term links to a full definition with key benefits, best practices, common challenges, and FAQs.
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