Leads, conversion and pipelines

Converting a lead

When a lead qualifies, convert it. That creates the contact — and the account, and optionally the deal — carrying the history across rather than leaving it behind.

Pipelines and stages

A pipeline is the set of stages a deal moves through. The default fits most businesses; change it when yours genuinely differs.

Stages should be observable. "Contacted" and "Proposal sent" are facts. "Interested" is a feeling, and a stage nobody can apply consistently makes every forecast meaningless.

Steps

1. Open Leads and convert the ones that qualify.
2. Open Deals and check the pipeline stages match how you actually sell.
3. Move deals as things happen, not as a weekly tidy-up.

You're done when stage names are things you could verify.

Gotchas

• Converting is not deleting. The lead's history follows the contact.
• Too many stages makes the board a chore. Five or six is usually plenty.