Move Deals Through Pipeline Stages
Keep deal stage, status, probability, and close date current.
Pipeline stages show where a sales opportunity is in the sales process.
Update stages during sales review, not only at the end of the month. Stale stages make forecasts and dashboards unreliable.
Move a Deal
- Open CRM > Deals.
- Switch to kanban view if you prefer a board.
- Choose the correct pipeline.
- Move the deal to the stage that matches the current sales step.
- Open the deal and update status, value, probability, and expected close date when needed.
Move one deal only when the next stage is true for that opportunity. Bulk stage updates are useful for cleanup, but they should be reviewed carefully because stage changes can affect reports, dashboards, and workflows.
Status vs. Stage
Use Stage for the current step in the process. Use Status for the deal outcome or state: open, won, lost, or abandoned.
Do not leave won, lost, or abandoned deals in active sales stages without updating the status.
When a deal is won, decide what should happen next: create a project, send an invoice, start onboarding, or trigger a workflow.
When a deal is lost or abandoned, add enough context for future review. Lost reason, notes, competitor, budget, or timing details help the team improve the pipeline instead of only reducing the open-deal count.
Forecast Hygiene
Review these fields during pipeline reviews:
- Value.
- Currency.
- Probability.
- Expected close date.
- Stage.
- Status.
- Assigned sales user.
Stage Movement Rules
Move a deal only when the required action for the previous stage is complete. If your team cannot describe that rule, simplify or rename the stage.
Use lost reasons, notes, or tasks to preserve context when a deal leaves the active pipeline.
Define Entry And Exit Criteria
Each stage should have a simple rule for entering and leaving it. For example:
- A discovery stage may require a booked or completed discovery call.
- A proposal stage may require an estimate, quote, or document sent to the customer.
- A negotiation stage may require customer feedback or requested changes.
- A won stage should require agreement, payment, signature, or internal approval depending on your sales process.
Write the rule in team training or pipeline settings so every user moves deals the same way.
Pipeline Review Routine
During a pipeline review:
- Filter to one pipeline.
- Review stale deals in each active stage.
- Update expected close dates and probability.
- Move deals whose last activity proves a new stage.
- Close won, lost, or abandoned deals instead of leaving them active.
- Create next-action tasks for open deals without a clear owner action.
If many deals sit in the same stage for a long time, the stage may be too broad or the team may need a clearer exit rule.
Avoid Forecast Drift
Stage, probability, value, and close date should tell the same story. If a deal is in a late stage but still has a low probability or old close date, update the fields before using the forecast.
Do not move deals forward only to make the board look active. Add a next task or note when progress is uncertain, and close deals that no longer have a realistic next step.