Sales Pipeline 

A Sales Pipeline is a visual or digital representation of the stages a prospective customer goes through before making a purchase. It outlines the progression from lead generation to closing a deal and helps sales teams forecast revenue, prioritize leads, and measure conversion rates at each stage. Common sales pipeline stages: 

  1. Lead generation 

  2. Lead qualification 

  3. Proposal or demo 

  4. Negotiation 

  5. Close or deal won/lost 

Modern CRMs track sales pipeline metrics like: 

  • Pipeline value 

  • Conversion rates between stages 

  • Sales cycle length 

  • Win rates 

An optimized sales pipeline improves forecasting accuracy and overall sales efficiency.