Sales Lifecycle
Sales stages are a fundamental component of revenue operations strategy. This guide explains how to structure and manage the progression of sales opportunities from initial contact to closed deals.
What Are Sales Stages?
"Sales stages are the stepping stones of a sales opportunity's journey, from the spark of interest to the ink on the contract."
Benefits of Effective Sales Stages
1. Enhanced Visibility
Clear pipeline depiction enabling teams to track progress and identify obstacles.
2. Improved Forecasting
Better revenue predictions through accurate stage data.
3. Streamlined Process
Standardized framework ensuring consistency across the sales team.
4. Increased Productivity
Time monitoring reveals improvement areas and bottlenecks.
Entry Criteria
Clear entry criteria establish what conditions must be met before advancing opportunities to subsequent stages. This ensures:
- Consistent qualification across reps
- Accurate pipeline reporting
- Reliable forecasting
Qualification Methodologies
Three established approaches for qualifying opportunities:
MEDDPIC
Evaluates:
- Metrics
- Economic Buyer
- Decision Criteria
- Decision Process
- Identify Pain
- Champion
BANT
Assesses:
- Budget
- Authority
- Need
- Timeline
CHAMP
Focuses on:
- Challenges
- Authority
- Money
- Prioritization
Sales Stages Defined
| Stage | Description |
|---|---|
| SAL | Sales has received the lead and begun outreach |
| SQL | Discovery call or demo scheduled |
| SAO | Discovery/demo completed; qualification criteria met; pipeline value assigned |
| Evaluation/Use Case | Evaluation underway to demonstrate value |
| Proposal/Negotiation | Proposal sent; negotiations active |
| Closed Won | Contract signed and agreement reached |
Best Practices
- Align stages with business objectives - Ensure stages reflect your actual sales motion
- Customize to your process - Adapt stages to your unique sales cycle
- Document thoroughly - Provide detailed entry/exit criteria for each stage
- Review regularly - Conduct periodic reviews and adjustments
- Integrate with CRM - Enable seamless tracking and reporting
Related Resources
- Lead Lifecycle - Understanding stages before SQL
- Customer Lifecycle - What happens after Closed Won