Sales Pipeline

Definition

A sales pipeline is a visual framework that maps the key stages a prospect moves through on the path to becoming a customer. It tracks and organises every lead, showing where each deal stands in the sales process. Sales pipelines help businesses focus on the highest-value opportunities and identify bottlenecks or lost leads for improvement.

Why Use

• Makes sales progress visible and easier to manage.
• Helps identify and resolve weak points in the process.
• Enables more accurate sales forecasting and resource allocation.
• Clarifies which prospects to prioritise and when.

Core Concepts

• Pipeline stages like lead, prospect, negotiation, and close.
• Lead qualification and opportunity tracking.
• Conversion rates at each stage.
• Pipeline velocity (speed through stages).

Examples

Numeric Example: If you start with 100 leads, convert 25 to proposals, and close 10 deals, your close rate is 10%. Formula: (Number of Closed Deals ÷ Total Leads) x 100.

Interpretation: Tracking these numbers helps spot where prospects drop out.

Common Pitfalls

• Overestimating deal value or closing probability.
• Neglecting early-stage leads and opportunities.
• Failing to update pipeline stages promptly.
• Ignoring bottlenecks that slow progress.

See Also

Related terms include Sales Funnel, Lead Generation, opportunity management, and conversion rate optimisation.