How to build a sales pipeline that closes

Any organization that wants to consistently close leads and drive revenue growth must understand the anatomy of a sales pipeline. An effective sales pipeline is more than a linear process leading from point A to point B. It’s a dynamic and strategic system that guides both sales professionals and prospects as they move from initial contact to conversion and, ideally, to closed-won beyond. 

In this comprehensive guide, you’ll find a deep dive into what a sales pipeline should look like — and instructions on how to construct one that consistently converts leads into loyal customers. Whether new to sales or want a refresh on the fundamentals, keep reading to uncover insights you can use to improve your sales pipeline today.

What is a sales pipeline?

A sales pipeline is a way to structure and visually represent the process your sales team follows from their first contact with your brand to after the sale. It represents the sales process through a series of steps, called stages. Sales managers can reference their pipeline to understand where every deal stands at a glance, making it much easier to coach reps as they manage and nurture leads throughout the sales journey.

The stages of a sales pipeline typically include prospecting, lead qualification, initial contact, negotiation, closing the deal, and post-purchase interactions. While the stages in a sales pipeline provide a structured framework, the journey of each prospect is unique. Prospects may advance through stages at different rates or even skip stages based on their specific needs and circumstances.

Creating a sales pipeline that’s always kept current with real-time data requires a dedicated pipeline management platform. Sales professionals can leverage the reporting capabilities of these tools to more easily identify which stages act as bottlenecks and prioritize the leads most likely to ultimately convert. When powered by the right solution, a sales pipeline grows revenue and helps your organization meet its sales objectives.

How does a quality sales pipeline benefit your company?

A well-managed sales pipeline can deliver a range of benefits for your organization:

• Higher closing rate. A sales pipeline helps reps invest their time and resources where it matters most, by focusing on leads that have been properly qualified and nurtured. This targeted approach results in more closed deals and improved revenue generation.
• Improved personalization. Sales pipelines provide a more comprehensive picture of each prospect. Sales personnel can then better personalize each interaction and tailor their messaging to align with the prospect's specific needs and pain points. This personalized approach fosters trust, making prospects more inclined to engage and, ultimately, convert into satisfied customers.
• Increased efficiency. A sales pipeline powered by the right platform automates routine and repetitive tasks, so sales professionals can spend their time on high-value activities like building client relationships and strategizing. This boosts productivity and reduces the risk of human error, leading to a more consistent and effective sales process.
• Enhanced visibility. A sales pipeline gives a window into where prospects stand in the sales process. With a better understanding of each prospect's individual journey, organizations can make more informed decisions when it comes to allocating resources and adapting their sales strategy.
• More accurate revenue forecasting. Predicting revenue is an important part of strategic planning at any organization. A sales pipeline gives a real-time window into the status and health of deals, leading to more precise revenue projection and empowering organizations to set more realistic goals.

How sales pipelines fit into the bigger sales picture

Sales pipelines are often confused with other related sales concepts. Let’s take a look at a few of the most important and explore some key distinctions.

Sales pipelines vs. funnels

A sales funnel largely focuses on the prospect's journey, viewing the process from their perspective. It maps the stages a prospect goes through, from awareness, to interest, to consideration and the decision to purchase. In contrast, a sales pipeline represents the seller’s perspective, emphasizing the activities necessary to convert a prospect into a customer. The sales funnel is intended to provide insight into the prospect's decision-making journey, while sales pipelines guide the organization's efforts to lead a prospect through that journey and ultimately close the deal.

Sales pipelines vs. forecasts

Sales forecasts and pipelines are both important tools for sales management and planning. A sales forecast is a projection of future revenue over a specific timeframe, based on inputs including historical data, market trends, and sales team estimates. It gives an estimate of how much revenue the organization expects to generate during the given period. A sales pipeline takes a more comprehensive and present-focused view of the sales process, encompassing data on all prospects and visually representing where they stand in the sales journey. Essentially, a sales forecast is a prediction of which prospects will close, while a sales pipeline is a real-time management tool that draws on all prospect data available.

Sales pipelines vs. flywheels

A flywheel is an inbound marketing concept that casts the prospect's journey as a continuous cycle of attracting, engaging, and delighting customers. It emphasizes the need to effectively market to the prospect at each stage of that cycle, focusing on the momentum created by satisfied customers who then become advocates for your brand. A sales pipeline instead revolves around the structured progression of prospects through defined stages with the goal of retaining and closing as many leads as possible.

What are the stages of a sales pipeline?

While the specifics of a sales pipeline vary to some degree from one organization to another, there are some fundamental stages that almost any pipeline will include. These core stages structure the sales journey so reps can navigate it more effectively.

Prospecting

Prospecting is the first step in the journey toward creating meaningful and productive relationships with potential clients. During this stage, sales professionals identify potential leads and gather essential information about them. The goal is to pinpoint prospects who align with the organization's ideal customer profile and have a genuine need for its offerings. Understanding the characteristics and requirements of potential clients helps sales teams build a robust and qualified pool of prospects who are more likely to convert. This paves the way for more efficient sales efforts in subsequent pipeline stages.

Sales enablement — and, in particular, collaboration with marketing and other departments outside sales — plays a large role in the prospecting stage. For instance, content marketing can greatly enhance prospecting by addressing the pain points of your target audience. By sharing valuable content through various channels, like social media, blogs, or email, your organization can attract potential leads and initiate meaningful conversations. Effective content marketing also positions your company as an industry authority, which can instill trust and confidence in potential customers. This approach complements your sales pipeline by populating it with prospects who are already engaged and primed for conversion.

Qualifying leads

Sales personnel qualify leads to assess the suitability of each prospect for potential conversion. Qualifying leads helps prevent sales teams from chasing after leads that may not have the intent, resources, or authority to make a purchasing decision, making the sales process more productive. Lead qualification involves conducting preliminary conversations with prospects, asking in-depth questions to comprehensively understand the lead's needs, and accurately gauging the prospect’s level of interest and authority. By accurately assessing the quality of leads during this stage, sales professionals can better prioritize their efforts and resources, increasing the likelihood of converting prospects at each stage of the pipeline.

Sales teams should leverage the advanced analytics features of their sales execution platform at the lead qualification stage. These tools can synthesize large amounts of data to deliver insights on the prospects who are most likely to convert. Sales professionals can then focus their efforts where they’re most likely to yield results.

Contacting the prospect and relationship-building

Once prospects are identified, researched, and qualified, it’s time to contact the most promising and begin developing lasting relationships. The primary goal during this stage is to establish open lines of communication, gain the prospect's trust, and delve into their specific needs and challenges. Sales teams should engage in activities like reaching out through various channels, scheduling introductory meetings, and providing information tailored to address the prospect's concerns.

Relationship-building is the most important element of this stage, as it sets the groundwork for deeper interactions and negotiations in the subsequent phases of the sales pipeline. Sales professionals must work to create a rapport with the prospect, showing that they genuinely understand the prospect's unique issues and are committed to delivering solutions that can address them. By building a solid foundation of trust and mutual understanding, sales teams significantly enhance the prospect's confidence in deciding to advance through the sales pipeline.

Proposal and negotiation

The proposal and negotiation stage is when all the work done up until this point culminates in a formal offer to the prospect. The primary goal of this stage is crafting a detailed and compelling proposal that showcases the value of your organization’s offerings while addressing the prospect's specific pain points.

After creating and delivering the proposal, the sales team and prospect will begin to negotiate with the aim of reaching mutually beneficial terms. Sales professionals should demonstrate their willingness to work collaboratively with the prospect to reach a satisfying agreement. The objective here is to strike a balance that aligns the organization's interests with the prospect's expectations, ultimately leading to a successful deal.

Closing the deal

The closing stage of the sales pipeline is a milestone in any sales journey, where the prospect commits to becoming a customer. During this stage, sales teams work to secure a final agreement from the prospect and formalize the deal according to the terms of the negotiated proposal. This involves obtaining signed contracts, processing payments, and delivering any necessary onboarding or implementation support. Sales professionals should strive to solidify the prospect's decision to become a customer and ensure a smooth transition into an ongoing working relationship. They should also be prepared to handle any last-minute objections or concerns from the prospect and provide any reassurances or clarifications required to finalize the deal.

Post-purchase follow up

The post-purchase stage is a long-term process where sales personnel nurture and maintain the newly established customer relationship. These efforts may take the form of everything from sending thank-you notes, to conducting post-purchase surveys, to working with others in the organization to provide additional support and guidance. The goal is to ensure customer satisfaction, address any post-purchase issues, and lay the foundation for a long-lasting and partnership.

Post-purchase follow-up demonstrates the organization's commitment to a great customer experience, boosting the potential for repeat business. It also offers an opportunity to gather valuable feedback from the customer about their experience, which companies can use to refine their offerings and improve the sales process. And it encourages positive word-of-mouth referrals, further contributing to ongoing business success.

5 steps to building a sales pipeline

By following the right process, any company can establish a sales pipeline that helps them identify, nurture, and close deals efficiently. Here are five key strategies you can use to craft a quality sales pipeline at your organization.

1. Analyze sales data and create buyer personas

Establishing a successful sales pipeline begins with gathering and analyzing relevant sales data. Collect information on current sales leads, potential targets, and key performance indicators (KPIs) like number of new leads, deal win rate, and average deal cycle. By thoroughly examining these data points, your organization gains a comprehensive understanding of its current sales landscape, allowing for more informed decision-making throughout the sales process. When building your pipeline, look for a sales platform that automatically draws in data from all your systems, so your reps and leaders have a complete picture of pipeline health and movement.

Organizations should leverage this data to create and refine buyer personas. These are fictional representations of ideal customers based on market research, interviews with key stakeholders, and customer information. Buyer personas help ensure that the organization is targeting the right prospects to bring into the sales pipeline, increasing the chances of successful lead generation and conversion.

2. Determine sales goals

After collecting and reviewing the data points gathered in the previous step, your organization should set its sales goals. These goals align the sales process with overall business objectives and ensure that the sales team's efforts contribute to the organization's growth and profitability. Organizations must select which KPIs they want to prioritize and define specific objectives for each.

These objectives should be both ambitious and realistic, providing a clear target for the sales team to strive towards. For example, if the conversion rate between different pipeline stages is a key KPI, a goal might be set to increase the conversion rate by a certain percentage within a specified time frame. Setting defined goals allows the organization to track progress, measure success, and make informed adjustments to optimize every part of the sales process. Quantifiable targets also help keep the sales team motivated and focused on achieving concrete results.

3. Map out the stages of your sales pipeline

The stages of your organization’s pipeline should match its unique sales process. While the five core stages above will likely be a part of your sales pipeline, they must be customized to fit prospects' journey to conversion and the tasks your team undertakes as that journey proceeds. Start by considering your prospects' behaviors, preferences, and decision-making processes. What steps do they typically take on the path to becoming a customer? By aligning the pipeline with the customer experience, your sales team can provide a more personalized and targeted approach.

Clearly outline the key activities and objectives involved in each stage. For example, in the qualification stage, specify the criteria used to assess whether a lead is a strong candidate for conversion. In the contact and relationship-building stage, outline the methods and channels used to establish and nurture communication with prospects. This provides sales personnel with a roadmap that is specific to organizational and customer needs.

4. Evaluate sales pipeline performance

Once your sales pipeline is up and running, evaluate its performance regularly. As customer preferences and market dynamics change, the ability to adapt and fine-tune the sales pipeline is crucial for maintaining competitiveness and driving revenue growth.

Continually monitor the KPIs you have identified to gather insights into the ongoing health and efficiency of the pipeline. Conversion rates at each stage, for example, offer insights into how effectively prospects are moving through the various parts of the pipeline, while lead-to-opportunity ratios indicate how well leads are being qualified. The average time to progress through the pipeline can highlight areas where the process may be slowed down, and the win rate measures the percentage of deals that are successfully closed. By tracking these metrics, organizations can pinpoint areas of strength and weakness within the sales pipeline, enabling them to make data-driven decisions for improvement. 

5. Work to improve lead retention at every stage of your pipeline

The ultimate goal of any sales pipeline is to retain and eventually close as many leads as possible. To accomplish this aim, sales personnel must understand prospect behavior and continuously refine the pipeline to better meet their needs. They can start by analyzing common characteristics among prospects that successfully move forward at each stage of the pipeline, so they know what makes some leads convert and others drop off. By identifying patterns and traits shared by leads that progress, they can tailor their approach to retain more leads. Sales teams prioritize improvements to stages that see relatively large drop-offs to make the biggest impact.

Organizations should also be open to changing or adding stages to better meet the needs of their prospects. A sales pipeline works best as an adaptable structure that evolves with the dynamics of your industry and the changing preferences of your target audience. Regularly assessing and fine-tuning each stage of the pipeline boosts lead retention and increases the likelihood of closing deals.

How to find and leverage the right sales pipeline solution

Organizations that want to build a truly exceptional sales pipeline need to look beyond traditional customer relationship management (CRM) systems. Instead, choose a fully-fledged pipeline management platform. These solutions manage customer data while offering a host of advanced features, starting with the ability to automate time-consuming tasks such as data entry, lead nurturing, and follow-ups. Your reps can then focus on more valuable activities like building relationships and closing deals.

Your pipeline management platform should also provide visibility into each stage of the pipeline, letting sales leaders and reps make decisions based on real-time data. And it should guide your sales reps to more effectively engage prospects by delivering insights into prospect behavior, highlighting areas for improvement, and offering actionable recommendations to optimize outreach. By leveraging the right pipeline management solution, your organization can unlock the full potential of your sales pipeline and achieve improved results.

Build a sales pipeline that delivers consistent results

The Outreach sales execution platform is a comprehensive pipeline management solution, with all the features needed to assess and improve the quality and maturity of your sales pipeline. 

It starts with the ability to pull together data from all your sales and marketing systems into your pipeline dashboard. As a result, sales teams quickly uncover insights on everything from progress against quota, to coverage gaps, to pipeline movement over a specific time period. 

You can even build more precise forecasts by accurately weighing your pipeline using historical win rates. And with the capability to evaluate rep productivity against week-over-week goals and compare conversion rates at every stage of your pipeline, you can make the adjustments necessary to achieve your organization’s revenue goals.

Explore how Outreach can help your company build a sales pipeline that delivers results time after time by requesting a demo today. Not ready to chat just yet? You can also check out the on-demand platform walkthrough video.