In HubSpot, a Deal is an object, it is a sales opportunity that you're tracking through your pipeline. Each deal has properties like value, close date, and stage to help you manage it better. HubSpot comes with default deal properties, but you can also create custom ones to fit your business.
Here, we’ll focus on one of the most important deal properties: the Deal Stage. HubSpot offers standard stage options, but it’s a good idea to customize them based on how your business works.
Each stage should match your real sales process and the way your team operates. It’s important to align everyone on what each stage means. The right stages will depend on your product or service, how you qualify leads, and the steps your buyers take before making a purchase.
Also, if your company offers both products and services, or has different sales processes, you can create multiple pipelines in HubSpot. Pipelines help visualize your processes through stages, which are steps that signal where a record is in a process. Each pipeline can have its own set of deal stages tailored to the specific flow of that offering.
Defining your deal stages in HubSpot is crucial for maintaining a smooth and clear sales process. Without clear definitions, sales reps may advance unqualified deals too quickly, leading to an inflated pipeline and inaccurate sales forecasts.
Properly defined deal stages ensure that each step in the sales process aligns with the buyer's journey, providing a realistic overview of deal progress and enabling more accurate forecasting. Deal stage definitions also help prevent deals from stalling mid-funnel, reducing the risk of missed revenue opportunities.
Start by mapping out the typical buyer's journey for your product or service. Identify the key touchpoints and actions that signify a buyer's progression. Then, adjust your deal stages to match these touchpoints. This alignment helps create a more seamless experience for buyers and increases the likelihood of closing deals.
To optimize your HubSpot deal stages, each stage should include specific components:
Stage Purpose: Clearly define the purpose of each stage. What is the goal? What should be achieved before moving to the next stage?
Entry/Exit Criteria: Set clear criteria for when deals should enter and exit each stage. This helps avoid guesswork and ensures consistency across your sales team.
Buyer Signals: Identify the key signals from buyers that justify a transition between stages. This might include actions like responding to an email, scheduling a meeting, or submitting a request for a quote.
Automated Actions: Utilize HubSpot's automation features to trigger tasks or email sequences when deals enter or exit a stage. This ensures that no deal falls through the cracks and that sales reps stay on top of their tasks.
The default deal stages in HubSpot are a starting point, but they may not match the way your team works.
To illustrate how effective deal stage definitions can transform your sales process, consider the following examples:
Initial Contact: The purpose is to establish communication. Entry criteria might include a lead filling out a contact form. Exit criteria could be scheduling a discovery call.
Needs Analysis: The goal is to understand the buyer's needs. Entry criteria include the completion of the initial contact stage. Exit criteria might involve completing a needs assessment form and scheduling a follow-up meeting.
Proposal Sent: The objective is to present a tailored proposal. Entry criteria include identifying the buyer's needs and preparing a proposal. Exit criteria could be the buyer's acknowledgment of receiving the proposal and expressing interest in discussing it further.
Negotiation: The aim is to finalize the deal terms. Entry criteria include the buyer's review of the proposal. Exit criteria might involve reaching an agreement on pricing and terms.
Closed Won/Lost: The final stage where the deal is either won or lost. Entry criteria include the final agreement from the buyer. Exit criteria could be the deal's closure, either successfully or otherwise.
If you sell a product, here's an example of what a SaaS pipeline might look like.
To make your pipeline reflect your actual sales process, you can easily add, edit, or remove deal stages. Here’s how:
Navigate to Deal Settings
In your HubSpot account, go to Settings → Objects → Deals.
Customize Deal Stages
Click the Pipelines tab and select the pipeline you want to edit. You can add, rename, reorder, or delete deal stages as needed. Don’t forget to set the deal probability and include both Won and Lost stages for accurate reporting.
Define Criteria and Automations
For each stage, define what qualifies a deal to enter or exit that stage. You can also set up automations like task assignments, internal notifications, or email sequences to keep the process moving smoothly.
Train Your Team
Make sure your sales team knows how the new stages work and what actions are expected at each step. A quick training session can go a long way in keeping everyone aligned and making the most of your automation.
Automation and training are critical for maintaining consistency in your deal stages. HubSpot offers powerful automation tools that can help streamline your sales process. Set up automated actions to trigger tasks, send follow-up emails, or update deal properties based on predefined criteria.
In addition to automation, provide ongoing training for your sales team. Ensure they understand the importance of adhering to the defined deal stages and how to use HubSpot's tools effectively. By defining clear deal stages, aligning them with the buyer's journey, and leveraging automation and training, you can optimize your HubSpot sales pipeline for predictable growth and higher close rates.