Help centre / CRM

Opportunities

One deal with one customer, from the first stage to Won or Lost - what it is worth, when it will be decided, and where it stands today.

1Overview #

An opportunity is a deal you are actually trying to win. Where a lead asks "is there business here?", a deal answers "how much, by when, and what stands in the way?".

Every deal starts life as a lead - the screen insists on it. That is not bureaucracy: it is what lets you say, at the end of a quarter, which sources and which campaigns produced real money and which only produced enquiries.

The deal carries the stage, which is your sales process written down; the amount, which is what the pipeline and the forecast add up; and the probability, which is what makes the weighted pipeline an honest number rather than a wish.

2Who it is for #

Keep the value, the expected close date and the stage of everything you are chasing.
Work the deal with follow-ups, so the next action is always planned and visible.
Move it through your stages - on this screen, or by dragging its card on the board.
Close it honestly: Won, or Lost with a reason you can count later.
Give the pipeline, forecast and team reports their numbers.

3What it is not for #

An enquiry that may go nowhere. Keep that as a lead until it is worth chasing.
A quotation or an invoice. Those are the books' vouchers; the deal only records that a quotation went out and when.
A support problem or a complaint. A deal is money you expect to earn.

4Step by step #

Press Add (F3) and pick the Lead it comes from. - Everything the lead knows - name, account or prospect, contact, source, owner, amount, requirement and the product lines - is filled in for you. An open lead becomes Converted when the deal is saved.
Check the Name: the firm, or the firm and what they want. - A colleague should recognise the deal from its name alone.
Set the Stage and the Amount. - The stage sets the probability; once there are product lines, their total becomes the amount and the box locks - one figure, never two.
Give an Expected close date. - The forecast groups by that month. A date you believe, not a date you hope for.
Add the Products if you have not already. - Type into the ready line; Enter moves across the row and, off the last cell, starts the next.
Save (F5), then work it with Follow-up (F7) after each call or visit. - One dialog records what was done and what is planned next; it can move the stage at the same time.
Move the stage as the deal progresses - Move stage here, or drag the card on the board. - Won and Lost close the deal and cancel whatever was still planned.
For a lost deal, give the Lost reason. - It is required, and it is the report that tells you why you lose.

5The fields #

Comes from - The chain is Contact -> Lead -> Opportunity, and the lead link is the one thing a deal cannot do without.
Lead - The enquiry this deal grew out of. Picking one fills the whole deal from it. No lead yet? Add it on CRM > Leads first. Ties won business back to the source and campaign that produced it. Once saved, a deal keeps its lead for good. Any lead you may see
The deal
Name - A name a colleague would recognise - the firm, or the firm and what they want. Shown on the board card, in every list and on the reports. Up to 128 characters
Opened on - The day the deal was opened - today by default. Deal registers count by it. A date
Ledger account - The customer ledger the deal is with. Create new ledger account at the foot of the list opens the Ledger master here. Joins the deal to the books, and lets the customer view show invoices and outstanding beside it. Required unless you name a prospect instead
Prospect name - Who the deal is with while no account exists. Locked once an account is picked, and cleared. Required when there is no account, up to 128 characters
Contact - The person you deal with. The picked account's people are listed first. Create new contact in the footer starts at this deal's account. Who the messages and the customer view are about. Any contact you may see
Owner - The executive chasing the deal. The board's owner filter, the team reports, and who may change it. Someone within your reach; a shared deal shows its owner read-only
Source - Where the business came from, carried from the lead. Revenue by source. From CRM > Masters > Lead sources
Description - What the deal is about, in your words. Up to 512 characters; Ctrl+Enter for a new line
Where it stands - The four figures the pipeline is built from.
Stage - Where the deal stands, from the Stages master. Picking a stage sets its probability. The board's column, and every funnel and pipeline report. Won and Lost close the deal and cancel what was planned. From CRM > Masters > Stages
Probability % - Your chance of winning, 0 to 100. Starts at the stage's figure - change it when you know better. Amount x probability is the weighted pipeline. 0 to 100, whole numbers
Amount - The value of the deal. Locked once product lines exist - their total takes over. The pipeline, the forecast and the weighted figures. Not negative
Expected close - When you expect a decision. Thirty days ahead by default. The forecast groups deals by this month. A date
Quoted ? - On once a quotation has gone out. Shows which deals are waiting on a customer's answer rather than on you. Switch
Quoted on - The date the quotation went out. Appears only when Quoted is on. A date
Lost reason - Why the deal was lost. Appears only for a Lost stage. The Lost reasons report - the one place that tells you why you lose. Required for a Lost stage; from CRM > Masters > Lost reasons
Lost remarks - The detail behind the reason - who won it, at what price. Up to 512 characters
Next action - View mode only: the earliest open follow-up, and how many days the deal has sat in this stage. Changed only by logging a Follow-up (F7).
Products - What the deal is for. Optional - but once there are lines, their total IS the amount.
Product - The item being sold. Picking one fills the description and the rate from the product master. Product-wise pipeline and revenue reports. From your product masters
Description - The line in words. Up to 255 characters
Application / Class - What it is used for, and its class. Group the reports. From CRM > Masters
Qty / Rate - How many, and at what rate. Qty x Rate is the line amount; the lines' total is the deal's amount. Neither can be negative
Amount - Worked out for you.
Shared with - Who else may see or work this deal.
Share with - An executive, a user group (worked out when they open it), or a branch (everyone logging in to that branch).
Access - Read to see it; Edit also to change it and log follow-ups. Read or Edit
Effective from / to - The window the share works in. Blank To = until you stop it. After the To date it ends by itself - nothing to remember. Dates

6Rules and integrity #

Every deal starts as a lead - The Lead box is required, and an open lead is marked Converted when the deal is saved. Once saved, the deal keeps that lead for good.
Account or prospect - one of the two - A deal must be with somebody: either a ledger account, or a named prospect while no account exists yet.
Product lines rule the amount - With lines, the Amount box locks and shows their total. Remove the lines to type an amount by hand again.
The stage decides the probability - Moving a stage sets its standard probability; you may then override it. Won is 100, Lost is 0, and both close the deal.
Lost always needs a reason - Moving to a Lost stage asks for the reason, here and on the board. It is the only way the lost-reason analysis can mean anything.
Closing cancels what was planned - Entering Won or Lost stamps the closing date and cancels the open follow-ups - a closed deal should not sit on somebody's work list.
Follow-up is the unit of work - Follow-up (F7) records what was done and plans what is next in one go, and can move the stage at the same time. Lost is deliberately not offered there - it needs its reason.
Moving and reassigning may need approval - Where a workflow says so, closing as Won or Lost, moving a stage, or handing the deal over waits for a senior's decision. A banner on the deal says it is waiting, with a button to open the request.
Deleting is not how you lose a deal - A lost deal moved to Lost stays in the reports and teaches you something. A deleted one takes its follow-ups and history with it.

7Shortcut keys #

F2 - Find - the deals you own and those shared with you.
F3 - Add a deal.
F4 - Modify.
F5 - Save, or, in a dialog, its own save.
F7 - Follow-up - what was done, what is next, and optionally a new stage.
Esc - Cancel the edit or close the dialog; in view mode it closes the tab.
Enter - Next field; across the product lines, and off the last cell it starts a new line.

8If something does not work #

"That record is not yours to see."

Why: The record belongs to somebody else's circle - its owner, their team lead, a sales manager, or somebody it is shared with. Reading it, its calls, its score or its telephone numbers is refused to anybody else, whichever screen asks.
What to do: Ask its owner to share it with you, or ask a sales manager to hand it over.

"That record is no longer there."

Why: The lead, contact or deal was deleted, or merged into another, after this screen read it.
What to do: Refresh the list and open it again.

"Say why the deal was lost before moving it to Lost."

Why: A lost deal records its reason - the lost-reason report reads it.
What to do: Pick a Lost reason and move it again.

"This opportunity is not yours to delete."

Why: Deleting a deal is for its owner or a sales manager.
What to do: Ask its owner, or a sales manager.

"Probability is a percentage - 0 to 100."

Why: The chance of winning was typed outside 0 to 100.
What to do: Type a number from 0 to 100.

"Say which lead or deal is handed over." / "Nothing changes - it already belongs to ..."

Why: Hand over needs a record and a new owner different from the present one.
What to do: Pick a different person, or close the dialog - it is already theirs.

"CRM is not licensed for this company ... Contact your software vendor."

Why: The company's licence has no CRM module.
What to do: Ask your vendor to add CRM, then sign out and in.

"Requested action denied due to security restrictions. Opportunities needs the View right on 'CRM Opportunities' in User Manager (CRM module)."

Why: Your login has no View right on CRM Opportunities.
What to do: An administrator grants it in User Manager.

"The opportunity cannot be saved yet:" and a numbered list

Why: One or more checks failed; every one is listed at once.
What to do: Work down the list.

"Lead: pick the lead this deal comes from - every deal starts as a lead. No lead yet? Add it on CRM > Leads first."

Why: The CRM keeps every deal answerable to an enquiry, so the source lead is required.
What to do: Pick the lead, or add it on CRM > Leads and convert it - conversion makes the deal for you.

"Name: give the deal a name a colleague would recognise."

Why: The Name box is empty.
What to do: Name it as it would be spoken about - the customer and what they are buying.

"Account: pick the account, or name the prospect the deal is with."

Why: Neither a ledger account nor a prospect name was given.
What to do: Pick the account if they are already a customer; otherwise type the prospect's name.

"Stage: pick where the deal stands." / "Owner: a deal must belong to an executive." / "Date: give the date the deal was opened."

Why: One of the three things every deal must have is missing.
What to do: Fill it in.

"Amount: it cannot be negative." / "Probability: it is a percentage - 0 to 100." / "Products: quantity and rate cannot be negative."

Why: A figure is out of its range.
What to do: Correct it. The probability is the stage's by default - change it only where this deal really differs.

"Lost reason: say why the deal was lost - it is what the lost-reason report reads."

Why: The stage chosen is a Lost stage and no reason was picked.
What to do: Pick the reason; add new ones on CRM > Masters.

"Lead: a disqualified lead cannot carry a deal. Re-open the lead first (Change status), or pick another."

Why: The source lead was disqualified after this deal was made.
What to do: Re-open the lead, or point the deal at another.

"Lead: that lead is not yours and has not been shared with you - or it is no longer there."

Why: The source lead is outside your reach.
What to do: Ask its owner to share it.

"This opportunity is not yours to change - ask its owner to share it with Edit access." / "... to delete."

Why: The deal is not yours, has no Edit share for you, and you are not a manager.
What to do: Ask for an Edit share, or ask a sales manager to hand it over.

"That opportunity is no longer there." / "The stage picked is no longer in the stage master."

Why: Somebody deleted the deal, or the stage, while you had it open.
What to do: Re-open the deal, or pick the stage again.

"You do not have the Create right on CRM Opportunities. Ask an administrator (User Manager > permissions > CRM)."

Why: The message names the right that is missing - Create, Alter or Delete.
What to do: An administrator grants it.

"Say what was done, or plan the next action." / "What was done: write a line about the follow-up." / "Next action: its date cannot be in the past."

Why: The follow-up dialog was saved half-filled.
What to do: Tick a half and fill it; a planned action needs a date that is not past.

"Pick the stage." / "Say why the deal was lost." in Move stage

Why: The move dialog needs the target stage, and a reason when that stage is Lost.
What to do: Pick both.

"... needs approval here (workflow '...'). Save it at an open stage, then use Move stage - that sends it for approval."

Why: Winning or losing a deal was attempted through the form, but a workflow holds that action.
What to do: Save at the present stage, then use Move stage (or drag the card on the board).

"... Convert the lead first (Convert on the lead page) - that sends it for approval - and the deal comes with it."

Why: Adding this deal would convert its lead, and conversion is held for approval here.
What to do: Convert from the lead page instead.

A banner saying the deal waits on an approval

Why: A request stands on this record until it is decided.
What to do: Follow it on CRM > Approvals.

"Pick the new owner, the new branch, or both." / "This deal is not yours to hand over."

Why: Reassign was pressed with nothing changed, or without edit access.
What to do: Change something, or ask a manager to hand it over.

The Stage list is short, or has no Won and Lost

Why: Stages come from CRM > Masters and only active ones are offered.
What to do: An administrator adds them there. Won and Lost cannot be deleted.

A deal I was told about is not in my list

Why: Deals follow the same reach as leads - yours, your team's, and what is shared.
What to do: Ask its owner to share it, or ask a sales manager.

"This opportunity is not yours and has not been shared with you - or it is no longer there."

Why: You opened a deal by link or number that is outside your reach - or it has been deleted since the link was made.
What to do: Ask its owner to share it; if it was deleted, it cannot be opened again.

9For an administrator #

Stages are your sales process - CRM > Masters > Stages: put them in order, give each a probability, and keep exactly one Won and one Lost stage. Everything downstream - the board, the funnel, the forecast - reads them.
Lost reasons - Agree a short list people will actually use. Twenty reasons means nobody chooses honestly.
Approvals - CRM > Approval Workflows holds Won, Lost, stage moves and hand-overs for a senior's decision, with conditions like amount or branch.

10Settings it uses #

CRM: approval workflows on/off (setting 252) - switches every CRM workflow, including the ones holding Won and Lost.

This is the help InvoiceNET® ERP shows beside the Opportunities screen. Whether you have the screen depends on the modules of your licence and the rights your administrator has given you.

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