topic Create an appropriate Sales Pipeline in Tips, Tricks & Best Practices

Create an appropriate Sales Pipeline

MClarke00 — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:45:55 GMT

Hi all,

I am the only sales person and the only user of hubspot in our business and its used primarily to track contact activity with customers. I also use it to monitor our quote activity to our live and propect customers.

We sell a manufactured construction product/service rather than individual products and im looking to create a sales pipeline so I can demonstrate the stages to our design and estimating team. I'm unsure whether this should be created within tickets, deals or somewhere else as tickets and deals can only show live quotes rather than the early stages of a sales process (identify, research, 1st contact etc).

Can anyone offer suggestions or advice?

Many thanks

Re: Create an appropriate Sales Pipeline

karstenkoehler — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:54:04 GMT

Hi @MClarke00,

Could you explain in a bit more detail what this process looks with the design and estimating team? Are those stages you mention for a later prospect / customer or is this a purely internal process?

If these early stages evolve into a buyer's journey / sales process, then the lead object (Sales Hub Professional and Enterprise only) or the deal object (free tier and upwards) is a good choice. For purely internal processes, typically tickets are a better choice.

Best regards

Re: Create an appropriate Sales Pipeline

MClarke00 — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 09:10:12 GMT

Thanks for a prompt response.

What happens with prospects is pretty much the same in most sales organisations where its generate the lead, research the business, approach for meeting before invite to tender.

When we have an invite to price its then submit, follow, close as won/lost.

I cant see anywhere on hubspot where I can show prospects in particular at the early stages prior to having an invite to tender. I'm currently detailing this in sperate colums on a spreadsheet but recording activity in hubspot in their contact page.

Re: Create an appropriate Sales Pipeline

karstenkoehler — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 09:15:27 GMT

@MClarke00 then I would handle this with deals if you're on the HubSpot free CRM. You have full flexibility over defining those early stages and, as you go, later, you could change the associations of the deal. It could start without associated contacts and company, later on you do assign contacts and company.

For internal communication, you could write notes on that deal and tag other HubSpot users by typing the @ character and their name.

Best regards!