Sales Opportunity Workflow

Why should we automate our sales opportunity tracking instead of using spreadsheets or email threads?

A spreadsheet or inbox doesn't enforce a consistent process or capture a timeline of what happened on each deal. This workflow creates a record for every opportunity with a reference number, current status, and a full history of tasks and decisions, so anyone can see where a deal stands without chasing the owner. It also removes manual status updates by moving the opportunity through Discovery, Solution Fit, Proposal, and Closed stages automatically as tasks are completed.

What is the ROI of adding a manager approval gate on proposals?

The commercial review step means proposals are checked by a sales manager before they go out, which can help catch pricing or terms issues before the customer sees them. If the manager rejects a proposal, the workflow routes straight back to the proposal preparation task for revision and resubmission, keeping the correction cycle inside the same record rather than starting a new thread. This structure supports more consistent proposal quality without adding extra steps for deals that are approved on the first pass.

How does this compare to manually notifying the onboarding team when a deal closes?

Instead of relying on the sales owner to remember to email customer success, the workflow automatically creates an onboarding task due in three days as soon as an opportunity is set to Closed Won. It also emails the owner to confirm the deal closed and that onboarding has started, so there's no gap between sales and delivery. This handoff happens the same way every time, regardless of who owns the deal.

Who is involved in this workflow, and what do they need to do?

The opportunity owner records discovery notes, the proposed solution and fit assessment, proposal value and terms, and the eventual close outcome and reason. The sales manager reviews and approves or rejects the proposal at the commercial review step. The customer success team picks up an onboarding task once a deal is closed won, and the main contact receives an emailed proposal summary once the proposal is approved.

What happens if the sales manager rejects a proposal?

The workflow routes to a revision step that restarts from the proposal preparation task, so the owner updates the proposal value and terms and resubmits it for commercial review. This keeps rejected proposals inside the same opportunity record rather than creating a separate process, and the record's timeline reflects each round of review.

Can we customise the stages, due dates, or fields collected on this workflow?

Yes. Changes can be made by describing the change in plain English or by editing the steps directly in the workflow editor, and earlier versions are kept so you can see what changed over time. This makes it straightforward to adjust due dates, add fields to a task, or change what's captured on the request form as your sales process evolves.

Does the customer need an account to interact with this workflow?

No account is required. The main contact receives an emailed proposal summary once their proposal is approved, and opportunities can be submitted through a public request form, so customers take part without needing to log in anywhere.

What information is kept on the opportunity record versus on individual tasks?

Because the owner and manager tasks in this workflow are ones the workflow waits for, everything entered — discovery notes, proposed solution, proposal terms, and close outcome — is saved directly onto the opportunity record. The onboarding task is fire-and-forget, so its onboarding notes stay with that task and appear in the record's task list rather than as a record-level field.

How is progress tracked across a full sales team's pipeline?

Each opportunity record has a status such as Discovery, Solution Fit, Proposal, Proposal Sent, Closed Won, or Closed Lost, and table views and dashboards show records grouped by these statuses. Workspace activity is also logged, giving managers a way to see task completion and status changes across the whole pipeline without asking owners for updates.

What data does this workflow record for reporting on win/loss reasons?

When an owner records the close outcome, they enter whether the deal was Closed Won or Closed Lost along with a reason, and both values are saved to the record. This, combined with the record's status and timeline, gives a consistent data set for reviewing win/loss patterns, though each business should confirm what additional reporting or retention obligations apply to its own sales data.