How to build a sales pipeline from scratch (CRM playbook for new businesses)

If you're under ₹1 cr ARR and have no formal pipeline, fixing this is the highest-ROI 4 hours you'll spend this quarter. Here's the lean setup.

Step 1: Pick 5-7 stages

Lead, Qualified, Proposal Sent, Negotiation, Won, Lost. Optional: Demo Scheduled before Qualified. Don't overcomplicate — every extra stage is friction salespeople won't maintain.

Step 2: Define stage gates (what unlocks the next stage)

Lead → Qualified: confirmed budget + need + timeline. Qualified → Proposal: written quote sent. Proposal → Negotiation: customer asked for changes. Negotiation → Won: signed. Gates prevent stage inflation.

Step 3: Define mandatory fields per stage

Lead: name, phone, source, product. Qualified: budget range, decision-maker, timeline. Proposal: quote amount, expected close date. Each stage adds 1-2 fields. Auto-validate so blanks block stage progression.

Step 4: Set up the CRM Kanban view

Drag-and-drop board. Each column = a stage. Each card = a deal. Card colour = age (green <7 days, yellow 7-14, red >14). Visual triage saves hours of weekly review.

Step 5: Add automated activity reminders

If no activity in 7 days, auto-create a 'Follow up with {customer}' task. If no activity in 14 days, flag the deal to the manager. Stale deals never move themselves.

Step 6: Train salespeople on stage hygiene

Pipeline review every Monday. Anything misclassified is rebuilt. After 4-6 weeks the team self-polices because they don't want to be embarrassed in pipeline review.

Frequently asked questions