One of the most important elements of CRM is the ability to track sales leads and opportunities – ensuring accurate forecasts and encouraging the right follow up activities to convert them into business.

As a sales rep finds out more information a lead, it is easy to capture. Probability (or weighting) ensures that funnel reporting gives management the most accurate forecast possible, and stages identify where you are in the sales cycle.

It is also easy for a rep to move prospects through the life cycle – from inquiry to quote to order – maintaining a complete history of all activities and negotiations along the way.

Sales managers have complete visibility into this information, helping them make reliable forecasts based on activities in the sales cycle that can be confidently fed into manufacturing planning.