Lead workflow

1. 1New
2. 2Contacted
3. 3Qualified
4. 4Converted to Deal

Contacted

Use Mark Contacted after a meaningful call, email, meeting, or other first interaction. This distinguishes untouched enquiries from active conversations.

Qualified

Qualification confirms that the opportunity is suitable to progress. A Lead must be Contacted before it can be qualified through the normal workflow.

Convert to a Deal

Conversion connects the qualified Lead to the formal opportunity workflow. The form supports Deal details and the relevant Company, Contact, ownership, amount, currency, and expected close information. Successful conversion preserves the original Lead and Lead Number, and opens the resulting Deal.

Alternative outcomes

Future records preserve a future follow-up date and context. Not Qualified records retain the reason they did not progress. Appropriate lifecycle actions can re-engage or reopen Leads when circumstances change.

New to Contacted

A newly created Lead begins as New. Review the enquiry, create the first next action, and attempt meaningful contact. Mark Contacted only when an actual interaction establishes useful context. Record the call, email, meeting, WhatsApp interaction, or other touchpoint as an Activity when it matters to the relationship.

Contacted to Qualified

Qualification should reflect evidence of fit: a real requirement, a plausible customer, and a credible next step. For LD-000128, that might mean Rahul Sharma has shared the Acme Commerce website, confirmed an interest in Technical SEO, and agreed to a Growth Diagnostic discussion.

If the opportunity is real but delayed, use Future with an appropriate follow-up date instead. If it is unsuitable, use Not Qualified and preserve a useful reason. These outcomes keep reporting honest without deleting the Lead.

What conversion creates

Conversion preserves the original Lead and its Lead Number while creating or connecting the Company and Contact context required by the flow and creating the Deal. Enter a meaningful Deal title, owner, amount and currency when known, expected close information, and the appropriate initial Pipeline stage. Review the displayed Company and Contact rather than assuming similar names refer to the same record.

After conversion, continue commercial progress on the Deal. The Lead remains the originating record and should not be recreated merely because the opportunity is now in Pipeline.

Workflow discipline

At every state change, ask what evidence supports the change and what action follows it. A qualified Lead without a Deal conversion, or a converted Deal without a follow-up, can disappear from daily attention even though its status appears advanced.