If you’re reading this, you probably already know that out-of-the-box sales pipelines almost never fit the way your B2B business actually works. Maybe you’re tired of cramming your deals into someone else’s process, or maybe you’re moving off a spreadsheet and don’t want to lose the quirks that make your go-to-market strategy work. Either way, you’re looking at Beautiful and wondering how to bend its pipeline stages to your will.
Let’s cut through the fluff and get into the nuts and bolts: how to customize pipeline stages in Beautiful so your team isn’t fighting the tool, and your pipeline actually matches how you sell.
Why Custom Pipeline Stages Matter (and When They Don’t)
Before you dive in, it’s worth asking: do you really need to customize pipeline stages? Here’s the thing—every CRM claims you’ll “unlock efficiency” by tailoring your sales process, but over-customizing can just lead to confusion and busywork. The real value is making your pipeline stages map to the natural flow of your deals, not some idealized process from a sales book.
When custom stages help: - You have a non-standard sales motion (think pilots, multi-step procurement, or heavy legal reviews). - You sell to multiple buyer personas with different sales cycles. - You want reporting that actually means something to your team.
When to leave it alone: - You’re just getting started. Start simple, then tweak. - You’re following a dead-simple sales process (e.g., cold outreach → discovery → closed). - Your team is already drowning in too many fields and stages.
Bottom line: Custom stages are a tool, not a goal. Don’t add friction for the sake of “process.”
Step 1: Map Out Your Real-World Sales Process (Away from Beautiful)
Don’t start in Beautiful. Seriously. You’ll just end up copying someone else’s pipeline or fiddling with settings you don’t need.
Here’s what works:
- Grab a whiteboard or Google Doc. Map the actual path deals take, warts and all.
- Talk to your team. Especially the ones who close deals or chase dead leads. They know where the real friction is.
- List every major handoff or decision point. These are your stage candidates.
Pro tip:
Stages should reflect meaningful progress (e.g., “Proposal Sent” = you’ve actually sent a proposal, not just thought about it). Skip “maybe someday” stages like “Prospect Thinking About Us.”
Step 2: Translate Your Steps Into Beautiful’s Pipeline Stages
Now, pull up Beautiful and head to your pipelines. Ignore the default stages for a minute—they’re there because someone had to pick something.
To customize pipeline stages in Beautiful:
- Go to Settings → Pipelines.
- Select your pipeline (or create a new one if you sell multiple things).
- Click “Edit Stages.”
- Rename, reorder, or delete existing stages. Don’t be shy about deleting.
- Add new stages as needed. Use your mapped process, not Beautiful’s defaults.
A few guidelines: - Fewer stages = better. Aim for 5–7. Any more and you’ll end up with “stuck” deals. - Name stages by actions, not feelings. - Good: “Demo Completed” - Bad: “Interested” - Each stage should answer this: What’s happened that’s different from the last stage?
What to ignore:
Don’t overthink color-coding or icons. They’re nice, but won’t win you deals.
Step 3: Add Stage-Specific Fields and Requirements Sparingly
Beautiful lets you add custom fields or required actions for each stage. Sounds powerful, but be careful—too many required fields and your team will start making up data just to move deals along.
Use these features for: - Critical info (e.g., legal contact in “Contract Sent” stage) - Stage-specific notes (e.g., “Pilot start date”)
Skip it for: - Anything you “might want later” - Vanity metrics (“How did you hear about us?” at every stage)
Pro tip:
If you’re not using a field in your weekly pipeline review, it probably doesn’t belong.
Step 4: Test Your Stages With Real Deals
Don’t wait for “perfect.” Take your new pipeline for a spin with a few real deals.
- Move deals through each stage. Does anything feel awkward or forced?
- Ask your team: Are any stages unclear? Do they create extra work?
- Watch for “stuck” deals. If a stage is a graveyard, it’s probably too vague or unnecessary.
What works:
Iterate fast. It’s better to tweak one stage at a time than to overhaul everything after three months of frustration.
Step 5: Use Reporting to Validate (Not Justify) Your Stages
Beautiful’s reporting tools are only as good as the pipeline they’re built on. Once your team’s using the new stages, check if your reports actually mean something:
- Can you spot bottlenecks? (e.g., “We lose most deals at ‘Legal Review’”)
- Do win rates by stage make sense?
- Are stages helping you forecast, or just adding noise?
If the data’s messy, revisit your stages. Don’t be afraid to cut or combine if you’re not getting value.
Don’t bother with: - Fancy dashboards until your stages are working. - Overcomplicated “reason lost” fields—they rarely get filled out honestly.
Common Pitfalls (And How to Avoid Them)
- Too many stages: If your pipeline looks like a to-do list, it’s time to trim.
- Ambiguous stage names: If “Negotiation” means ten different things, split it up or define it.
- Forgetting post-sale steps: B2B sales often include onboarding or implementation—don’t ignore these if they’re part of your process.
- Letting the tool dictate your process: Beautiful is flexible, but don’t assume its defaults are “best practice” for you.
Real-World Examples
Here are a few B2B-specific pipeline setups that actually work:
Classic SaaS: 1. Discovery Call Scheduled 2. Needs Analysis Complete 3. Demo Completed 4. Proposal Sent 5. Negotiation 6. Closed Won/Lost
Enterprise Sales (with pilots): 1. Initial Meeting 2. Technical Evaluation 3. Pilot Launched 4. Pilot Complete 5. Procurement Review 6. Contract Sent 7. Closed Won/Lost
Agency or Services: 1. Inquiry Received 2. Qualification 3. Scope Defined 4. Proposal Sent 5. Verbal Commit 6. Contract Signed
Notice: None of these have more than 7 stages, and each stage reflects real progress.
Final Thoughts: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Customizing pipeline stages in Beautiful isn’t about building a fancy process—it’s about making your sales workflow actually work for your team. Start with the real-world steps your deals go through, strip out anything that’s just noise, and don’t be afraid to change things as you learn.
If you find yourself spending more time tweaking your pipeline than closing deals, pull back. The goal is to sell more, not to win a pipeline design award. Start simple, check in with your team, and keep refining. That’s how you build a pipeline that helps, not hinders, your unique B2B go-to-market strategy.