If you’ve ever felt boxed in by a generic CRM sales pipeline, you’re not alone. Most tools force teams into a one-size-fits-all workflow that doesn’t match how real sales conversations unfold. This guide is for sales managers, founders, and anyone tired of wrestling with inflexible software. We’ll walk through how to build your own custom sales pipelines using Fiber, a CRM that doesn’t fight back when you want to tweak things.
No big promises, no magic bullets—just a clear way to set up a pipeline that works for you, not the other way around.
1. Know What You Want in a Sales Pipeline (Don’t Skip This)
Before you even touch Fiber, get clear on your actual workflow. Otherwise, you’ll just recreate the same clunky process you’re trying to escape.
Ask yourself (and your team):
- What stages do deals actually go through? (Not what should happen—what really does.)
- Who needs to know about each deal, and when?
- Are there any steps you always skip or fudge? (Be honest.)
Pro Tip:
Keep it simple. The most common mistake is adding too many stages. If your team can’t remember what each stage means, you’ll end up with messy, unreliable data.
Write these stages down. Seriously. Pen and paper, whiteboard, Google Doc—doesn’t matter. You’ll thank yourself later.
2. Sign Up and Get Oriented with Fiber
If you don’t already have a Fiber account, sign up and poke around for a few minutes. Fiber’s interface is pretty straightforward—think Kanban boards, customizable fields, and not a lot of hidden menus.
What you won’t find:
- A million confusing settings
- Locked-down workflows you can’t change
- Annoying upsells every two clicks
You will find: - Boards for deals - Drag-and-drop stages - Custom fields (more on these soon)
Don’t worry about entering real data yet. The goal right now is to see how Fiber’s pipeline view works and get comfortable moving deals around.
3. Build Your First Custom Pipeline
Time to put your workflow into practice.
Step 1: Create a New Pipeline
- In Fiber, go to your main dashboard.
- Click “New Pipeline” or “Add Pipeline” (the button is usually easy to spot).
- Give your pipeline a name that actually makes sense. “Sales Pipeline” is fine, but if you have multiple sales motions (e.g., inbound/outbound, renewals), name them clearly.
Step 2: Set Up Stages
- Add each stage you wrote down earlier as a column.
- Don’t add stages just because they look “official.” If you skip “Demo Scheduled” 80% of the time, leave it out.
- You can rename or rearrange stages at any time—nothing’s set in stone.
What works:
- 4–7 stages is plenty for most teams.
- Use plain English: “Initial Call,” “Proposal Sent,” “Negotiation,” “Closed Won,” etc.
What to ignore:
- Fiber might offer pre-set templates. These are fine to start, but don’t be afraid to delete or rename things so they match reality.
4. Customize Fields for Real-World Data
Every deal is a little different. Fiber lets you add custom fields to capture what matters for your sales process.
Step 1: Add Custom Fields
- Click into a deal card, then look for options like “Add Field” or “Customize Fields.”
- Decide what you need to track. Examples:
- Deal size
- Key contacts
- Source (how did this lead find you?)
- Contract renewal date
- Special requirements (e.g., “Needs legal review”)
What works:
- Fewer fields = more consistent data. Only track what you’ll actually use.
- Dropdowns for things like “Lead Source” or “Priority” keep things tidy.
What to ignore:
- Don’t bother with fields you’re not going to use in reporting or coaching. Empty fields just clutter things up.
Step 2: Remove the Junk
- Delete any default fields that aren’t relevant. “Fax Number” is a classic example—unless you’re selling to 1997.
- Ask your team what data they never fill in and get rid of it.
5. Set Up Basic Automation (Without Going Overboard)
Fiber has some simple automation options, but don’t get sucked into automating everything right away. Start with things that save everyone obvious headaches.
Easy Wins
- Reminders: Set up follow-up reminders when a deal moves stages.
- Notifications: Get pinged when a deal is marked “Closed Won” or “Closed Lost.”
- Auto-assign: If you have multiple reps, assign deals based on rules (e.g., round-robin or territory).
What works:
- Automate the boring stuff—follow-ups, nudges, notifications.
- Check what’s actually being used after a week. If nobody’s paying attention to a certain notification, kill it.
What to ignore:
- Fancy multi-step automations unless you have a real need. Most teams get more value from just a couple of well-placed reminders.
6. Invite Your Team and Set Permissions
No pipeline survives first contact with the team. Get people in early so they can break things (in a good way).
- Invite team members and assign roles (admin, rep, manager, etc.)
- Set permissions: Who can edit stages? Who can delete deals?
- Ask for feedback after a week. What’s confusing? What’s missing? What’s pointless?
Pro Tip:
The “set it and forget it” approach never works. Plan to revisit your pipeline structure after a month, once you’ve seen what actually happens.
7. Use and Adjust—Don’t Let It Gather Dust
This is where most teams drop the ball: they launch a shiny new pipeline, but three months later, it’s a graveyard of stale deals.
To keep your pipeline useful:
- Set a regular time (weekly or biweekly) to review deals as a team.
- Actually move deals between stages—don’t let it get out of sync with reality.
- If a stage is always empty, or nobody uses a field, kill it off.
What works:
- Short, regular pipeline reviews.
- Celebrating when deals move to “Closed Won”—keep it visible.
What to ignore:
- Overcomplicated dashboards. You need clarity, not a data science project.
8. Reporting and Next-Level Tweaks
Fiber has basic reporting built in: deal velocity, conversion rates by stage, win/loss analysis, and so on. Use these to spot bottlenecks (e.g., deals stuck in “Proposal Sent” for weeks).
Tips for Useful Reports
- Focus on trends, not one-off numbers.
- Look for stages where deals get stuck or die.
- Use data to ask better questions (“Why did we lose all those deals in May?”).
If you need more advanced analytics:
Fiber integrates with tools like Google Sheets or exports to CSV. Don’t try to turn Fiber into Salesforce—it’s not meant for 100 custom dashboards.
Wrap-Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Building a custom sales pipeline in Fiber isn’t hard, but it’s easy to overthink. Start with the basics, get your team using it, and tweak as you go. The best pipeline is the one people actually use every day—not the one with the most bells and whistles.
Don’t chase perfection. Stay nimble, keep gathering feedback, and make changes as your sales process evolves. That’s how you get a pipeline that actually helps you close deals, not just track them.