If you’re using MissionInbox to manage your sales, you already know the basics: deals move through pipeline stages, and (hopefully) you close more than you lose. But if your pipeline stages are a mess—or just copy-pasted from a template—you’re probably leaving money on the table. This guide is for sales managers, founders, and anyone who actually wants to see their conversion rates go up, not just look good in a dashboard.
Below, you’ll find a grounded walkthrough for optimizing your pipeline stages in MissionInbox. No jargon, no “one weird trick.” Just clear steps, a few warnings, and some honest advice.
Why Pipeline Stages Matter (and Where People Get It Wrong)
Most teams treat pipeline stages as a to-do list or a checkbox exercise. But if your stages don’t match how your real sales happen, you’ll get:
- Deals stalled in “Maybe” forever
- Reps confused about what to do next
- Garbage data—so reporting is useless
A solid pipeline isn’t about adding more stages or fancy names. It’s about making each stage reflect a real, meaningful step in your buyer’s journey. That way, you know where deals really stand and what needs to happen next.
Step 1: Map Your Actual Sales Process—Not the One in the Playbook
Before you touch MissionInbox, grab a notepad (or open a doc) and walk through how your last 5-10 deals actually closed—or didn’t. Look for real-world steps, not just the ones you wish happened.
Ask yourself: - Where do deals get stuck? - What’s the first thing that really counts as “in the pipeline”? - What has to happen before a deal moves forward?
Pro tip: Talk to your team—especially the folks who close the most. They’ll know where reality and your current stages don’t line up.
Ignore: Overly detailed flowcharts. You want the big steps, not every email or phone call.
Step 2: Clean Up Your Stages in MissionInbox
Now, log into MissionInbox and look at your current pipeline stages. Be honest—do they match the steps you just mapped out?
How to Edit Stages in MissionInbox
- Go to Settings > Pipelines. You’ll see your existing pipeline(s).
- Review each stage name and description. Ask: “Does this stage reflect a real-world milestone?”
- Rename, add, or remove stages as needed. Less is usually more. Aim for 5-7 stages, tops.
- Save changes. Don’t overthink it—remember, you can (and should) tweak later.
Example of a solid, simple pipeline: - Lead In - Contacted - Qualified - Proposal Sent - Negotiation - Closed Won/Lost
What to Watch Out For
- Too many stages: If you need a cheat sheet to remember what each one means, you’ve got too many.
- Vague names: “Follow Up” or “In Progress” tells you nothing. Be specific.
- Stuck deals: If most deals linger in one stage, you probably need to clarify what’s supposed to happen there—or split it up.
Step 3: Define Exit Criteria for Each Stage (a.k.a. “What Has to Happen?”)
A stage isn’t just a label—it’s a checkpoint. For each stage, write down the must-happen action or outcome before a deal can move forward.
How to do this: - In MissionInbox, use the stage description or an internal doc. - For each stage, finish this sentence: “A deal is ready to move forward when…”
Examples: - Qualified: “We’ve confirmed the prospect has budget, authority, and a timeline.” - Proposal Sent: “A written proposal has been sent to the main decision-maker.” - Negotiation: “Prospect has engaged in back-and-forth on pricing or terms.”
Pro tip: Make these criteria binary—either it happened, or it didn’t. No “sort of.”
Step 4: Align Your Team (Or Yourself)
Sticking to your new stages only works if everyone uses them the same way. Otherwise, your data is toast.
What works: - Hold a quick meeting to walk through the updated stages and criteria. - Share a cheat sheet with stage names and what they mean. - Encourage questions—if a stage isn’t crystal clear, fix it now.
What to ignore: Lengthy training sessions or 30-slide presentations. People learn by doing.
Step 5: Automate the Busywork (But Don’t Overdo It)
MissionInbox offers automation for moving deals, sending reminders, or updating fields. This can save you time—but don’t build a Rube Goldberg machine.
Good uses: - Auto-assigning tasks when a deal enters “Proposal Sent” - Setting reminders if a deal stays in “Qualified” for more than 10 days - Notifying the team when a deal is marked “Closed Won”
What doesn’t work: Trying to automate actual selling. You can’t “automate” a relationship or a negotiation.
Pro tip: Start with one or two simple automations, then add more only if you see a real need.
Step 6: Track, Review, and Tweak—Relentlessly
Your first crack at optimizing pipeline stages won’t be perfect. That’s normal. Set a calendar reminder to review your pipeline every month.
What to do: - Spot bottlenecks: Are deals piling up in a stage? - Check conversion rates between stages. - Ask your team (or yourself): Are the stages actually helping, or just busywork?
Warning signs: - Confusion about when to move a deal forward - “Phantom” deals that never move or close - Reports that don’t match what’s happening on the ground
If you spot a problem, fix it. Don’t wait for a quarterly review.
What to Skip (Seriously)
- Chasing “best practices” without context: What works for a SaaS company might not work for B2B services.
- Over-customizing for edge cases: Build for your bread-and-butter deals, not the one weird outlier.
- Making things look pretty for the sake of it: Fancy pipeline visuals don’t help if the stages are junk.
A Few Real-World Tips
- Keep it simple. The fewer stages you need to track, the more likely you’ll use them well.
- Document definitions. Even if it’s just a Google Doc, write down what each stage means.
- Listen to your top closers. They’ll spot nonsense faster than anyone.
- Review regularly. Your sales process will change—your pipeline should too.
Optimizing your sales pipeline stages in MissionInbox isn’t about finding the “perfect” setup. It’s about getting closer to reality, so your team knows what to do next—and your reporting actually means something. Don’t get bogged down in endless tweaks. Start simple, watch what happens, and keep refining. That’s how you’ll see real conversion gains—no hype, just results.