Pipelines and stages in TatvaCRM

Updated 31 May 2026·6 min read

How to design pipelines and stages in TatvaCRM. Picking the right number of stages, naming them well, setting probabilities, and using stage rules to enforce process discipline.

A pipeline is the sequence of stages a deal moves through from first conversation to closed. Get this right and you have a forecast you can trust; get it wrong and you have busywork your team resents. This page covers picking stages, naming them, configuring probability, and using stage rules.

The 30-second answer

Most B2B businesses work well with 6-8 stages. Pick stages that match real changes in buyer commitment, not internal process milestones. Every stage needs a clear entry condition — “the deal can move here when X happens.” Don’t allow skipping stages.

What is a pipeline?

A pipeline is one sales process. If you sell software and consulting to two different buyer types, you might need two pipelines — they have different stages, different cycle times, different conversion rates. Most small businesses start with one and add more later if needed.

TatvaCRM lets you create multiple pipelines per workspace.

How many stages should I have?

Stage count	Verdict
2-3 (New / Working / Done)	Too coarse. You can’t see where deals get stuck.
4-5	Workable for very simple businesses. Most teams outgrow.
6-8	Sweet spot for most B2B businesses.
9-12	Acceptable for complex enterprise sales cycles.
13+	Too many. Your team will get the labels wrong. Consolidate.

How to name stages well

Two rules:

Name from the buyer’s side, not yours. “Demo Booked” describes a buyer action; “Sent Brochure” describes a seller action. The former is a real commitment; the latter is busywork.
Use verbs that imply commitment, not effort. “Trial Started” > “Trial Proposed.” “Contract Signed” > “Contract Sent.”

Example pipelines from our cast

Aditya at StoreWorks (B2B SaaS, 6-week cycle)

Discovery — first qualifying call done
Demo Booked — demo on calendar
Trial Started — they’re using the product
Proposal Sent — pricing options sent
Negotiation — discussing terms
Contract Sent — paper out
Closed-Won — signed
Closed-Lost — they said no

Rajiv at Pragati Capital (debt advisory, 3-9 month cycle)

Scoping — understanding what they need
Mandate Signed — paid upfront fee, work begins
Structuring — internal modelling of the deal
Banker Outreach — pitching to lenders
Term Sheet Negotiation — comparing and pushing back
Documentation — legal + final due diligence
Disbursement — money in client’s account
Closed-Won — success fee invoiced
Closed-Lost — mandate didn’t close

Setting probability per stage

Probability is the rough chance a deal at that stage will close. TatvaCRM uses it for the weighted forecast number. Defaults work for most teams; tune them after 50+ closed deals.

Discovery: 10%
Qualified / Demo: 25-40%
Trial / Proposal: 50-60%
Negotiation: 70-80%
Contract Sent: 90%
Closed-Won: 100% (locked)
Closed-Lost: 0% (locked)

After you have data, compare expected vs actual close rates per stage. If your “Proposal Sent” stage actually closes at 35% — not 60% — adjust the probability.

Stage rules and gates

You can configure rules per stage:

Required fields to enter stage — e.g. a deal can’t move to Proposal Sent without a populated value and expected close date
Required activity — e.g. moving to Demo Booked requires at least one logged call
Approval needed — e.g. discounts over 20% need manager approval before reaching Contract Sent
Auto-create follow-up task — e.g. when a deal enters Trial Started, auto-create a “Check in on day 7” task

Configure these from Settings → Pipelines → [Pipeline name] → Stage rules.

Don’t over-constrain stages early

Stage rules are useful once your team has settled into a process. In month one, every rule feels like friction. Start with no rules, add them after week 4 once you’ve seen which stages get gamed (deals jumped without doing the work).

When to add a second pipeline

Reasons to split into two or more pipelines:

Genuinely different sales motions — e.g. new-business vs expansion (existing customers buying more)
Different products with very different cycles — fast-moving SaaS vs long-cycle services
Different buyer types — SMB self-service vs enterprise high-touch

Don’t split for: different industries (use tags or a custom field), different regions (use teams), different sizes (use a tier field).

Common questions

“Can I add a stage in the middle of an existing pipeline?”

Yes — but be careful. Deals already past the insertion point don’t auto-move. Decide what to do with them: leave them where they are, or bulk-move them to the new stage if it makes sense.

“What happens when I delete a stage?”

TatvaCRM asks where to move the deals currently at that stage. Pick another stage (or Closed-Lost if the stage was always a dead end). Activity history stays intact.

“What does ‘stuck deal’ mean?”

A deal that has sat in the same stage longer than your stuck-threshold (default: 21 days). TatvaCRM flags these in the Pipeline view with a red dot. Reach out, update the stage, or close-lost — but don’t leave deals stuck forever.