Sales
Define Sales Stage Exit Criteria Buyers Can Actually Meet
Define sales stage exit criteria using buyer evidence, with an original stage dictionary and five-opportunity classification exercise.
What you will learn
- Distinguish seller activity from buyer progress.
- Write entry, exit and return conditions for a sales stage.
- Classify opportunities using evidence rather than optimism.
A sales stage should describe the buyer's progress, not just the seller's activity. “Demo delivered” records an event. “Buyer confirmed the evaluated workflow meets the agreed requirement” records a different level of evidence. Define the distinction before using stages to review a pipeline.
Write a stage dictionary, not just stage names
GitLab's commercial opportunity handbook documents stage activities and exit criteria. Its specific stages belong to GitLab's process. The original dictionary below is a fictional teaching example, not a universal sales model.
For each stage, record its purpose, entry evidence, exit evidence, working owner, required record and return condition. Decide how to handle paused evaluations, changed scope and a buyer choosing not to proceed. A stage should not become irreversible simply because it looks better in a report.
Keep the source and date beside an important confirmation. A note saying “qualified” is not enough for another seller to understand what was verified.
A fictional three-stage dictionary
| Stage and purpose | Entry evidence | Exit evidence | Return or pause condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Understand: establish an active problem | A buyer agrees to discuss a current workflow | Problem, affected owner and a useful evaluation question are confirmed | No active problem or no permission to continue |
| Evaluate: test a defined fit question | Buyer accepts the question, reviewer and evaluation format | Reviewer records what passed, what failed and remaining questions | Changed scope, missing input or failed critical requirement |
| Decide: resolve the buying choice | Fit evidence is available and decision participants are identified | An actual buying outcome is recorded under the team's approved policy | New requirement reopens evaluation or buyer pauses the process |
A person can own follow-through without having authority to accept the buyer's result. Write that boundary down. Do not let a seller's task completion stand in for another person's review.
Classify five fictional opportunities
- Demo sent, no agreed question: stay in Understand. Sending a demonstration is not proof that evaluation is underway.
- Buyer accepts one test and names a reviewer: Evaluate, assuming the recorded entry evidence is complete.
- Reviewer confirms fit but budget owner is unknown: fit has evidence; decision participation is still unresolved. Do not label the purchase approved.
- New requirement invalidates the old test: return to the relevant evaluation boundary and preserve the previous result.
- Buyer says the project is paused: record the pause and any agreed re-entry condition; do not manufacture a close date.
The answer key is intentionally about evidence, not a numerical probability. A pipeline stage does not automatically establish a forecast category or the likelihood of a win.
Copyable AI prompt
Try this with Aurora AI in Finta, Codex, or Claude. Use only material you are authorized to share, and review the draft before using it.
Review [authorized opportunity records] against [approved stage dictionary]. Return current stage, source-backed entry/exit evidence, unknowns, proposed return/pause conditions and the next buyer decision. Separate seller activity from buyer confirmation. Do not invent a probability, buying authority or close date. Produce proposed classifications for human review; do not move CRM records.Keep stage changes useful in a review
Ask what changed since the last review, which evidence supports the present stage and which next buyer decision matters. If the only update is another seller email, the stage may be unchanged.
Use a small sample of opportunities to test whether two people apply the dictionary consistently. When they disagree, fix the definition or missing evidence rather than averaging their opinions. Review the process when the product or buyer journey materially changes.
Keep the broad B2B sales guide central for the overall process. Use the forecasting guide for outcome/date scenarios and discovery questions to resolve missing evidence. These are related jobs, not interchangeable stage labels.