Forecast Category is a group assigned to an opportunity based on the opportunity stage inside the sales cycle. The standard forecast categories are Pipeline, Best Case, Commit, Omitted, and Closed.

Today, in this blog, CloudVandana will provide an essential guide about Forecast Category in Salesforce.

The Forecast category field in Salesforce defines each sales opportunity based on the salesperson’s confidence to win the deal. This is different from the opportunity stage field that describes the pipeline based on the current position in the sales process.

Opportunity owners can adjust the Forecast Category on each opportunity to close deals faster. This can be done without changing the opportunity stage. The Forecast Categories give an additional sales funnel insight at the individual deal level.

Forecast Categories

Pipeline

A few opportunities will close successfully within the current period. The pipeline category means the early stage of the buying process and needs further development.

Best Case

This category means there is work to do to advance these opportunities. These sales deals are qualified, and the opportunity has an embedded close plan.

Commit

Commit means the salesperson is confident of a successful outcome, and in some exceptional cases, do these opportunities slip from the current period. However, anyone can rely on these opportunities in the sales forecast.

Closed

Closed are the results of the successful opportunities. Therefore, no more sales effort is needed at this stage.

Omitted

These opportunities are called Omitted when they are lost or qualified out, but other options, renewal deals, etc., are sometimes allocated to this category.

Connection Between Forecast Category And Opportunity Stage

Every opportunity has a pre-defined Forecast category in Salesforce. The simple way to see this is by considering the area of the opportunity stage field.

In this case, we have five pipeline stages.

Reasons To Adopt This Platform

Let’s have a look at the key reasons to adopt Forecast categories.

1. Upward Communication

In most companies, board and executive reporting adopt Forecast Categories. The board receives the opportunity stage concept. If there are different opportunity stages for other deals, then it is also a unique way to summarize sales forecast reports.

2. Commitment Of Salespeople

If the sales team uses the Commit concept, then this platform is essential for reporting on those deals. Salespeople must identify the pipeline opportunities to close deals faster. This helps salespeople to ensure the leads don’t fall from the crack.

3. Separation Process From Internet

This stage reflects the selling process. Though it is not associated with the customer buying process. Forecast categories abstract the opportunity from the sales process. Forecast Categories reflect confidence by the salesperson in the intention of the customer. Managers can examine the pipeline by sales process and the salesperson’s confidence.

Are you looking for a registered Salesforce Partner for a successful Salesforce implementation and availing all the benefits of this CRM platform? Please reach out to CloudVandana and get a free consultation call to enhance your organization.