Skip to main content
Mobius
Intermediate

What is an opportunity

Also known as: opportunities, sales opportunity, deal

Definition

A sales opportunity is a qualified prospect in active talks, recorded as a deal with a value, a stage and a chance to close, which can be high or low.

Why it matters

Opportunities are what you forecast from.

Common mistakes

Leaving dead deals open, so the forecast looks bigger than it is.

Related terms

Worked exampleIllustration

A deal card

Deal card

  • DealOffice renovation planning (example)
  • Value₪50,000
  • StageProposal sent
  • Chance to close, the studio's own history60%
  • Expected closeIn 3 weeks
  • Next stepCall on Tuesday

The forecast

  1. Value What the deal is worth if it closes.₪50,000

  2. Chance The deal is at Proposal sent. At that stage the studio's own history closes 60% of deals, and that number is not a rule.60%

  3. Forecast The value times the chance.₪50,000 × 60% = ₪30,000

The forecast counts ₪30,000, not ₪50,000.

Illustration

What the forecast counts

  1. Contact10%
  2. Qualified30%
  3. Proposal60%
  4. Negotiation80%

At Proposal the studio's own history closes 60% of deals, so this deal adds ₪30,000 to the forecast.

The chances are the studio's own history, not a rule. CRMs ship with defaults: HubSpot's default pipeline starts at 20% for Appointment scheduled and reaches 90% at Contract sent (HubSpot Knowledge Base). Replace them with your own history.

The studio's ₪50,000 deal from the example. Move it between stages: the value stays the same, the chance changes, and the forecast counts value times chance.

Four rungs to a customer

  1. Lead

    Showed interest and left a way to reach them.

  2. Prospect

    A lead you checked: they need it, can decide and pay, and want it soon.

  3. OpportunityThis page

    A prospect in active talks, recorded as a deal with a value, a stage and a chance to close.

  4. Customer

    Has paid.

Lead, prospect and opportunity are rungs of one ladder. You climb a rung by what the other side did, and most leads stop before the top.

Definition

A sales opportunity is a prospect in active talks about a specific purchase, recorded as a deal. The record says what the deal is worth, which stage it has reached and how likely it is to close. That chance comes from the stage, and it can be low or high. HubSpot's CRM calls the same record a deal.

Why it matters

Each one counts at its value times its chance of closing, not at its full value, so the list of open opportunities tells you roughly how much money is on the way. CRMs ship with default percentages for each stage: HubSpot's default pipeline starts at 20% for Appointment scheduled and reaches 90% at Contract sent. Replace them with your own history as soon as you have it.

Directly related: Prospect, Pipeline, Win Rate.

Improvement tips

  • Give every opportunity a value, a stage, an expected close date and one next step with a date.
  • Set the chance of each stage from your own closed deals, and update it every quarter.
  • Find out early what could stop the deal, while there is still time to answer it.

Common mistakes

  • Opening an opportunity for a lead nobody has checked yet.
  • Counting an opportunity at its full value instead of its value times its chance.
Lead vs Prospect vs Opportunity

Related terms

SalesBeginner

Prospect

A prospect is a lead you have checked and found to fit: they need what you sell, can decide and pay, and want it soon. BANT is one checklist for this.

SalesBeginner

Pipeline

A sales pipeline is the set of your open deals, each at its stage from first contact to closing. Weighted by each stage's odds, it forecasts revenue.

SalesIntermediate

Win Rate

Win rate is the share of decided deals that you won: won deals divided by won plus lost. Deals that are still open stay out until they are decided.

SalesIntermediate

Sales Cycle

A sales cycle is the time from a lead's first contact until the deal closes. For your cash, count it until the customer pays, which can be weeks later.

FinanceBeginner

Revenue

Revenue is everything a business sold in a period, before any costs and without the VAT on the invoice. It is the P&L's top line, not profit and not cash.

From the blog

Strategic Business Plan Your Team Will Follow

How to turn a business plan into a practical strategic roadmap with priorities, owners, metrics, buffers and a review rhythm your team will use.

Customer Journey Mapping: Find the Real Sales Leak

Map the customer path from first contact to payment and see where leads, proposals and follow-ups get lost, before you spend more on traffic.

Quick check

When does a prospect become a sales opportunity?

Choose an answer

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to track sales opportunities before I launch my startup?
Not yet. Before launch there are few deals to track. Find leads and learn who your ideal customer is. The first time someone asks for a proposal, open your first opportunity.
When does a prospect turn into a sales opportunity for a new business?
When the talk turns to a specific purchase: they agree to a meeting about it, ask for a quote or ask for a proposal. That is the moment to record it with a value and a stage.
How do I estimate the value of my first sales opportunity?
Multiply what they want by your standard price, for example the hours or units they asked about. Then write down the chance of closing separately, because the value alone is not a forecast.
Should an aspiring founder count opportunities as guaranteed revenue?
No. Many opportunities do not close, and the ones that do can close late. Count each one at its value times its chance, and plan your cash only on money that has arrived.
Why does tracking opportunities matter for a business already running?
It shows roughly how much money is on the way and which deals need you this week. In an illustrative example, a ₪50,000 deal at a 60% chance counts ₪30,000 in the forecast.
What goes wrong when a business has a lot of opportunities but low sales?
Deals stall late, or the list holds deals that are already dead. Check which stage they stop at. That stage is usually where the price, the proposal or the follow-up needs work.
How do I start managing sales opportunities without stopping my daily work?
Once a week, go over your open deals and write one next step with a date for each. A simple list like that moves deals forward without complex software.
What should I do with sales opportunities that have gone cold?
Send one short message asking whether their timing has changed or they chose another way. If there is no answer after a week, close the opportunity as lost so your forecast stays honest. You can always reopen it.
What does opportunity actually mean in plain words?
It is a deal you are actively talking about with someone who is seriously considering buying. You write down what they want, how much it is worth, where it stands and how likely it is to close.
Is managing sales opportunities complicated?
No. It means keeping track of who you are talking to, what they want to buy, how much it is worth, the stage it is at and when they plan to decide.
Do I need expensive CRM software to track sales opportunities?
No. For a small business a sheet with columns for the client, the value, the stage, the chance and the next step is enough. If you use a CRM such as HubSpot, the record is called a deal.
What is the difference between a prospect and an opportunity?
A prospect passed your check. An opportunity is the next step: you are talking with them about a specific purchase, and it has its own row in your deal list. Its chance of closing can still be low.

Sources: HubSpot Knowledge Base, "Set up and manage object pipelines", default deal stages and probabilities (knowledge.hubspot.com), Zorian Rotenberg, "Lead vs. prospect vs. sales opportunity: How to move from one to another?", HubSpot blog, updated 2026 (blog.hubspot.com)

Last reviewed: 2026-09-24

I have worked with

What Clients Say

From different fields, at different stages of business

Dan Manto

Eclipse Capital

Real Estate Investment and Finance, USA

Arty McLabin

GameReady

Game Development Education and Outsourcing, International

Anna, Beautician

Anna

Beautician

After I finished a cosmetology course at a leading company, I was confused. I didn't know how to open a business, what to sell from home, or how to bring in clients. Since I reached out to Mobius, everything has changed. We built an organized plan with clear steps and no unnecessary risks. Today I see results, and I'm growing and developing every month.

Mark, Massage therapist, Gan Yavne

Mark

Massage therapist, Gan Yavne

When I finished a massage course, I imagined a different world. I found out it's a hard field, and financial stability isn't easy to find. When I came to Mobius, something changed. We started an organized process and built a business plan. Without Mobius? I probably would have given up. Today I believe in myself and in my own path.

Want more of your leads to become customers?

Alex helps Israeli businesses build a sales process that closes. The first call is free.

+972 055-248-6151. Better on WhatsApp: I am in meetings most of the day and answer as soon as I am free.