The sales team might have a hundred leads, but this number alone tells nothing. What matters is where these leads are and which ones are not progressing.
The Kanban view shows exactly this. Every lead is a card, every stage is a column; bottlenecks are visible at a glance.
In this article, we covered stage definition, Kanban usage, and reading conversion rates.
Table of Contents
Why Kanban?
The list view shows records; the Kanban view shows status. The difference is decisive for management.
The accumulation of cards in a column immediately reveals that there is a problem at that stage. In the list view, this is only noticed through filtering.
Changing the stage by dragging the card also reduces the data entry burden; the status is updated without opening a form.
Low entry burden means high data quality. A system that is easy to update stays up to date.
We covered CRM basics in the What is CRM article.
Defining Stages
The number of stages should be low. Too many stages lead to cards being moved unnecessarily and obscure the real status.
A typical structure is as follows: new lead, contacted, qualified, proposal sent, won, or lost.
The exit criteria for each stage must be clear. What needs to happen for a card to move to the next column must be in writing.
If the criteria are vague, the stages are interpreted subjectively, and reports become incomparable.
Lost records should also be marked with a reason; a loss without reason provides no learning.
What should appear on the card?
The card should carry the minimum information needed to make a decision. Too much is unreadable, and too little requires opening the card.
Company name, person in charge, last contact date, and next step; these four pieces of information are sufficient in most cases.
Estimated amount can also be added; column totals thus become meaningful.
The use of colors or labels makes priority visible; however, too many colors destroy distinguishability.
Source information is also valuable; which channel brings how many leads is analyzed later.
Catching stuck records
The greatest benefit of Kanban is making motionless cards visible.
If a card stays in the same column for weeks, there are two possibilities: either it is not being followed up, or it is actually lost.
An action is required in both cases. Cards left in ambiguity make the sales pipeline look fuller than it is.
An alert can be configured based on the time spent in a stage; cards exceeding a certain number of days are flagged.
We covered such automated checks in the automation rules article.
Assignment and ownership
Each lead must have a single person in charge. A lead assigned to two people is often called by no one.
Assignment rules can be defined by region, industry, or product group. This ensures fair distribution.
Automatic assignment of incoming leads shortens waiting times. The speed of first contact directly affects conversion.
If the person in charge changes, the history is carried along with the card; there is no loss of information.
Who sees which cards is determined by permissions; check out the role-based authorization article.
Reading the conversion rate
The conversion rate must be calculated separately for each stage. A single overall rate does not show where the problem lies.
If there is a high drop-off at the contact stage, the problem lies in lead quality. If there is a high drop-off at the proposal stage, the problem is in the pricing or presentation.
The average time spent in a stage should also be monitored; an extending duration indicates that the sales cycle is slowing down.
Source-based conversion determines where the marketing budget will go.
We covered the forecasting calculation on the opportunity side in the pipeline management article.
Weekly review routine
Kanban quickly becomes outdated if it is not checked regularly. A brief weekly review keeps the system alive.
In the meeting, stagnant cards are looked at first; either a next step or a closure decision is made for each.
Next, the cards in the proposal stage are reviewed; these directly affect the period forecast.
New leads are evaluated at the very end; all of them must have an assigned owner.
This routine should not exceed half an hour; prolonged meetings are abandoned. Records are kept in the CRM module.
Lead sources and quality
The quality of the cards on the board varies noticeably depending on the source they come from. When this difference is not measured, investments are made in the wrong channel.
Leads coming through referrals generally yield the highest conversion; however, their number is limited.
Leads coming through the website convert at a medium level and are a scalable source.
Fair and event lists provide volume; however, the qualification stage takes longer.
Purchased lists yield the lowest conversion and also carry risks in terms of consent.
Keeping source information on every card is the only thing that makes this comparison possible.
Mistakes that break the board
Defining too many stages.Continually moving cards conceals actual progress and increases the burden of records.
Never closing the cards.Records left open for years make the board unreadable.
Failing to assign an owner.Ownerless cards wait without ever entering anyone's agenda.
Failing to write down stage criteria.Cards moved according to everyone's own interpretation make reporting incomparable.
Looking at the board only during meetings.A board updated once a week does not contribute to daily decisions.
The common result of these mistakes is that the board shows a snapshot of the past rather than the truth.
Frequently asked questions
How many stages are ideal?
Four to six is sufficient for most businesses; having a clear exit criterion for each stage is more important than the number.
Should lost candidates be deleted?
They should not be deleted; they should be archived with the reason. These records form the basis of subsequent period analysis.
Can stages be changed later?
They can be changed; however, since comparison with past periods will be affected, it is recommended to do this at the beginning of a period.
Can candidates be imported from outside?
They can be imported; lead import we explained the method in the article.
The Kanban view is a simple yet effective tool that moves sales management from intuition to data. It is easy to set up, but maintaining it requires discipline.
Keep the number of stages low and write the exit criteria for each stage. These two rules ensure the long life of the setup.
Schedule the weekly review as well; a board that is not looked at quickly becomes a reflection that no longer reflects reality.
By consulting with the EQLEM teamYou can plan your candidate tracking workflow.