1. Marketing, Sales Force Automation, and Partners
  2. Sales Force Automation
  3. Opportunities and Estimates
  4. Opportunity Records
  5. Creating an Opportunity Record

Creating an Opportunity Record

When a sales rep creates an opportunity record they indicate which sales items the customer is interested in. The sales rep also enters a probability that the deal will close. NetSuite uses that probability to calculate a projected total. As the negotiations continue, the sales rep can create multiple estimates relating to the deal.

The most critical piece of pipeline information on an opportunity record is the probability that the deal will close. Probability determines the weighted amount of the deal, which shows on pipeline and forecast reports.

NetSuite determines the weighted total by multiplying the probability by the total amount of the items on the opportunity.

NetSuite adds the total weighted amount for all open estimates and opportunities to provide the revenue you will realize at period end. This amount is the pipeline total.

To delete a saved opportunity, from the Actions menu, click Delete. NetSuite adjusts the forecast data accordingly.

Note:

This is a non-posting transaction.

To create an opportunity:

  1. Go to Opportunities > Transactions > Opportunities > New.

  2. If you use custom opportunity forms, select the form to use in the Custom Form field.

  3. Under Primary Information:

    1. In the Title field, enter a name for this opportunity.

      NetSuite assigns a number to the opportunity. You can change this number.

    2. Select the customer or prospect in the Company field.

    3. Select a status for the opportunity.

      If a transaction other than an estimate is included in the opportunity, NetSuite sets the status to Closed – Won.

    4. Enter a probability that the deal will close. NetSuite uses this probability to determine the weighted total of the opportunity.

      • If you selected the status Closed Lost, the probability sets to 0%.

      • If you selected the status Closed Won, the probability sets to 100%.

    5. Enter the date you expect this opportunity to close.

    6. Select a win or loss reason. You can use this list to close an opportunity.

    7. When enabled, select a Sales Channel.

      To learn more, see Enabling Sales Channels.

  4. Under Forecasting:

    1. NetSuite calculates the projected opportunity total in one of the following ways:

      • If there are no items selected on the Items subtab and no included estimates or transactions, you enter a projected total.

        If you enter a projected total, it appears until you click Update Projected on the Estimates subtab.

      • If there are items selected on the Items subtab, but no included estimates or transactions, the total of the selected items is the projected total.

      • If there is one estimate associated with the opportunity and it is marked to include in forecasts, the estimate total is the projected total.

      • If there are multiple estimates associated with the opportunity, the projected total is the sum of all the estimates marked to include in forecasts.

    2. If you use the Advanced Forecasting feature, you can enter a range of amounts this deal might be worth.

      First, you must enable the Multiple Projected Amounts preference at Setup > Sales & Marketing Automation > Sales Preferences on the Forecast subtab.

      • The low amount entered must be lower than or equal to the projected amount in the Projected Total field. This amount is the Worst Case projected total.

      • The high amount must be greater than or equal to the Projected Total amount. This amount is the Upside projected total.

    3. If you use the Advanced Forecasting feature, in the Forecast Type field, select the forecast category you want this opportunity included in. For more information on forecast types, read Opportunities in the Forecast and Pipeline.

      The weighted total of the opportunity shows in the Weighted Total field.

      NetSuite calculates the weighted total by multiplying the projected total by the probability of close.

  5. Under Classification:

    If you track departments, classes, or locations, make the appropriate selections for this opportunity.

    Note:

    If you use NetSuite OneWorld and the selected customer is shared with multiple subsidiaries, you can choose any subsidiary assigned to the selected customer. For information about sharing customer records with multiple subsidiaries, see Assigning Subsidiaries to a Customer.

  6. On the Items subtab, this customer or prospect's currency appears in the Currency field.

    If you use the Multiple Currencies feature, select the currency you want to use for this transaction. Only the currencies set on the customer's record are available in this field. The customer's primary currency appears, by default. For more information, see Customers and Multiple Currencies.

    If you change the currency on the record, NetSuite updates prices and amounts to the currency you select.

  7. The exchange rate for this currency appears in the Exchange Rate field. You can enter a new exchange rate for this transaction, or you can update the currency's record with the exchange rate you enter here.

  8. In the Item column, select the item the customer is interested in, and then enter the quantity and other information for this item.

    NetSuite calculates the sales amount and alternate sales amount (ASA) automatically. The ASA column appears only if you use the Alternate Sales Amount feature. For more information, see Alternate Sales Amounts.

  9. Click Add.

  10. Repeat these steps for each item.

  11. Click the Relationships subtab:

    1. Select a contact in the Contact field.

    2. In the Decision Maker field, select the contact associated with this customer who is responsible for approving this purchase.

    3. Click Add.

    4. Repeat these steps for each contact you want to associate with this opportunity.

  12. Click the Partners subtab.

    The partner associated with this customer or prospect appears in the Partner field. However, you can choose a different partner for this opportunity.

    If you use the Multi-Partner Management feature, you can associate multiple partners with this transaction. For more information, see Associating Sales Teams with Customers and Transactions.

  13. Click the Competitors subtab.

    1. In the Name column, select a company that is competing with yours for the deal.

      You can create new competitor records at Lists > Competitors.

    2. Click Add

    3. Repeat these steps for each competitor.

  14. Click the Communication subtab.

    1. Create any events, tasks, or phone calls you want to associate with this opportunity.

    2. On the Files subtab, attach any files you want to associate with this opportunity.

    3. On the User Notes subtab, enter any internal notes related to this opportunity.

  15. Click the Sales subtab.

    1. The lead source associated with this customer or prospect appears in the Lead Source field. However, you can select a different lead source.

    2. Associate sales reps with this transaction in one of the following ways:

      • If you do not use the Team Selling feature, select the sales rep or sales group in the Sales Rep field.

        The sales rep or sales group associated with the customer on this transaction appears, by default.

      • If you use the Team Selling feature, click the Sales Team subtab.

        Select the sales team for this transaction. For more information, see Associating Sales Teams with Customers and Transactions.

    3. On the Qualification subtab, enter information regarding the ability and interest level of the customer to make the purchase. For more information, see Lead Qualification.

  16. Click Save.

After you save an opportunity record you can attach tasks, events, and other information related to the opportunity. You can also create estimates, sales orders, cash sales, and invoices to associate with the opportunity.

If you use the inline Edit feature, you can also edit opportunity records from the Opportunities list page. Click the information you want to change and make your changes. NetSuite automatically saves your changes on the opportunity record. For more information about editing inline, see Using Inline Editing.

As you work with opportunities, you can refine the projected total of the deal. You can add or remove items, change the probability and status, and competitors for the deal. For more information about opportunity records, see Using Opportunities.

Open opportunities appear on sales forecast reports, open opportunities reports, and sales forecast by quota reports.

Related Topics

Sales Forecasting

General Notices