Pipeline Management12% of the exam
Generating new pipeline
How reps keep new opportunities entering the pipeline: steady prospecting, inbound and outbound sources, referrals, events and current customers, the roles that create pipeline, and why qualified prospects beat raw volume.
Actively identify and generate new pipeline.
~7 min read · 6 practice questions ·
What the exam expects
- Explain why a rep keeps prospecting every week, even when this quarter's late-stage deals already cover quota.
- Tell inbound from outbound prospecting and add outbound sources when one inbound channel dries up.
- Pick quality pipeline sources: referrals, online communities and social platforms, events with follow-up, and cross-sell or upsell in current accounts.
- Match pipeline work to the right role (account executive, business development rep, sales development rep) and to the right marketing program.
- Choose fewer, researched, qualified prospects over a higher call or email count.
Key terms:
- Pipeline: the total dollar value of all the deals a sales team is working on, tracked on opportunity records.
- Prospecting: finding and developing potential customers; it builds the pipeline.
- Outbound prospecting: reaching out to people who have not contacted you yet.
- Inbound prospecting: following up with people who already showed interest, such as website visitors or newsletter sign-ups.
- Ideal customer profile: the industry, company size, location and pain points of the customers you want, used to filter prospects.
Key facts
Pipeline defined
- Detail
- Total dollar value of all deals the team is working, tracked on opportunity records
Leading indicator
- Detail
- Pipeline is the number one leading indicator of ACV
Outbound vs inbound
- Detail
- Outbound is cold outreach; inbound follows up on shown interest such as a newsletter sign-up
Healthy flow
- Detail
- New opportunities entering and won opportunities exiting
Who creates pipeline at Salesforce
- Detail
- AEs more than half; BDRs about a quarter (outbound); SDRs qualify inbound
Marketing's goal
- Detail
- Help sales drive high-quality pipeline
Event measurement
- Detail
- Pipeline registered, pipe in room, incremental pipeline after the event
Referral timing
- Detail
- Ask at the three-month check-in after a sale
Prospecting's goal
- Detail
- Attention and Interest: "Yes, I want to learn more"
Sources for this section (5)
- Build Your Pipeline Enginetrailhead.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Manage Your Sales Pipelinetrailhead.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Build a Healthy Sales Pipelinetrailhead.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Learn About the Sales Processtrailhead.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Learn About Strategic Prospectingtrailhead.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Why should a rep keep prospecting when this quarter is already covered?
- What separates inbound from outbound prospecting?
- When is a good time to ask a new customer for a referral?
- Why can fewer leads produce more revenue than a bigger call list?
The questions are free to read. Answers with their sources and self-grading are included with the pack.
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The free Agentforce Sales Foundations pack includes:
- All 21 lessons of the Agentforce Sales Foundations guide, with reading progress
- Interactive decision walks and step-by-step sequence steppers
- Inline practice questions and one-click topic practice (6 questions for this lesson)
- An official source cited for every claim
- An AI tutor that answers from the guide (uses credits)
- Unlimited timed practice exams
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