Workflow: Lead → Cash

Modules involved: Leads · Opportunities · Proposals · Contracts · Invoices · Payments
Who uses it: SDR, Sales Agent, Sales Manager, Finance
Typical duration: 1 day – 6 months (depends on the sales cycle)

Overview

This is the core sales workflow in CRMConnect: from the first contact with a prospect to collecting payment. Each stage has a dedicated module; transitions between modules are made through explicit actions (conversion, creation from an existing record) that preserve the full history.

Flow diagram

[LEAD]
  │  configurable status (pipeline + stage)
  │  ↓ Converted to Opportunity (manual, "Add Opportunity" button)
  │
[OPPORTUNITY]
  │  status: configurable from Settings → Opportunity Statuses
  │  ↓ Create Proposal (from opportunity or directly)
  │
[PROPOSAL]
  │  Draft (6) → Sent (4) → Reviewed (1) → Accepted (3)
  │                                       ↘ Rejected (2) / Revised (5)
  │  ↓ Converted to Invoice OR to Sales Order
  │
[CONTRACT] ←── optional, created from an accepted Proposal or independently
  │  digitally / manually signed
  │
[INVOICE]
  │  Draft (6) → Sent (1) → Partially Paid (3) → Paid (2)
  │                         ↘ Overdue (4) / Cancelled (5)
  │
[PAYMENT]
  │  recorded manually or via gateway
  │
[CLOSED - WON ✓]

Step by step

1. Lead — Capturing the prospect

Where: /admin/leads

How a lead enters:

Manually: Add Lead button from the leads list
Web form: embed /admin/leads/forms on your website
Email pipe: email sent to the capture address configured at /admin/leads/email_integration
Excel import: /admin/excelimport
Facebook Lead Ads: automatically via the /admin/facebookleadsintegration integration
Workflow automation: trigger on external event

Key fields at creation:

Field	Required	Notes
Name	Yes	Contact person
Company	Recommended	Prospect's organization
Email / Phone	Recommended	At least one of the two
Status	Yes	Configurable statuses from `/admin/leads/statuses`
Pipeline	Yes	Groups leads by sales workflow
Source	Recommended	For ROI reporting by channel
Assigned to	Recommended	The allocated agent

Lead statuses are fully configurable — there are no fixed values. Common examples: New, Contacted, Qualified, Demo Scheduled, Proposal Sent. Leads can be manually marked as Lost (with a reason) or Junk without being deleted.

Actions on a lead:

Add note, call, email, SMS from the activity tab
Set a follow-up reminder
Attach files
Associate with a marketing campaign
Edit custom fields

2. Opportunity — Qualifying the prospect

Where: /admin/leads (filter: Opportunities) or /admin/opportunities

How it is created: From an open lead, use the Convert to Opportunity button (or Add Opportunity directly). Contact data is copied automatically; the lead remains active and displayed separately.

Technically, opportunities are leads with the is_opportunity = 1 flag. They appear in the Opportunities list, not in the Leads list.

Additional fields to fill in:

Field	Notes
Estimated value	Potential transaction amount
Opportunity status	Configurable from `/admin/opportunities/statuses`
Estimated close date	For sales forecasting
Probability (%)	Contributes to the weighted pipeline

Actions:

Proposal created directly from the opportunity (automatically populates the client and value)
Notes and activities separate from the original lead

3. Proposal — Quoting

Where: /admin/proposals

How it is created:

From an opportunity: Create Proposal button — pulls contact data and value
From a lead: similar
Directly from the menu: /admin/proposals/list_proposals → Add

Proposal statuses:

Code	Status	When it appears
6	Draft	On creation; not visible to the client
4	Sent	After pressing Send (automatic email with portal link)
1	Reviewed	Client opened the link from the portal
7	(sent manually)	Status change without email
3	Accepted	Client clicks Accept in portal OR you change it manually
2	Rejected	Client clicks Reject in portal OR you change it manually
5	Revised	Client requests changes

An expired proposal (past the open_till date) can no longer be accepted by the client from the portal.

What a proposal contains:

Product/service lines with quantity, unit price, taxes, discount
Terms and conditions
Digital signature (optional)
Attached files
Internal notes

Proposal → invoice conversion:
When the proposal is Accepted, the Convert to Invoice button appears (or Convert to Sales Order). All lines are automatically copied into the new document. The link is maintained: proposals.invoice_id → invoices.id.

4. Contract — The legal document (optional)

Where: /admin/contracts

When it is used: Contracts are not mandatory in the workflow — some companies go directly from Proposal → Invoice. Contracts are relevant when there is a recurring written commitment or a SLA.

How it is created:

From an accepted proposal: Create Contract button
Independently: from the Client Documents menu

Digital signature: if the Document Management module or the contract signature functionality is enabled, the client receives a link and signs electronically.

Contract statuses: configurable. Examples: Draft, Active, Expired, Terminated.

An expired contract can generate an automatic reminder via email (configurable in Workflow Automation).

5. Invoice — The payment request

Where: /admin/invoices

How it is created:

Converted from an accepted Proposal (most common)
Converted from a Sales Order
Directly: /admin/invoices/list_invoices → Add Invoice
Automatically from a project (see Workflow 2)

Invoice statuses:

Code	Status	When it appears
6	Draft	On creation
1	Not Sent	Saved, not yet sent
1	Sent	Sent to the client by email
3	Partially Paid	At least one partial payment received
2	Paid	Fully settled
4	Overdue	Due date passed, unpaid
5	Cancelled	Manually marked as cancelled

Important invoice settings:

Series and prefix (configurable per company at /admin/billing/config)
VAT per line or globally
Currency (multi-currency supported)
Due date — generates an automatic reminder on expiry
Available payment method (online payment link if gateway configured)

Sending an invoice:
The Send button generates an email with the PDF attached and a client portal link. The client can download the invoice and register payment online.

eFactura (Romania):
If the instance is configured for Romania and the ANAF token is active, an eFactura button appears on each invoice:

Generate XML — produces the UBL file compliant with the e-Factura standard (pre-check)
Send to ANAF — submits the invoice to SPV; returns the ANAF registration number
Check status — queries ANAF for the validation status
Download archive — downloads the ZIP with signed XML + PDF returned by ANAF

If Auto-send eFactura = ON (configurable at /admin/billing/efactura), submission happens automatically after X days from issuance.

→ eFactura

6. Payment — Collecting payment

Where: /admin/payments

How it is recorded:

Manually (most common): from the invoice, Record Payment button — fill in the amount, date, payment method
Partially: successive partial payments can be recorded; the invoice moves to Partially Paid status
Automatically: if a payment gateway is configured (Stripe, etc.) and the client pays from the portal
Advance payment on the client's account — applied later to an invoice

When a payment is recorded:

Invoice moves to Paid status (if amount = total) or Partially Paid
A payment receipt/confirmation is generated
The activity is logged in the client's history

What is created automatically

Event	Created automatically
Lead via web form	Lead with source filled in
Lead via Facebook Lead Ad	Lead with mapped fields
Proposal sent	Email with portal link + staff notification
Client opens the proposal	Status → Reviewed; staff notification
Proposal accepted	Staff notification; activity log
Invoice converted from proposal	All lines copied; `invoice_id` link set
Invoice sent	PDF email + client portal link
Due date passed	Status → Overdue; reminder email (if configured)
Payment recorded	Invoice status updated; activity log
Invoice sent to ANAF	ANAF registration number returned; status → Awaiting Validation
Invoice validated by ANAF	Status → OK; signed archive available for download

Points where the workflow may stall

Problem	Likely cause	Solution
Lead does not appear in pipeline	Pipeline not set or status not assigned to pipeline	Check `/admin/leads/pipelines` and `/admin/leads/statuses`
Proposal cannot be accepted from portal	`open_till` date expired	Extend the date or change the status manually
"Convert to Invoice" button does not appear	Proposal not in Accepted status	Change the status to Accepted
Invoice does not send email	SMTP not configured or client address missing	Check SMTP settings at `/admin/settings` → Email
Payment does not close the invoice	Amount paid < invoice total (including taxes)	Verify that the amount includes VAT
eFactura — ANAF validation error	XML rejected (missing field or incorrect format)	Correct the invoice (client VAT number, address, VAT), regenerate XML and resubmit
eFactura — expired token	ANAF token has expired	Regenerate the token at `/admin/billing/efactura` → Regenerate button

Reports relevant to this workflow

Sales Report — /admin/reports/sales — revenue by period
Leads Report — /admin/reports/leads — conversions by source and pipeline
Sales Overview — /admin/sales — combined KPIs
Goals — /admin/goals — sales target vs actual

Modules involved — detailed documentation

← Back to Workflows

Tip

Each stage in this workflow auto-fills the next — an accepted Proposal populates the Sales Order, a confirmed Sales Order populates the Invoice. Avoid manual data re-entry by always converting from the previous document rather than creating a new one independently.

Warning

Do not skip the Contract step when legally required. An invoice issued without a signed contract has no contractual backing — if a dispute arises, the absence of a contract weakens your legal position regardless of the invoice status.