An Opportunity represents where a Contact sits in your active sales pipeline.
While a Contact is the person, an Opportunity is the stage of progress that person is in.
Opportunities allow you to:
Track lifecycle progression
Measure conversion rates
Trigger automation
Forecast placements
Align with FranTracker™ workflow
Every serious candidate should move through an Opportunity pipeline.
Contact vs Opportunity
Contact = The person
Opportunity = The stage of that person in your process
A single Contact can exist without an Opportunity.
But once they are actively engaged in your process, they should have one.
Best Practice: Only create one active Opportunity per candidate unless there is a specific strategic reason to separate workflows.
When to Use an Opportunity
Create an Opportunity when:
A lead responds
A call is scheduled
A candidate is being qualified
A candidate is entering the franchise matching process
You are actively coaching toward placement
Do not create Opportunities for:
Referral partners
Vendors
Cold leads with no engagement
Administrative contacts
Opportunities should represent real movement in the candidate lifecycle.
FranFlow Pre-Built Opportunity Stages
FranFlow includes a pre-built 12-stage pipeline designed to align with FranTracker™ and the Reading Your Prospects functionality.
These stages should be used as structured lifecycle checkpoints.
New Lead | A new inquiry has entered the system but has not yet been contacted. |
Contacting | The candidate has been contacted but has not responded. |
Engaging | The candidate has responded and communication is active. |
Intro Call Scheduled | An initial call is booked. |
Intro Call No Show | The candidate missed the scheduled call. |
Reading Your Prospects | Connected to FranTracker™. |
Pre-Registration & Franchise Matching | Connected to FranTracker™. |
Franchise Presentations | Connected to FranTracker™. |
Candidate Introductions | Connected to FranTracker™.The candidate has been introduced to a franchisor. |
Coaching Process | Connected to FranTracker™. |
Legal & Placement | Connected to FranTracker™. |
Long-Term Nurture | The candidate is not lost but not actively progressing. |
Important: Stages 6–11 align directly with FranTracker™ workflows.
These stages are designed to:
Reflect actual placement movement
Mirror the FranTracker™ lifecycle
Maintain system consistency
Support reporting accuracy
How to Create an Opportunity
To create an Opportunity:
Open a Contact record
Click Opportunities
Select the appropriate pipeline
Choose the correct stage
Click Create Opportunity
The Contact is now active in your pipeline.
How to Move an Opportunity
You can move Opportunities by:
Dragging and dropping between stages in Pipeline view
Editing the Opportunity inside the Contact record
Triggering automation based on activity
Movement should reflect real candidate progression.
Avoid skipping multiple stages unless the lifecycle truly advanced.
Customizing Opportunities
FranFlow allows customization of:
Stage automation triggers
Stage-specific tasks
Pipeline automations
Notifications
Internal assignments
However:
The 12-stage FranFlow pipeline is intentionally structured to align with FranTracker™.
Best practice: Customize automation around stages — not the structure of the core stages themselves.
If additional workflow is needed, consult with a FranFlow team member before altering stage architecture.
Best Practices for Opportunity Management
One active Opportunity per candidate
Move stages based on real engagement
Use automation to reduce manual updates
Keep stage naming consistent
Do not repurpose connected stages
Use Long-Term Nurture instead of deleting Opportunities prematurely
Clean pipeline movement ensures:
Accurate reporting
Predictable automation
Clear lifecycle visibility
Proper FranTracker™ alignment
Want to customize the fields and view of your Opportunities? Check out Opportunity Custom Fields next.