Memory hook: A lead is potential; an opportunity is a tracked deal.
Must remember
Leads represent prospects before qualification/conversion. Conversion can create or associate the relevant account/contact and optionally an opportunity according to the supported process. Map custom fields and inspect duplicate rules; conversion is not simply changing a label on the original record.
Opportunities track deals through stages with amount, close date and probability/forecast context. Sales processes and record types constrain stage choices. Path provides guidance and key fields; it does not independently guarantee data quality or prevent every invalid transition.
Lead assignment rules route eligible incoming leads to users/queues when invoked through the supported creation/import path. Check active rule entries, order and default ownership. Campaigns organize marketing efforts, and campaign members represent lead/contact participation with status. A member status is different from an opportunity stage.
Sales productivity tools include activities, dashboards, opportunity teams, forecasting and territory features where available. Forecasts summarize eligible pipeline under configured categories/hierarchy; they are not simply all opportunities added together. Territory management organizes supported account/sales coverage and access, distinct from merely changing a user's role.
Einstein lead/opportunity scoring and related AI features provide signals for prioritization, subject to data, feature and licensing requirements. A high score is not a guaranteed sale. Compare signal quality with actual outcomes and keep required business checks in the process.
Choose under exam pressure
| Requirement | Choice and reason |
|---|---|
| Track a qualified sales deal | Opportunity. |
| Route new leads automatically | Lead assignment rules invoked by the relevant entry path. |
| Track a webinar audience and response | Campaign and campaign-member statuses. |
Traps
- Path guidance is not an enforcement rule by itself.
- A forecast category and an opportunity stage serve related but different purposes.
Active recall
1. What can conversion create or associate?
Account, contact and optionally opportunity under the configured process.
2. Why check assignment invocation?
Not every data-entry path automatically applies the same rule behavior.
3. Campaign versus campaign member?
Marketing initiative versus a participating lead/contact and its status.
4. Why not treat an AI score as certainty?
It is a model-derived prioritization signal with data and prediction limits.
5. What should a sales process reflect?
The permitted stages and business meaning of progressing a deal.