How to build a sales pipeline in Microsoft Access?

Here’s a tutorial on how to build a sales pipeline in Microsoft Access in 4 simple steps. This tutorial will guide you through creating a query and a report to visualize the status of sales inquiries (pending, booked, or lost).

Set up a sales pipeline in Access

Step 1: Set Up Your Database Tables

First, ensure your Microsoft Access database has the following tables set up:

• Customers: Contains customer details.
• Inquiries: Contains details about each inquiry including status (Pending, Booked, Lost).

‍

Step 2: Create the Sales Funnel Query

This query will calculate the number of inquiries in each status.

1. Open Microsoft Access and select your database.
2. Create a new query:some text
   • Go to the "Create" tab and click on "Query Design."
   • Add the Inquiries and Customers tables to the query design window.
3. Set up the query fields:some text
   • Drag the Status field from the Inquiries table to the query grid.
   • Set the "Total" row under each status to "Group By."
4. Convert status counts to positive numbers:some text
   • Replace the "Group By" under the status with an expression to count and convert negatives to positives using the ABS function:some text
     1. Pending Total: Sum(Abs([Pending]))
     2. Booked Total: Sum(Abs([Booked]))
     3. Lost Total: Sum(Abs([Lost]))

5. Run the query to see the current breakdown of inquiries by status.

‍

Step 3: Design the Report to Visualize Data

Create a report based on the query to visually represent your sales funnel.

1. Create a blank report:some text
   • Go to the "Create" tab, select "Report Design."
   • Open the "Property Sheet" and set the Record Source to your sales funnel query.
2. Insert a chart:some text
   • Choose the "Design" tab, click "Insert Chart," and draw a rectangle on the report.
   • Set the chart type to a stacked bar chart.
   • Assign data fields: drag the status totals (Pending, Booked, Lost) onto the chart.
3. Customize the chart:some text
   • Change the chart title to "Sales Funnel."
   • Adjust data labels and formatting to improve readability:some text
     • Remove default labels, e.g., "Sum of Pending," and replace them with "Pending," "Booked," and "Lost."
     • Increase font size and make it bold for better visibility.
4. Review and save your report:some text
   • Switch to "Report View" to check the layout and make any necessary adjustments.
   • Save the report for regular use to monitor sales progress.

‍

Step 4: Finalize and Utilize

• Run the report regularly to update and monitor changes in your sales funnel as new bookings are made or inquiries change status.
• Make adjustments to the report and query as needed based on changes to underlying data tables or business requirements.

This structured approach to creating a sales funnel in Microsoft Access will help you keep track of sales activities and visualize potential revenue streams effectively.

‍

Are there any alternatives to Microsoft Access for your sales pipeline?

We highly recommend using a dedicated CRM, such as HubSpot, to ensure you have a smooth and easy-to-maintain sales pipeline.

‍