Panzo keeps a lead, a deal and a project as three separate records rather than one row that changes labels over time. This guide explains why that split matters, and how the three stay connected so the negotiation record is never lost.
Three objects, one pipeline
Your work with a client moves through three stages, and each stage has different questions to answer. Panzo gives each stage its own object so the answers do not overwrite each other.
| Object | What it captures | When it exists |
|---|---|---|
| Lead | The raw enquiry: contact, requirement, source and Presales Owner. | From first contact, before anyone has committed. |
| Deal | The negotiation: service, area in sqft, project location, probability, balance and the quotations attached to it. | Once the enquiry is qualified and worth pursuing. |
| Project | The delivery: the won work, its site, stage and execution. | Once the deal is won and becomes real work. |
A lead becomes a deal by conversion, and a won deal becomes a project. Because they are distinct records, converting a lead does not erase the enquiry, and winning a deal does not erase the negotiation. You keep the full history at every step.
Why keep them separate
The strongest reason is that the negotiation record is never lost. A deal holds the commercials and the quotations, including which quote is the baseline and any revisions. If a deal and a project were the same row, the moment work started you would lose visibility of how you got to the contracted number. Keeping the deal intact means the price that was agreed, and the path to it, stays on the record long after the project is under way.
- A clean audit trail. The lead shows where the client came from, the deal shows how the price was reached, and the project shows what was delivered.
- Honest reporting. Leads, deals and projects can each be counted and measured on their own terms, so conversion and win rates mean what they say.
- Repeat clients stay safe. One customer can have several deals and several projects over time without the records blurring together.
How the link holds: customer, deal and project
Underneath the three objects sits a stable identity. A deal cannot exist without a customer, and a customer-facing project cannot exist without both a customer and a deal. Every quote you raise belongs to a customer and a deal, and to a project once one exists. One deal can become at most one project, matching how the work actually flows.
This is what protects pricing for repeat customers. A quote raised before a project exists uses current pricing. When the deal is won and a project is created, Panzo links that quote to the new project automatically by its stored IDs, so you do not have to reconnect anything by hand. A different project for the same customer is treated as a fresh context and starts from current pricing, so a repeat client never accidentally inherits old rates on new work.
Tip
You can quote before there is a project
Key takeaways
- Lead, deal and project are three separate records for the enquiry, the negotiation and the delivery.
- Keeping them separate means the negotiation record and its quotations are never lost when work begins.
- A deal needs a customer; a customer-facing project needs a customer and a deal. One deal makes at most one project.
- Pre-project quotes link to the project automatically once the deal is won, and repeat projects start on current pricing.