Set up the forecast tool

The forecast tool allows managers to keep track of their team's progress towards reaching their goals. To use the forecast tool, you'll need to set up the forecast deal amount for the forecast tool and related reports. You can also set up forecast categories for each of your sales pipelines or use deal stages. Then, you’ll set revenue goals for your team members. You can also customize the forecast columns that will appear in the forecast tool.

Please note: to set up the forecast tool and edit your forecast categories and settings, you must be a Super Admin. Users with Forecast permissions can view and make changes in the forecast tool, but cannot edit the forecast categories and settings. 

Set up your forecast tool's deal amount

The forecast deal amount determines how deal amounts are displayed in the forecast tool and related reports. Existing and new users with Forecast permissions will be set to use Weighted amount by default.

• In the left sidebar menu, navigate to Objects > Forecast.
• Click the Forecast deal amount dropdown menu and select an amount.
  • Weighted amount: the Amount multiplied by the Deal probability. 
  • Total amount: the full deal amount.
  • Forecast amount (legacy): allows you to set the Forecast probability deal property manually or through workflow automation. This option will appear in accounts created prior to Jul 19th, 2021.
    

Set up forecast submission status indicator

When the forecast submission status indicator is enabled, an indicator will display on the Forecast submission cell for the users that have not updated their forecast in the set amount of days. The indicator will show only when the user's forecast view is filtered to the current period.

• In the left sidebar menu, navigate to Objects > Forecast.
• In the Forecast submissions section, select the Forecast submission status indicator checkbox. When it is turned on, the setting defaults to eight days. You can edit the number of days up to thirty one days.

• When the setting is turned on an indicator will display in the Forecast submission column.
  

Set up your pipeline's forecast categories

Forecast categories allow you to group your deals into categories that represent a deal's likelihood to close. Users can also manually update the forecast category for an individual deal from the deal record. To set up your forecast categories:

• In the left sidebar menu, navigate to Objects > Forecast.
• Click the Pipelines tab.
• Click the Select a pipeline dropdown menu and select a pipeline to modify.

• To set either a monthly or quarterly forecast period for this pipeline and the revenue goals, next to the Set the forecast period for this pipeline setting, click the dropdown menu and select a time period.

Please note: if you edit the forecast period, the revenue goals and forecast submission will be reset for the respective pipeline. You will need to create new revenue goals and forecast submissions.

• Use the category dropdown menus to organize your deal stages into one of four forecast categories. Select and clear the checkboxes next to the deal stages to include.
  • Not forecasted: deals that are in the pipeline for the current time period, but are not included in the forecast.
  • Pipeline: deals that have a low likelihood of closing.
  • Best case: deals that will close in the best case scenario, which have a moderate likelihood of closing.
  • Commit: deals that have a high likelihood of closing and have been committed to the forecast.
  • Closed won: deals that have closed within the forecasted time period.

• To automatically update the forecast categories when a deal moves to a different deal stage, click to toggle the Automate forecast categories switch on. With this setting turned on, a workflow will be created in your workflows tool. The workflow is named Forecast Category Mapping for Pipeline: [name of pipeline].

• Click Save.

Moving forward, your deals will be categorized into one of the forecast categories based on their deal stage.

As a rep works on a deal, they might re-evaluate the forecast category assigned to the deal and decide that another category better represents the deal's likelihood to close. They can manually update the forecast category for an individual deal from the deal record:

• Click the name of a deal.
• In the About section in the left sidebar, click View all properties.
• Search or browse for the Forecast category property, then click the dropdown menu to select a different category.
• In the bottom left, click Save.

Edit the forecast categories

HubSpot's default forecast categories include Most likely, Best case, Pipeline, and Commit. If you want to edit the category labels or add another category, you can edit the Forecast category property.

• In the left sidebar, navigate to Objects > Properties.
• At the top, click the Filter by dropdown menu and select Deal properties.
• Search for the Forecast category property, then hover over the property and click Edit.
• In the right panel, you can enter a different value for one of the existing properties. Or you can click Add an option and enter a new forecast category value.

• Click Save.

In addition to Not forecasted and Closed won, only five additional categories will appear in your forecast category mapping. Specifically, only the last five property values will appear as categories that you can map to in your forecast settings. If you have more than five additional categories, you would need to drag and drop your property values to one of the last five positions in the property's settings in order for it to appear in your forecast settings.

Please note: while only the last five forecast categories will appear in your forecast settings, you can select any forecast category when manually updating a deal record's Forecast category property. 

Keep in mind that the order of the categories will impact the Deal change history report in your sales analytics tool. Specifically, deals must move through the forecast categories in order, from top to bottom, to count as a deal whose forecasted amount moved forward. For example, if the order of your categories is Best Case, Pipeline, then Commit, when the deal moves from Best Case to Pipeline it will be counted as a deal whose forecasted amount moved forward in your Deal change history report for the selected time. 

To choose which columns and forecast categories are displayed in the forecast tool:

• In the left sidebar menu, navigate to Objects > Forecast.
• Click Customize forecast columns.
• In the dialog box, select the checkboxes next to the columns you want users to see.
• Click Save.

Set revenue goals for your sales team

Please note: you must be a Super Admin in order to create, edit, and delete goals in your account.

Once you customize your forecast categories, you need to assign revenue goals to your team.

• In the upper right, click the Edit goals.
• In your Goals settings, click Create in the upper right.
• Learn how to finish creating revenue goals for your team.

When you're done setting up your forecast categories and assigning revenue goals to your team, learn more about using the forecast tool.