Best case

Best case is the list of open deals that could still close this period. The seller does not stand behind them yet. Something is missing: a confirmed decision date, the person who signs, agreed terms or the budget. If all of it falls into place, the deal closes in time.

In a CRM, best case is a forecast category on the deal card, next to commit. The best case total is usually shown as commit plus these deals. It answers one question: how high could the period go if the open questions resolve well.

Commit of $36,000 and best case deals worth $18,000: the period will most likely land between $36,000 and $54,000.

Review best case in the weekly pipeline review, right after commit. For each deal, the seller names what is missing and the next step that would settle it. The head of sales decides which deals get extra effort this week. The owner sees best case as the upper edge of the forecast, not as a plan.

Best case decides where help goes. When commit falls short of the plan, the gap has to come from best case. Pick the deals where one action settles the open question. That can be a call with the signer, a revised proposal or a confirmed date.

Best case works together with commit, the forecast and pipeline coverage. In the three forecast versions, best case is close to the good one. Commit is the floor, best case is the ceiling, and the forecast sits between them. Win rate helps you judge how much of best case usually converts. Pipeline coverage tells you whether there are enough open deals behind it to reach the target.

• Reporting best case as the forecast. The owner hears the high number and plans spending on it. Always report commit and best case side by side, each with a clear label.
• Keeping every open deal in best case. Then the category means nothing. A deal belongs there only if it can realistically close this period and the missing piece has a name.
• Counting all of best case as revenue. Example (invented numbers): best case of $30,000 converted at about one third last quarter, so plan on roughly $10,000. Test that share against your own results each month.
• Never moving deals out. A best case deal that misses two periods in a row probably does not belong there. Move it back to the open pipeline or close it as lost with a reason.

By Friday, each seller lists their best case deals in the CRM. For each one, they write what is missing to move it into commit. The head of sales picks the three deals where one action can close that gap. Those actions become dated next steps and open the next weekly pipeline review. At month end, note which best case deals closed and which slipped.

Which numbers to check every week, with one definition for the whole team.