Step 2 — Learn the Actions You'll Do Every Day

Step

Now you know the layout — learn the clicks

(5 min)

Watch for:

• Which fields are required when creating a new lead — and which ones you should fill in even though they're optional
• How to enter a lead manually from the Leads module — this is what you'll do every time a new prospect appears
• Best practices for keeping lead data clean and consistent

(5 min)

Watch for:

• Where the Convert button lives on a lead record — this is the single most important action in the system
• What happens during conversion: one lead becomes a Contact, an Account, and a Deal
• How field mapping works — understanding where your lead data ends up after conversion

(5 min)

Watch for:

• How to create a deal and set its stage, value, and expected close date
• How deals connect to contacts and accounts — every deal should be linked to a real person and organisation
• How the pipeline view shows you all your deals at a glance, grouped by stage

(5 min)

Watch for:

• How to create a task and set a due date — this is how you make sure follow-ups actually happen
• How to assign a task to yourself or a team member
• How tasks appear on the related deal or contact record so nothing gets lost

Now Try It Yourself

Open Zoho CRM and work through these — don’t just read them:

Convert the test Lead you created in Step 1. When you click Convert, Zoho will ask you to create a Contact, an Account, and a Deal. Fill in all three. Set the Deal amount to ₦500,000, the stage to Prospecting, and a close date 30 days from today.
Now move your test Deal to the next stage — Qualified. Find where to edit the deal stage and change it. Notice how the pipeline view updates automatically.
Create a task on this deal: the text should say ‘Follow-up call to discuss proposal’. Set the due date for 3 days from now.
Log a fake activity. Pretend you just got off a call. Click Log Activity, choose ‘Call’, and write a note: ‘Spoke with procurement manager. They are interested in monthly consumables supply. Sending a proposal next week.’ Click Save.