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Sales Forecast Generator

Weighted sales forecast with best-case, likely, and worst-case scenario modeling

10 minutes
By AnthropicSource
#sales-forecast#pipeline#revenue-projection#scenarios

Your forecast says $3.2M commit but the board heard $3.2M six weeks ago and you've already slipped twice. Forecasts built on rep intuition miss more often than they hit. Weighted forecasting with scenario modeling, stage-based probabilities, and historical accuracy data gives leadership a number they can actually plan around.

Who it's for: sales VPs building quarterly forecasts for the board, revenue operations analysts creating data-driven forecast models, CROs who need forecast accuracy for resource planning, sales managers running weekly forecast calls with their teams, FP&A teams incorporating sales forecasts into financial planning

Example

"Generate our Q2 sales forecast from pipeline data" → Forecast package: weighted forecast by stage with historical conversion rates applied, three scenarios (conservative/likely/stretch) with assumptions documented, deal-level risk flags for the top 10 opportunities, forecast accuracy comparison vs. last 4 quarters, and a narrative summary for the board

CLAUDE.md Template

New here? 3-minute setup guide → | Already set up? Copy the template below.

# Sales Forecast Generator

Generate a weighted sales forecast with risk analysis and commit recommendations.

## What You Need to Provide

### Step 1: Your Pipeline Data

**Option A: Upload a CSV**
Export your pipeline from your CRM. At minimum, include:
- Deal/Opportunity name
- Amount
- Stage
- Close date

Helpful extras: Owner, Last activity date, Created date, Account name

**Option B: Paste your deals**
```
Acme Corp - $50K - Negotiation - closes Jan 31
TechStart - $25K - Demo scheduled - closes Feb 15
BigCo - $100K - Discovery - closes Mar 30
```

**Option C: Describe your territory**
"I have 8 deals in pipeline totaling $400K. Two are in negotiation ($120K), three in evaluation ($180K), three in discovery ($100K)."

### Step 2: Your Targets

- **Quota**: What's your number? (e.g., "$500K this quarter")
- **Timeline**: When does the period end? (e.g., "Q1 ends March 31")
- **Already closed**: How much have you already booked this period?

## Output

```markdown
# Sales Forecast: [Period]

**Generated:** [Date]

---

## Summary

| Metric | Value |
|--------|-------|
| **Quota** | $[X] |
| **Closed to Date** | $[X] ([X]% of quota) |
| **Open Pipeline** | $[X] |
| **Weighted Forecast** | $[X] |
| **Gap to Quota** | $[X] |
| **Coverage Ratio** | [X]x |

---

## Forecast Scenarios

| Scenario | Amount | % of Quota | Assumptions |
|----------|--------|------------|-------------|
| **Best Case** | $[X] | [X]% | All deals close as expected |
| **Likely Case** | $[X] | [X]% | Stage-weighted probabilities |
| **Worst Case** | $[X] | [X]% | Only commit deals close |

---

## Pipeline by Stage

| Stage | # Deals | Total Value | Probability | Weighted Value |
|-------|---------|-------------|-------------|----------------|
| Negotiation | [X] | $[X] | 80% | $[X] |
| Proposal | [X] | $[X] | 60% | $[X] |
| Evaluation | [X] | $[X] | 40% | $[X] |
| Discovery | [X] | $[X] | 20% | $[X] |
| **Total** | [X] | $[X] | — | $[X] |

---

## Commit vs. Upside

### Commit (High Confidence)
| Deal | Amount | Stage | Close Date | Why Commit |
|------|--------|-------|------------|------------|
| [Deal] | $[X] | [Stage] | [Date] | [Reason] |

### Upside (Lower Confidence)
| Deal | Amount | Stage | Close Date | Risk Factor |
|------|--------|-------|------------|-------------|
| [Deal] | $[X] | [Stage] | [Date] | [Risk] |

---

## Risk Flags

| Deal | Amount | Risk | Recommendation |
|------|--------|------|----------------|
| [Deal] | $[X] | Close date passed | Update close date or move to lost |
| [Deal] | $[X] | No activity in 14+ days | Re-engage or downgrade stage |
| [Deal] | $[X] | Close date this week, still in discovery | Unlikely to close — push out |

---

## Gap Analysis

**To hit quota, you need:** $[X] more

**Options to close the gap:**
1. **Accelerate [Deal]** — Currently [stage], worth $[X]. If you can close by [date], you're at [X]% of quota.
2. **Revive [Stalled Deal]** — Last active [date]. Worth $[X].
3. **New pipeline needed** — You need $[X] in new opportunities at [X]x coverage to be safe.

---

## Recommendations

1. [ ] [Specific action for highest-impact deal]
2. [ ] [Action for at-risk deal]
3. [ ] [Pipeline generation recommendation if gap exists]
```

## Stage Probabilities (Default)

| Stage | Default Probability |
|-------|---------------------|
| Closed Won | 100% |
| Negotiation / Contract | 80% |
| Proposal / Quote | 60% |
| Evaluation / Demo | 40% |
| Discovery / Qualification | 20% |
| Prospecting / Lead | 10% |

Tell the assistant if your stages or probabilities are different.

## Tips

1. **Be honest about commit** — Only commit deals you'd bet on. Upside is for everything else.
2. **Update close dates** — Stale close dates kill forecast accuracy. Push out deals that won't close in time.
3. **Coverage matters** — 3x pipeline coverage is healthy. Below 2x is risky.
4. **Activity = signal** — Deals with no recent activity are at higher risk than stage suggests.
README.md

What This Does

Generates weighted sales forecasts from your pipeline data. Produces three scenarios (best/likely/worst case), pipeline analysis by stage, commit vs. upside classification, risk flags for at-risk deals, gap analysis with specific recommendations, and coverage ratio assessment.


Quick Start

Step 1: Download the Template

Click Download above to get the CLAUDE.md file.

Step 2: Set Up Your Project

Create a project folder and place the template inside:

sales-forecast/
├── CLAUDE.md
├── pipeline/       # CRM exports (CSV)
└── forecasts/      # Generated forecasts

Step 3: Start Working

claude

Say: "Generate my Q1 forecast — my quota is $500K and I've closed $150K so far"


Input Options

  • Upload a CSV — Export from your CRM with deal name, amount, stage, close date
  • Paste your deals — "Acme Corp - $50K - Negotiation - closes Jan 31"
  • Describe your territory — "8 deals totaling $400K across negotiation, evaluation, and discovery"

Default Stage Probabilities

Stage Probability
Closed Won 100%
Negotiation / Contract 80%
Proposal / Quote 60%
Evaluation / Demo 40%
Discovery / Qualification 20%
Prospecting / Lead 10%

Tips

  • Be honest about commit — Only commit deals you'd bet on
  • Update close dates — Stale dates kill forecast accuracy
  • Coverage matters — 3x pipeline coverage is healthy; below 2x is risky
  • Activity = signal — No recent activity means higher risk than stage suggests

Example Prompts

"Generate my Q1 forecast — quota is $500K, closed $150K so far"
"Forecast this pipeline CSV for the quarter"
"Which deals should I commit vs. upside?"
"What's my gap to quota and how do I close it?"

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