> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zero.inc/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zero.inc/getting-started/key-concepts/deal-objects.md).

# Deal objects

**Core CRM Objects**

1. **Company** – A business or an organization you interact with. Companies are typically associated with multiple contacts and deals, enabling you to track all interactions and activities at the account level.
2. **Contact** – An individual person associated with a company.
3. **Deal** – A potential revenue opportunity in your sales pipeline. Deals track the sales process from initial engagement to closing, including details like deal stage, value, expected close date, and assigned owner.

Some CRMs allow you to create sales pipelines without actually creating the deal object.

We recommend using the **deal object** because:

1. **Reporting accuracy** - Real deal objects create a clean historical record of your sales process, making it easier to analyze conversion rates, sales cycles, and revenue patterns as your startup scales. Virtual pipelines often lead to data inconsistencies and gaps.
2. **Scaling of revenue operations** - As your team expands, having structured deal objects makes it easier to implement processes, facilitate handoffs between teams, and track commissions. Retrofitting deal objects later requires painful data migration.
3. **Better (investor and board) reporting** - Deal objects provide concrete metrics for fundraising conversations, board meetings, and financial projections. They offer verifiable pipeline data that builds confidence with stakeholders, unlike informal tracking methods.
4. **Agents & AI** – CRMs can automate follow-ups, suggest next steps, and provide AI-driven insights only when using structured deal objects.
5. **Integration and migration readiness** - Deal objects seamlessly integrate with other tools, such as accounting software, billing systems, and revenue operations platforms. This future-proofs your tech stack and prevents the need to restructure data as you add more tools.


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