Monitoring sales performance is essential for any business aiming to grow, optimize operations, and maintain a competitive edge. Dolibarr ERP/CRM, with its wide range of built-in features, provides powerful native tools that allow businesses to track and analyze their sales activities effectively — without needing additional plugins or external software.
In this comprehensive article, we'll explore how to fully leverage Dolibarr’s native tools to track sales performance, set measurable objectives, and enhance business insights.
Why Tracking Sales Performance Matters
Sales performance tracking is more than just counting closed deals. It helps businesses:
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Understand customer buying behavior
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Identify top-performing products and services
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Recognize high-performing sales reps
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Forecast future revenue
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Pinpoint areas that need improvement
Dolibarr provides structured modules that allow you to manage these aspects systematically.
Overview of Dolibarr’s Native Sales Tools
Dolibarr’s native modules that support sales performance tracking include:
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Third Parties (Companies/Contacts): Manage clients and prospects.
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Commercial Proposals: Create and manage quotations.
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Customer Orders: Confirmed sales agreements.
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Invoices: Revenue documentation.
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Contracts: Manage recurring sales.
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Products/Services: Track inventory and services.
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Opportunities (Leads Management): Track sales prospects.
All these modules work together to give you a 360-degree view of your sales operations.
Setting Up Your Sales Tracking Environment
1. Activate the Required Modules
From the admin interface:
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Navigate to Home > Setup > Modules/Applications
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Enable:
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Commercial Proposals
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Customer Orders
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Invoices
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Products and Services
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Opportunities (optional for CRM features)
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2. Configure Default Settings
Set your company preferences for:
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Tax rates (VAT/GST)
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Price levels and discounts
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Payment conditions and terms
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Invoice numbering
This ensures uniformity across all sales documents.
3. Create Sales Workflows
A recommended workflow:
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Lead enters Dolibarr (via Opportunities)
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Create a Proposal (Quotation)
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Convert Proposal into Order
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Fulfill Order and Generate Invoice
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Track Payment Status
Each step captures data that fuels your sales analytics.
Using Commercial Proposals for Early Sales Insights
The Commercial Proposals module allows you to:
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Record quotations sent to clients
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Monitor acceptance rates
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Analyze quote-to-deal conversion ratios
Key Metrics:
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Number of Proposals Created vs Accepted
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Average Value per Proposal
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Average Time to Acceptance
Pro Tip: Use Dolibarr’s status tracking (Draft, Validated, Signed, Refused) to quickly assess proposal effectiveness.
Managing Customer Orders Efficiently
Once a proposal is accepted, it transitions into an Order.
The Customer Orders module allows you to:
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Monitor confirmed sales
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Plan product/service delivery
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Analyze order fulfillment performance
Important Metrics:
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Number of Orders per Month
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Average Order Value
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Order Fulfillment Time
Dolibarr lets you categorize orders by status (Draft, Validated, Processing, Delivered) and easily generate reports.
Monitoring Invoices and Revenue Streams
Invoices are the definitive source of sales revenue data.
The Invoices module lets you:
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Create invoices from orders
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Track payments and outstanding balances
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Monitor overdue invoices
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Analyze cash flow forecasts
Useful Metrics:
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Total Sales Revenue
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Average Days to Payment
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Outstanding Balances
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Revenue per Client
Dolibarr even provides quick views of "Invoices to Pay" and "Overdue Invoices" on the dashboard.
Tracking Sales Through Opportunities (Optional CRM Module)
If you use the Opportunities module:
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Record and track leads
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Set probabilities and estimated closure dates
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Link opportunities to quotes and orders
This enables predictive sales analysis:
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Potential Pipeline Value
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Win Rate Percentage
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Average Sales Cycle Duration
Having a healthy pipeline ensures future sales stability.
Analyzing Products and Services Performance
Dolibarr’s Products/Services module allows you to:
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Monitor which products/services sell the most
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Analyze profitability per item
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Track stock levels if applicable
Key Metrics:
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Units Sold per Product
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Revenue per Product Line
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Margin Analysis (if cost prices are entered)
You can also generate stock movements and valuation reports if you manage physical products.
Visualizing Sales Data Using Dolibarr’s Native Dashboards
Dolibarr provides basic but effective dashboards:
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Graphical views of monthly sales figures
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Number of new customers acquired
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Comparison of sales vs goals
Under Home > Dashboards, you can view:
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Sales by Month
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Proposals by Status
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Orders by Status
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Invoice Totals
You can customize which widgets appear based on user roles.
Creating Custom Reports Without External Tools
Dolibarr’s "Reports" section allows you to generate:
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Sales summaries by customer
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Detailed invoice reports
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Turnover by product/service category
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Payment delay analysis
You can:
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Filter reports by period, customer, salesperson
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Export to CSV or Excel for further analysis
For more advanced needs, the SQL Reports tool (for admins) allows direct creation of custom queries.
Example: Monthly Sales by Salesperson Report.
Setting Sales Targets and Measuring KPIs
Dolibarr does not have a built-in "Targets" module (unless added through extensions), but you can manually:
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Set sales goals by salesperson or team
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Use Dashboards to compare Actual vs Target monthly
KPIs you can monitor:
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Number of Deals Closed
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Sales Revenue vs Target
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Win Rate on Proposals
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Average Deal Size
Manual tracking can be enhanced with simple Excel sheets linked to Dolibarr exports.
Automating Sales Follow-ups
Dolibarr includes:
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Email reminders for overdue invoices
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Reminders for pending proposals/orders
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Notification settings for assigned users (when using CRM features)
Keeping automatic reminders ensures quicker closures and payments.
Best Practices for Tracking Sales in Dolibarr
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Maintain Data Integrity: Ensure all proposals, orders, and invoices are created consistently.
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Standardize Sales Processes: Uniform steps ensure clean, comparable data.
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Train Your Team: Make sure sales teams understand Dolibarr workflows.
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Leverage User Roles: Restrict access based on responsibility to protect data.
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Review Regularly: Weekly or monthly sales meetings with Dolibarr reports at hand.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
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Incomplete Data Entries: Missing statuses or amounts skew reports.
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Ignoring Sales Pipeline Health: Always monitor future opportunities.
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Focusing Only on Revenue: Include conversion rates, cycle times, and customer acquisition costs.
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Neglecting Overdue Invoices: Cash flow directly depends on this.
Real-World Example: Sales Tracking Success with Dolibarr
Profile: A medium-sized IT services company
Challenge:
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Difficulty in tracking project-based sales
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No clear view of outstanding proposals
Solution:
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Fully enabled Commercial Proposals, Orders, and Invoices modules
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Created weekly pipeline reports
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Set follow-up reminders for each sales stage
Result:
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25% increase in proposal-to-sale conversion rate within 6 months
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Improved cash flow with 15% faster invoice collections
Conclusion
Dolibarr's native tools offer everything needed to track and optimize sales performance without external dependencies. By fully leveraging the Proposals, Orders, Invoices, Opportunities, and Products modules, you can gain deep insights into your sales funnel and revenue streams.
Proper setup, diligent use, and regular analysis turn Dolibarr into a powerful ally for your sales team’s success.
Start today: Make Dolibarr your command center for smarter, faster, and better sales management!