Deal Creation & Management

Every site opportunity in your pipeline starts as a deal. This guide covers how to create deals, manage deal information, and work with individual deal records throughout the evaluation process.

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Creating Deals

Deals can be created from multiple entry points depending on your workflow.

From Quick Search

The most common method—create deals directly from site analysis:

1. Search any address in Quick Search

2. Review the site intelligence in the results panel

3. Click Add Deal + next to the address

4. The deal is created in the Searched stage

Benefits of this method:

• All site analysis (score, projections, demographics, traffic, competitors) automatically attaches to the deal

• No duplicate data entry required

• Deal record links back to full site analysis

From the Deal Dashboard

Create deals directly within the dashboard:

1. Navigate to Deal Dashboard

2. Click within a stage column or use the add deal option

3. Enter the site address

4. The platform geocodes the address and generates site analysis

5. Deal appears in your selected stage

This method is useful when you're working from a list of addresses and want to batch-add sites to your pipeline.

Via Deal Dropbox

External parties submit sites that automatically become deals:

1. Broker or landlord accesses your Deal Dropbox link

2. They submit a site address (and optionally attach site flyers)

3. GrowthFactor automatically:

   • Creates a deal record

   • Generates a GrowthFactor Score

   • Extracts data from any attached documents

   • Adds the deal to your dashboard

See Deal Dropbox for setup and configuration.

From Shared Maps

When collaborating via Shared Maps, you can add sites directly to your pipeline from the shared view—useful when reviewing locations with colleagues or partners.

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Deal Information

Each deal contains site intelligence plus deal-specific management information.

Automatic Site Intelligence

When a deal is created, the platform automatically generates and attaches:

Data	Description
GrowthFactor Score	AI-powered site rating (1–100) with lens breakdown
Sales Projections	Revenue forecast based on analog modeling
Demographics	Population characteristics within trade area
Traffic	Vehicle counts on nearby roads
Competitors & Complements	Nearby businesses with performance rankings
Cannibalization	Overlap with existing store trade areas
AI Insights	Contextual news and information about the location

This intelligence updates if you modify trade area settings and can be refreshed as new data becomes available.

Deal-Specific Fields

Fields you manage for each deal:

Field	Description	Purpose
Stage	Current pipeline stage	Track progress through evaluation
Owner	Assigned team member	Clarify responsibility
Square Footage	Site size in sq ft	Refine sales projections
Notes	Free-form text	Document observations and context
Tags	Custom labels	Organize and filter deals

Address Information

Field	Description
Street Address	Full street address
City	City name
State	State
ZIP Code	Postal code
Coordinates	Latitude/longitude (auto-generated)

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Editing Deals

Keep deal information current as you learn more about each opportunity.

Opening Deal Details

Access the full deal record by:

• Clicking the deal card in Kanban view

• Clicking the deal row in Table view

• Clicking a deal pin in Map view

Editable Fields

Update any deal-specific field:

1. Open deal details

2. Click into the field you want to edit

3. Make your changes

4. Changes save automatically (or click Save, depending on field)

Updating Square Footage

Square footage is particularly important—it flows directly into sales projections:

1. Open deal details

2. Enter or update the square footage field

3. Sales projections automatically recalculate to show Total Sales based on the entered size

If you don't know exact square footage, leave it blank and work with Sales PSF projections until you have confirmed sizing.

Editing the GrowthFactor Score

The AI-generated score can be manually adjusted based on your evaluation:

1. Open deal details

2. Locate the GrowthFactor Score section

3. Edit the score to reflect your assessment

4. The original AI score is preserved for reference

Adjust scores after site visits or when you have information the model doesn't capture (planned developments, access issues, anchor changes).

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Managing Pipeline Stage

Moving deals through stages tracks progress and keeps your pipeline accurate.

Changing Stages

Kanban View (Drag and Drop):

1. Click and hold the deal card

2. Drag to the target stage column

3. Release to drop—stage updates automatically

From Deal Details:

1. Open the deal

2. Select new stage from the Stage dropdown

3. Change saves automatically

From Card Menu:

1. Click the ... menu on any deal card

2. Select "Move to..."

3. Choose the target stage

Stage Change Tracking

Every stage change is logged in the deal's activity history:

• Previous stage

• New stage

• Who made the change

• Timestamp

This creates an audit trail of how deals progressed through your pipeline.

Disqualifying Deals

When a site doesn't meet your criteria:

1. Move the deal to the Disqualified stage

2. Add a comment explaining the disqualification reason

3. The deal is preserved but removed from active pipeline views

Why disqualify rather than delete:

• Preserves record of evaluated sites

• Prevents re-evaluating the same site later

• Maintains activity history for learning

• Can be reactivated if circumstances change

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Deal Ownership

Assign clear responsibility for each opportunity.

Assigning an Owner

1. Open deal details

2. Click the Owner field

3. Select a team member from the dropdown

4. Assignment saves automatically

Owner Visibility

The assigned owner appears on deal cards in Kanban view, making it easy to see who's responsible at a glance.

Reassigning Deals

Change ownership when:

• Deals transfer between team members

• Regional responsibility shifts

• Team members leave or join

• Workload rebalancing is needed

Simply select a new owner from the dropdown—the change is logged in activity history.

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Notes and Documentation

Capture context and observations that don't fit structured fields.

Adding Notes

1. Open deal details

2. Locate the Notes section

3. Enter your observations

4. Save changes

What to Document

Effective deal notes capture:

• Site visit observations: "Parking lot in poor condition, would need repaving"

• Stakeholder input: "Regional manager concerned about access from westbound traffic"

• Key findings: "Anchor tenant lease expires 2026—risk factor"

• Next steps: "Awaiting LOI response from landlord, follow up Friday"

• Deal history: "Originally submitted by CBRE, broker contact: Jane Smith"

Notes vs. Comments

Notes	Comments
Single, editable text field	Chronological thread of entries
Good for current status summary	Good for ongoing discussion
Overwritten when updated	Preserved as activity history
Visible in deal details	Part of activity log

Use notes for current-state information; use comments for time-stamped updates and team discussion.

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File Attachments

Centralize all deal documentation within the deal record.

Uploading Files

1. Open deal details

2. Navigate to the files/attachments section

3. Upload files via drag-and-drop or file browser

4. Files attach to the deal record

Supported File Types

Upload any document type relevant to your deals:

• PDFs: LOIs, lease drafts, site flyers, broker packages

• Images: Site photos, floor plans, signage concepts

• Documents: Word docs, internal memos

• Spreadsheets: Financial analyses, rent comparisons

Unlimited Uploads

The Deal Dashboard supports unlimited file uploads per deal—attach everything relevant without worrying about limits.

File Organization

Files display with:

• Filename

• Upload date

• Who uploaded

Maintain consistent naming conventions for easy identification (e.g., "LOI_123MainSt_v2_2025-01-07.pdf").

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Deleting Deals

Remove deals that were created in error or are no longer needed.

How to Delete

1. Click the ... menu on the deal card

2. Select Delete

3. Confirm deletion

When to Delete vs. Disqualify

Action	When to Use
Delete	Deal was created in error, duplicate entry, test record
Disqualify	Site was evaluated and rejected on merit

Default to disqualifying. Deleted deals are permanently removed with no recovery option. Disqualified deals preserve history and can be reactivated.

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Bulk Operations

For managing multiple deals efficiently.

Multi-Select (Table View)

In Table View, select multiple deals to perform bulk actions:

• Move to stage

• Assign owner

• Export selection

Bulk Import

For adding many deals at once (e.g., list of broker submissions, market sweep results), contact your GrowthFactor team. Bulk imports can be processed to avoid manual entry.

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Deal Lifecycle Example

A typical deal progression:

1. Creation: Site submitted via Deal Dropbox from broker → appears in Searched stage

2. Initial Review: Team member reviews score and key metrics → moves to Evaluation if promising, or Disqualified if not

3. Deep Evaluation: Owner assigned, detailed analysis reviewed, comments added documenting concerns and opportunities

4. Site Visit: Photos uploaded, notes updated with on-ground observations, score adjusted if needed

5. Internal Approval: Deal reviewed in committee, comments capture feedback, moves to LOI stage upon approval

6. Negotiation: LOI document uploaded, notes track negotiation status, comments log key developments

7. Close: Lease signed, documents attached, deal moved to Signed stage

8. Handoff: Deal record contains complete history for construction/operations teams

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Best Practices

Create deals generously, disqualify quickly. It's better to have a site in your pipeline than to lose track of it. Use the Searched stage as a holding area, then move to Evaluation or Disqualified based on initial review.

Assign owners immediately. Every deal in Evaluation or beyond should have a clear owner. Unassigned deals tend to stall.

Update stages promptly. Move deals as soon as status changes. Real-time pipeline accuracy enables meaningful forecasting and prevents dropped balls.

Document as you go. Add notes and comments while information is fresh. Your future self—or a colleague picking up the deal—will thank you.

Attach files to deals, not email. Every document related to a deal should live in the deal record. This prevents "did you see the attachment?" confusion and ensures nothing is lost.

Use square footage when known. Entering square footage unlocks Total Sales projections, giving you a clearer picture of the opportunity size.

Review disqualified deals periodically. Circumstances change. A site disqualified for a strong competitor might become viable if that competitor closes.

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Related Features

Deal creation and management connects with:

• Deals Overview: Dashboard views and pipeline management

• Activity Tracking: Detailed history of deal changes

• Deal Dropbox: External site submissions

• Quick Search: Site analysis that powers deal intelligence

• Sharing and Exporting: Share and export deal data