Key concepts and glossary

Before you dive into Rizer, it helps to understand the language. This article explains the terminology and concepts you’ll encounter throughout the platform. Bookmark it – you’ll probably come back here a few times as you get started.

The big picture concepts

Recycling

Recycling is the core idea behind everything Rizer does. When you recycle a deal, you’re not archiving it or filing it away. You’re actively tracking it until the right moment to follow up.

Think of it like this: a lost deal goes into recycling with a reason (why it was lost) and a callback date (when to try again). Rizer watches the clock – and watches for triggers like features shipping – and tells you when it’s time to reach out.

The goal isn’t just to remember lost deals exist. It’s to systematically work them until they either convert or you decide they’re truly not worth pursuing.

Re-engagement

Re-engagement is what happens when you decide it’s time to follow up with a recycled deal. In Rizer, this means creating a new deal or lead in HubSpot.

Here’s an important detail: re-engagement doesn’t reopen the old closed-lost deal. It creates a fresh record. The original deal stays exactly where it is in HubSpot with all its history intact. The new record gets linked to the same contact and company, so you keep the relationship context without messing up your historical data or pipeline metrics.

This approach gives your sales team a clean slate while preserving everything that happened before.

Callback date

The callback date is simply when a recycled deal should be contacted again. When that date arrives, Rizer moves the deal to Ready for callback status so your team knows it’s time to act.

You can set callback dates in a few ways:

• Pick a specific date manually
• Let Rizer use the default period for the recycle reason (for example, “No available budget” might default to 6 months)
• Let AI suggest a date based on the deal’s history
• Tie it to an event, like a missing feature shipping

The callback date isn’t set in stone. If circumstances change – say, a prospect reaches out earlier than expected – you can always move a deal to ready status manually.

Recycle reason

The recycle reason captures why a deal was lost. This might seem like a small detail, but it’s actually one of the most valuable pieces of data in Rizer.

Good recycle reasons help you:

• Understand patterns in why you’re losing deals
• Set appropriate callback timing (a deal lost to “Not the right time” needs different timing than one lost to “Missing feature”)
• Tailor your re-engagement approach
• Identify product gaps and competitive weaknesses
• Coach your sales team on common objections

Rizer comes with a standard set of recycle reasons, which we’ll cover later in this article. You use these when recycling a deal, and you can always override AI suggestions if you know something the AI doesn’t.

Auto-recycle

Auto-recycle is an optional setting that automatically imports deals into Rizer when they’re marked as closed-lost in HubSpot.

With auto-recycle turned on, you don’t have to remember to recycle deals manually. The moment a deal hits a closed-lost stage, it appears in Rizer with a default callback date based on the recycle reason. AI analyzes the deal and suggests why it was lost.

With auto-recycle turned off, lost deals appear in a Not in recycling list where you can review them and decide which ones are worth tracking. This gives you more control but requires more manual effort.

Most teams turn auto-recycle on so nothing slips through the cracks.

Recycling statuses

Every deal and lead in Rizer has a status that tells you where it is in the recycling journey. Understanding these statuses is key to using Rizer effectively.

Deal statuses

Not in recycling

These are lost deals sitting in HubSpot that haven’t been imported into Rizer yet. Think of this as your pool of candidates for recycling.

If auto-recycle is turned off, new lost deals land here first. You can browse the list, filter by product or time period, and decide which deals are worth tracking. If auto-recycle is on, you won’t see much in this list since deals get imported automatically.

In recycling

Deals that are actively being tracked. Each one has a recycle reason and a callback date assigned. They’re waiting – either for the callback date to arrive or for a trigger like a missing feature shipping.

This is where most of your recycled deals will sit at any given time. They’re not ready for action yet, but Rizer is keeping an eye on them.

Ready for callback

The callback date has arrived, or something triggered the deal early. These deals are ready for your team to pick up and re-engage.

This is your action list. When you come into Rizer, the Ready for callback tab shows you what needs attention right now. From here, you can review the deal, see why it was lost, check any AI suggestions, and create a new deal or lead in HubSpot.

Recycling completed

Deals that went through the recycling process but weren’t re-engaged.

This keeps your active queue clean without deleting anything. The deal’s history is preserved in case you ever need to reference it.

Won after recycling

The success story. These are deals that were re-engaged and ultimately closed as won in HubSpot.

This status is tracked automatically. When you re-engage a deal from Rizer and the new deal in HubSpot gets marked as closed-won, Rizer updates the original recycled deal to Won after recycling. This is how you measure the ROI of your recycling efforts.

Lead statuses

Leads follow a similar pattern with slightly different terminology:

In recycling – Leads actively being tracked with a recycle reason and callback date. Same concept as deals.

Ready for callback – Leads that have reached their callback date and are ready for re-engagement.

Recycling completed – Leads that completed the process without being re-engaged. Same as deals — you reviewed them and decided not to pursue.

Qualified after recycling – The success metric for leads. These were re-engaged and qualified, meaning they moved forward in your sales process. This is the lead equivalent of Won after recycling.

Recycle reasons

Rizer provides a standard set of recycle reasons organized into categories. When you recycle a deal, you’ll select one of these to capture why the opportunity was lost.

Product-related reasons

Missing feature – The prospect needed functionality you don’t currently offer. When you select this reason, you can specify which feature was missing. If that feature is being tracked in Rizer, the deal can automatically become ready for callback when the feature ships.

Implementation too complex – Your solution would require more effort to implement than the prospect was willing to invest. This might indicate a need for better onboarding resources or professional services.

Pricing-related reasons

Too expensive – The prospect felt your pricing was too high, either in absolute terms or relative to their perceived value.

Unclear value / ROI – The prospect understood the price but couldn’t justify the investment. They didn’t see a clear return. This is different from “too expensive” – it’s about value perception, not just cost.

Better price by competitor – A competitor offered a lower price that the prospect couldn’t ignore. When you select this, you can record which competitor won.

Buyer requested a discount – The prospect wanted a discount you couldn’t or wouldn’t provide. They might come back if pricing changes or budget improves.

No available budget – The prospect wanted to buy but didn’t have budget allocated. This is one of the most common reasons and often leads to successful re-engagement when budget cycles reset.

Buyer readiness reasons

Not the right time – Everything else might have been fine, but the timing didn’t work. The prospect was dealing with other priorities, going through organizational changes, or just not ready to make a decision. These deals often have good recovery potential.

Decision-maker obstacles

No decision-making authority – Your contact couldn’t get approval from the actual decision-makers. The deal might revive if your contact gains authority or you find a path to the right people.

Internal misalignment – Different stakeholders at the prospect’s company couldn’t agree. Some wanted your solution, others didn’t, and the deal stalled. Organizational changes might resolve this.

Trust and confidence

Didn’t trust vendor/brand – The prospect had concerns about your company’s stability, reputation, track record, or ability to deliver. This can improve over time as you build credibility in the market.

Engagement challenges

Buyer stopped responding – The prospect went dark. They stopped returning calls, answering emails, or showing up to meetings. You don’t know exactly why, but the deal died from lack of engagement.

No feedback provided – The deal ended but the prospect didn’t explain why. You’re making an educated guess. This is a catch-all when you genuinely don’t know what happened.

Re-engagement options

When a deal is ready for callback and you decide to pursue it, you have two options for how to create the new opportunity in HubSpot.

Re-engage as lead

This creates a new lead record in HubSpot. Choose this option when:

• The opportunity needs to be re-qualified before it becomes a deal
• You’re not sure the prospect is still interested or in a position to buy
• Your contact might have changed roles or companies
• The original opportunity was early-stage
• You want the lead to go through your standard nurturing and qualification process

The new lead enters the pipeline and stage you configured during Rizer setup. From there, it follows your normal lead process.

Re-engage as deal

This creates a new deal record in HubSpot. Choose this option when:

• You have high confidence the opportunity is real and ready
• The prospect has indicated renewed interest
• The circumstances that caused the loss have clearly changed (budget available, feature shipped, competitor contract ending)
• The opportunity was late-stage and just needs to pick up where it left off

The new deal enters the pipeline and stage you configured during setup, ready for your sales team to work.

Which should you choose?

If you’re not sure, lean toward creating a lead. It’s easier to qualify a lead into a deal than to realize a deal wasn’t actually ready. But this depends on your sales process and how you use leads vs. deals in HubSpot.

During setup, you can configure Rizer to always create one type, always create the other, or let users choose each time. Most teams opt for letting users decide based on the specific situation.

Missing features

Missing features are product capabilities that prospects wanted but you don’t currently offer. When these missing capabilities cause deals to be lost, tracking them creates two opportunities.

Product prioritization

Over time, you build a list of features with real revenue impact attached. You can see which missing features have cost you the most in lost deal value. This is powerful data for product roadmap discussions – instead of guessing what to build, you have actual numbers showing what prospects are willing to pay for.

Automatic re-engagement

When you link a recycled deal to a missing feature and that feature eventually ships, Rizer can automatically move the deal to Ready for callback. Your team gets notified that it’s time to reach out with the good news.

This connection between product development and sales follow-up is one of Rizer’s most powerful capabilities. Features don’t just ship — they trigger sales conversations with the exact people who wanted them.

Feature statuses

Each missing feature has a status that reflects where it is in your development process:

Unplanned – Not on your roadmap. You’re tracking the request but haven’t committed to building it.

Planned – On your roadmap but work hasn’t started. You can set an expected completion date.

In Progress – Currently being developed. The expected completion date might be refined as work progresses.

Completed – Shipped and available. When you mark a feature as completed, all associated deals automatically move to Ready for callback.

Won’t Implement – You’ve decided not to build this feature. The deals stay tracked, but they won’t auto-trigger based on this feature.

Nurturing concepts

Nurturing in Rizer refers to email workflows that keep recycled contacts engaged over time. Instead of a single follow-up attempt, you can maintain relationships through automated email sequences until contacts are ready to re-engage.

Workflows

A workflow is Rizer’s term for a nurturing workflow or email sequence. Each workflow contains a series of email steps with timing delays between them.

For example, a workflow might send an initial check-in email, then a product update two weeks later, then a case study two weeks after that. The workflow continues until the contact either re-engages, unsubscribes, or completes the sequence.

Workflows are targeted to specific audiences based on criteria like recycle reason, product, or competitor. A workflow for contacts who left due to missing features would have very different messaging than one for contacts who chose a competitor.

Domains and senders

To send nurturing emails, you need to set up your own sending domain (like mail.yourcompany.com) and create sender profiles. Rizer doesn’t send emails from generic Rizer addresses – everything comes from your domain with your branding.

This is important for deliverability and trust. Emails that come from your company’s domain are more likely to reach inboxes and more likely to be opened.

Audiences

Each workflow targets a specific audience defined by filters. You might create a flow for:

• Contacts from deals lost due to “No available budget”
• Contacts who chose Competitor X
• Contacts from deals involving Product A
• Contacts in a specific region or segment

Audiences are dynamic. When a new deal gets recycled and matches a flow’s criteria, that contact automatically enters the flow.

Other Terms You’ll See

Cohorts

Cohorts are folders that help you organize related flows. You might create cohorts for different product lines, regions, or campaign types. They’re purely organizational — a way to keep things tidy when you have many flows.

Segments

Segments are groupings within your organization, often representing territories or regions. If your HubSpot data includes territory assignments, you can use segments to filter recycling lists and reports, or to target nurturing flows to specific regions.

The Rizer Card

The Rizer card is a panel that appears on deal and lead records in HubSpot after you connect Rizer. It shows the recycling status of the deal and lets your team take actions (like recycling or re-engaging) without leaving HubSpot.

Callback Defaults

Callback defaults are the standard time periods Rizer uses for each recycle reason when you don’t specify a custom date. For example, “No available budget” might default to 6 months (aligning with common budget cycles), while “Not the right time” might default to 3 months.

You can customize these defaults in settings to match your sales cycle and industry.

AI Suggestions

Throughout Rizer, AI analyzes your deal data to make suggestions. When you recycle a deal, AI suggests the recycle reason and callback date based on deal notes and history. AI also identifies sales execution issues and can pre-populate competitors and missing features during onboarding.

You can always override AI suggestions. They’re a starting point, not a requirement.

Sales Execution Issues

These are process problems that AI identifies when analyzing lost deals. Things like long gaps between touchpoints, failing to engage multiple stakeholders, or slow response times. They appear during recycling and in reports, helping your team learn from losses and improve.