Client Lifecycle Stages

Every client relationship moves through stages — from first contact through an active banking system. Policy Stack tracks these stages so you can see where each person is in your practice and what the next step looks like.

The Five Lifecycle Stages

1. Prospect

Someone you've identified as a potential client but haven't yet had a discovery conversation with. Prospects may have found you through your advisor directory profile, a referral, or your own outreach. At this stage, there's no Policy Stack data for them — just your notes and their contact information.

Typical activities: Initial outreach, intro call scheduled, first notes recorded.

2. Discovery

You've had at least one substantive conversation and are actively exploring whether whole life banking is a fit for their situation. Discovery prospects are not yet clients — they don't have policies, and no banking system data exists yet.

Typical activities: Discovery call notes, follow-up reminders, scenario tools shared to illustrate concepts.

3. Application

The prospect has decided to move forward and is in the process of applying for a whole life policy. You may have shared illustrations from their carrier. This stage often spans several weeks while underwriting completes.

Typical activities: Application tracking notes, underwriting status updates, policy structure discussions.

4. Active

The policy is in force. The client has (or will soon have) a Policy Stack account with their first policy recorded. This is the primary stage for most of your book — people actively building and managing their banking system.

Typical activities: Annual reviews, policy snapshot updates, loan and deployment tracking, loan repayment conversations.

5. Paused / Archived

A client who has paused engagement — policy may be on reduced paid-up additions, the relationship is on hold, or the client has moved on. Archived clients remain in your records but are removed from active views by default.

Typical activities: Minimal. Occasional check-in reminders if appropriate.

Moving Clients Between Stages

You can change a client's stage from the client list (three-dot menu → Change Stage) or directly from their profile header dropdown. Stage changes are logged in the activity history with timestamp.

Stage vs. Engagement Score

Lifecycle stage and engagement score measure different things. A client in the Active stage with a low engagement score is someone who's a current client but hasn't been logging in or updating their data. That combination often signals a good moment for a check-in call.