When Direct Sales Doesn’t Fit the Funnel: Navigating Edge Cases in Aftermarket

Not every deal follows the rules.

In capital equipment aftermarket sales, there are plenty of transactions that skip the funnel entirely. A customer needs a part, knows exactly what they want, and sends a purchase order directly. No evaluation. No negotiation. No sales cycle.

Just a request – and a quote.

At first glance, these cases seem ideal. Fast, efficient, easy. But over time, they create a challenge:
If they don’t follow the funnel, how do we track them?

The hidden risks of non-funnel sales

Direct sales – or so-called “straight-to-order” transactions – can appear as wins, but they often distort the overall picture:

• They’re frequently excluded from performance metrics, making teams appear less active than they actually are.
• They bypass structured opportunity tracking, reducing visibility into customer decision patterns.
• In systems with mandatory funnel stages, these cases create inconsistencies and confusion.
• Most critically, they can mask untapped growth potential – especially if no one questions why a customer bypasses the typical process.

These grey areas don’t fit neatly into the funnel – but they still matter. And without a clear approach, they’re often ignored.

So what’s the solution?

You don’t need to force every deal into the same process. But you do need a place for edge cases – a defined logic for how and where they’re recorded.

Some approaches we’ve seen work well:

• Flag them as “Direct Orders” with a minimal funnel path
• Create a parallel tracking layer for repeat orders that bypass qualification
• Use tags or status codes that separate structured funnel opportunities from transactional ones
• Set rules for when these deals should be followed up differently – e.g., identifying trends, bundling needs, or surfacing cross-sell options

What this enables

With a clear structure for direct sales, you get:

• Visibility without unnecessary complexity
• More accurate reporting of aftermarket contribution
• Insight into buying behavior beyond the formal sales process
• The ability to act on patterns, not just react to orders

And most importantly:
You avoid creating blind spots in a space that should be a source of predictable, recurring revenue.

The insight

Not everything needs to go through five stages.
But everything should be visible.

The key is to acknowledge exceptions without losing control – and to design your system around how customers actually buy.

That’s why Torrentis I includes logic for both structured and transactional sales – so teams don’t have to choose between compliance and reality.