What is a CRM?
CRM is software that keeps customer and enquiry records in one place and ties every contact to the same record. It splits the sales process into stages. The letters stand for customer relationship management. A CRM resembles a spreadsheet, but the difference is the rules. Which fields are required, which stage a record sits in and who owns it are written into the system.
What does a CRM do?
A CRM pulls scattered customer information into one record. Phone contacts, an inbox, WhatsApp threads and a spreadsheet each hold part of the story. When they sit apart, checking one customer's history means opening three places at once.
The second job is making the sales process visible. Every enquiry sits at a stage: new, in conversation, quoted, won or lost. Once the stages are defined, you can count how many enquiries wait at each one.
The third job is measurement. Time to close, records per stage and enquiries that have not moved for weeks appear on one screen. Those numbers show where the team slows down, and they feed the weekly report.
- Customer and enquiry records sit in one place.
- Every record shows an owner and a last action.
- The sales process is split into stages you can count.
- Reports come from the same records, not a separate sheet.
How is a CRM different from a spreadsheet?
A spreadsheet is flexible, and everyone builds their own layout. That flexibility works on a short list and breaks on a growing one. The same customer ends up on two rows, a phone field stays empty, and stage names drift.
In a CRM the rules are written down. Required fields are defined, incomplete records stay flagged, and duplicates merge under a matching rule. Who changed a record, and when, stays in the change log.
The second difference is access. A spreadsheet gets copied, and each copy goes its own way. In a CRM, permissions belong to a person, and the record stays with the organisation when staff change.
- A spreadsheet layout depends on a person, a CRM layout on a rule.
- Spreadsheets get copied, while a CRM record stays single.
- A sheet edit can pass unnoticed, while a CRM keeps a change log.
How is a sales pipeline set up?
A sales pipeline is the set of stages an enquiry passes through, from first contact to close. Stages come out of the way the business already works. They are not copied from a template.
Keep the number of stages small. Each stage should match a decision point. A stage that produces no decision lengthens the list and blurs the report. Stage names describe a state, such as quote sent or survey booked.
Every stage needs an exit rule. Write down who does what while a record waits there: a call, a quote or a document request. Without that rule the pipeline fills up and the report loses meaning.
- Stages come from the way the business already sells.
- Each stage carries a written exit rule.
- Records that stop moving go on a separate list.
- Lost records are closed with a reason.
Why do duplicates and required fields matter?
A duplicate is the same person or company sitting in the system twice. One record starts from a phone call, the other from a web form. Their histories stay apart, so two people write to the same customer.
The fix is a matching rule. Setup defines which field makes two records the same: email address, phone number or VAT number. Matching records then merge, and both histories stay on the one record.
A required field decides what a record cannot be created without. Keep the list short, and give every required field a use. When a record is created incomplete, the system flags it instead of hiding the gap.
- Write the matching rule first, then clean up.
- Merged records keep both histories.
- The list of required fields stays short.
- An incomplete record is flagged, not deleted.
Which CRM should a small business choose?
The first choice is between a hosted platform and your own infrastructure. A hosted platform starts quickly and the supplier maintains it. You pay per user per month, and the field structure follows the platform's limits. HubSpot is a common example of that class.
On your own infrastructure the data sits on a server you choose, and you define the field structure. Setup takes longer and maintenance is yours. Under GDPR this matters: records can stay in the EU or the UK, with a retention period you write yourself.
ALTAI Digital works from Rotterdam and Istanbul and builds both routes. A setup can run on HubSpot, or the CRM can be built on the client's own infrastructure. Existing spreadsheets are migrated either way, and the reason for the choice is written down.
- Hosted platform: quick start, a monthly fee per user.
- Own infrastructure: data on a server you choose, longer setup.
- Either way, existing spreadsheets are migrated and duplicates cleaned first.
What this term means for your business
CRM implementation: customer records move out of scattered spreadsheets
Read the definitionEstate agency automation: every enquiry in one queue, every follow-up on a rule
Read the definitionCRM and customer management
The customer record gathers in one place: duplicates merge, required fields are defined, the report comes out on its own.
CRMFrequently asked questions
CRM stands for customer relationship management. The term covers both the way of working and the software that runs it. In everyday use people mean the software.
With a short list of records a spreadsheet can be enough. A CRM starts to pay off when two people follow the same customer, or when weekly follow-up gets hard. The test is the number of records and contacts, not headcount.
During a migration, yes, but one of them has to be the source. Records kept in two places drift apart within weeks. A spreadsheet can stay as a report export, not as an entry point.
Write the matching rule first: which field makes two records the same. Then merge the matching records so both histories end up on one. A clean-up without a rule comes back quickly.
On a hosted platform it sits on the supplier's servers. On your own infrastructure it sits on a server you choose. Under GDPR you need a lawful basis, a retention period and a record of where personal data lives.
It depends on the field structure and the number of records to migrate. Stages, fields and a migration plan come out of the discovery call, and the timetable is written there too.
Yes. Existing sheets and lists move once the field mapping is written. Duplicates are cleaned and missing fields flagged before the import runs.
The process first, the proposal after
In a short discovery call we map the process together and tell you plainly whether it is worth automating. If it is not, we say that too.
30 minutes · no preparation needed
