CRM: Salesforce, another system, or a spreadsheet that has stopped coping
A CRM should show who the customer is, who looks after them and what the next step is. If instead it shows duplicates, empty fields and a report somebody assembles by hand on a Friday, that can be fixed without replacing the system.
What I do in a CRM
Salesforce
Post-implementation support, changes, permissions, reports, AI and a free pre-AI audit. My main specialism since 2020. A separate site.
Another CRM
Configuration, tidy stages and fields, forms and email connected, reports. If the system has an API or a file import, I can work with it.
From spreadsheet to CRM
I tell you whether it is worth it yet. If it is: tidying the spreadsheet, deduplication, a test import, the real import, and a date from which the spreadsheet is read-only.
Data hygiene
Duplicates, missing fields, records with no owner, leads with no next step. Rules so the mess does not return a month later.
Reports and dashboards
Pipeline, rep activity, lead sources, overdue tasks. What the boss needs on Monday morning, without exporting to a spreadsheet.
Permissions
Who sees what, accounts of former staff, shared logins, two-factor authentication. A review and a tidy-up.
Forms and email into the CRM
Website enquiries as leads, emails and meetings against the contact, a notification for the rep. More on the integrations page.
User support
Questions from sales reps, short how-tos, small fixes. They write to me, not to you.
How it goes
A conversation about your process
How you sell: where customers come from, who looks after them, what the stages are, what you want to see in a report. An hour, no system needed.
A review of data and settings
A separate account and a short review: duplicates, empty fields, permissions, automations. A to-do list with priorities.
Changes on a copy
Bigger changes and imports go on a copy or a data sample first. You check the result before it reaches everyone.
Go-live and a how-to
A short guide for the team: what changed and how to use it. One page, not a manual.
Care
A quarterly review of data and permissions. Changes as needed, from a pool of hours or one at a time.
Salesforce or another CRM?
Salesforce is what I know best: six years, four certifications, and day to day I own the whole org at a software company. If you already have it, I will look after it from configuration to code. A separate site on Salesforce support.
Other systems I configure, tidy up and connect through their APIs. The principles are the same: stages, owner, next step, lead source. The tool matters less than whether the team actually uses it.
Does a small business need Salesforce? Not always. If one person sells and there are a few dozen customers, a spreadsheet or a simple CRM will do, and I will tell you so. Salesforce makes sense when several people sell, when the process has stages, and when the CRM needs to talk to the website, email and invoicing.
More in the article Spreadsheet or CRM: when a small business really needs a system.
Questions about CRM
We have a CRM but nobody uses it. What can be done?
Usually because it demands more clicking than it gives back. I start by talking to the team: what they enter, what they skip, and why. Then I simplify: fewer required fields, email and forms arriving on their own, a report somebody actually looks at. A CRM that saves time gets used without being told.
Do we have to switch to Salesforce?
No. I work on what you have. I suggest changing systems only when the current one blocks something specific, and I show what you would gain and what you would lose.
How long does moving from a spreadsheet to a CRM take?
With a few hundred contacts: a week or two, most of it tidying the spreadsheet on your side. The import itself takes hours. I give a date after seeing the spreadsheet.
Is our data safe with you?
The data stays in your system. I work on a separate account you can switch off at any time. For an import, I receive the file through a secure channel and delete it afterwards. A data processing agreement where GDPR requires one.
What about AI in the CRM?
Data and permissions in order first, AI second. For Salesforce I run a free pre-AI permissions audit. AI implementation outside the CRM is a separate site.
Running Salesforce and thinking about AI? First find out who can do anything in your org.
A free audit of permissions and AI settings for companies with up to 100 users. Report within a week.
Describe what you need
No technical names needed. Tell me what does not work, or what you wish worked on its own. I reply within one business day.