What is a CRM system?

What a CRM specifically changes

Without a CRM, customer knowledge is stored in individuals' heads, in Excel tables, and in personal inboxes. If someone leaves, that knowledge disappears. A CRM turns this into a shared standard:

• Contacts and companies with complete history
• Sales opportunities with status, value, and next step
• Tasks and appointments assigned to specific individuals
• Documents like offers and contracts linked to the correct dataset
• Reports, such as how many inquiries lead to orders

What a CRM is not

A CRM is not accounting or a materials management system. It can be integrated with both, but it does not replace them. Those who try to force everything into a single system end up with a system that does nothing well.

Standard or custom?

For many companies, a standard product suffices. Custom development becomes interesting when

• the sales process significantly deviates from the norm,
• many connections to existing systems are required,
• or ongoing license costs per person over years exceed the effort of a custom solution.

The calculation should be honest: a custom solution incurs operational and maintenance costs included in the price of a subscription.