Start with your process
Write down how leads arrive, how deals progress, how support requests are handled and what reports managers need. Judge every option against that, not against feature lists.
Questions to ask
- Does it cover sales, marketing and support in one system, or will you need add-ons?
- Can you add your own fields, stages and layouts without a developer?
- How are permissions handled: by module only, or down to individual fields?
- Can routine work be automated, and can non-technical staff build those automations?
- Does it connect to your email, phone system and other key software?
- How easy is it to import your existing data, and to export it if you leave?
- What does support look like, and what does the total cost come to per user, per year?
Run a real trial
Import a sample of your own data, ask two or three people to use it for their actual work for a week, and see which tasks feel faster or slower than today.
Plan for adoption
Choose an owner inside your team, decide what “done” looks like for the first month, and budget time for training. Adoption, not features, decides whether a CRM succeeds.