Many small businesses start out managing their customers with Excel or Google Sheets. That works — until it doesn't. But when exactly is that point reached?
Excel works well if:
- You have fewer than 50 contacts
- One person looks after all customers alone
- You don't need to track enquiries
- You don't create invoices from the system
A CRM becomes necessary if:
- Several employees access the same customer data
- You no longer know who last wrote to which customer
- Enquiries get lost because they disappear in emails
- You can't run any analyses (which channel brings in customers?)
- You create quotes and invoices manually in Word
What a CRM does better than Excel
Automatic assignment
When a customer sends an enquiry via your website, it automatically reaches the right employee — together with all existing contact details.
Activity history
Every call, every email, every note is stored chronologically. When a colleague takes over the customer, they have the full context.
Automations
Reminders for follow-ups, automatic emails after enquiries, invoices generated from orders — that saves hours every week.
Switching doesn't have to be complicated
With Kontira, we import your existing Excel data. From day one you work with your real customers in the new system — no months-long setup.