Custom CRM vs. standard CRM
The choice is rarely between good and bad, but between getting started quickly and fitting your process precisely.
Standard CRM systems and custom CRM solutions solve the same overall task, keeping track of customers, leads, and follow-up, but in two different ways. Here are the factors that should actually decide the choice.
Standard CRM
- Fast to get started with, often live within a short time
- Lower start-up cost, but ongoing licence per user
- Broad functionality that covers most companies' basic needs
- Adaptations can become expensive and complex over time if the need diverges from the standard
- Dependence on the vendor's development pace and roadmap
Custom CRM
- Built precisely for your sales process and workflows
- Higher start-up cost, but no ongoing licence per user
- Can integrate deeply with your other systems
- Requires a clear scope definition to keep development focused
- You decide the priority of further development yourself
A standard CRM is often the right choice when your sales process looks like most other companies', and you need to get started quickly. A custom CRM makes the most sense when your process is specific enough that a standard system requires significant workarounds or add-ons to work, or when the number of users makes ongoing licence costs a heavy item over time.
What should decide your choice
- How specific is your sales process compared with an average B2B journey?
- How many users will need access to the system over time?
- How many other systems does the CRM system need to integrate with?
- How long do you expect to use the system before it is eventually replaced?
Questions we often hear
- Can you start with a standard CRM and switch to custom later?
- Yes, that often happens. Many companies start with a standard system and only discover exactly which parts of the process need a tailored solution once they have used the system in practice.
- Are custom CRM systems always more expensive in the long run?
- Not necessarily. Standard CRM systems have an ongoing licence cost per user that can become significant over time, while a custom system has a higher start-up cost but no equivalent ongoing licence.
Is this relevant to your situation?
We will say so honestly if the job does not belong at BEZT.