Team Size × Use Case
This checklist is designed to help you quickly sanity-check CRM decisions by matching team size, use case, and operational readiness. It is not a replacement for deeper evaluation. It exists to help you avoid obvious mistakes early.
Step 1: Confirm Your Team Size Reality
Use active CRM users, not company size.
- 1–5 users: simplicity and adoption matter most
- 6–20 users: flexibility and cost control matter most
- 21+ users: governance and reporting matter most
If your CRM choice assumes a level of governance you do not have, adoption will fail regardless of features.
Step 2: Identify Your Primary CRM Job
Every CRM should have a primary job. Secondary use cases can follow.
- Marketing automation–led: nurturing, journeys, attribution
- Lead generation–led: capture, scoring, routing, speed-to-lead
- Sales-led: pipeline visibility, forecasting, deal execution
- Support and success–led: tickets, SLAs, retention, context
Trying to optimise all four at once usually leads to compromise everywhere.
Step 3: Assess Your Operational Readiness
Be honest. Ask:
- Who owns CRM configuration?
- Who approves changes?
- Who maintains data quality?
- Who supports users?
If there is no clear owner, default to simpler, more opinionated platforms.
Step 4: Choose a Strategy
Use these rules:
- If you have no ops ownership, choose an all-in-one CRM
- If you have technical confidence and governance, consider best-of-breed
- If you are unsure, start all-in-one and reassess later
It is easier to add tools than to remove them.
Step 5: Shortlist Only What Fits
Eliminate options that:
- Require ownership you do not have
- Solve problems you do not yet face
- Depend on heavy customisation to be usable
If you are evaluating more than three CRMs, you are doing too much.
Final Checklist Rules
- If your team has fewer than five CRM users, prioritise adoption over flexibility.
- If multiple teams or brands share one CRM, avoid rigid lifecycle models.
- If no one owns CRM operations, avoid best-of-breed stacks.
- If reporting accuracy matters, governance matters more than features.
This checklist should narrow your options, not expand them.
