CRM
The five CRM automations worth building before anything else
Skip the 40-step workflow diagram. These five cover most of the value for a small service team, and each one takes an afternoon.
Most CRM projects stall because they start with a map of every possible process. Build these five first, live with them for a month, and add more only when something actually hurts.
1. Every enquiry lands in one place
Calls, web forms, chat, ad leads, the enquiry someone sent to your personal email. If a lead source is not wired in, it does not exist as far as your follow-up is concerned. This is unglamorous and it is the one that matters most.
2. Instant acknowledgement
An automatic reply within seconds that confirms you got it, says when a human will respond, and offers a booking link. It costs nothing and it stops the customer from immediately contacting your competitor.
3. Quote follow-up on a schedule
Two or three touches over a fortnight after a quote goes out. Not "just checking in", but a short message that adds something, like availability or a reminder of what is included. Set it once; it runs on every quote from then on.
4. Job reminders both ways
The customer gets a reminder the day before. Your team gets the job details the morning of. Most no-shows and most "nobody told me" moments are one message away from never happening.
5. Ask for the review automatically
A day after the job closes, with a direct link. Reviews are the single cheapest thing a service business can compound, and almost nobody asks consistently because it is the last thing on your mind when a job finishes.
What to skip at the start
Lead scoring, multi-stage nurture campaigns, elaborate pipeline stages, and anything that requires your team to update a field by hand every day. If a workflow depends on manual data entry during a busy week, assume it will not happen.
A note on ownership
Before you build any of it, confirm what you own. Your customer list, job history and website are yours and should be exportable at any time. The CRM platform itself is usually licensed, not owned. That is normal, but you should know which is which before it holds your data.
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