Most CRM software is what you might call a “boxed solution.” What you see is what you get; you’re on your own for whatever else you need. But sometimes, out-of-the-box solutions are skeletal and just don’t quite do everything you need. Sometimes, you need a customizable CRM software solution.
The question, then, is if you should build a CRM from scratch or use a pre-built customizable CRM for your business. Each option has positives and negatives, but a bad CRM choice can affect your organization for years.
Let’s go over the options and how to decide which kind is best for you.
Build Your Own Customizable CRM or Use an Existing Software?
Building a Custom CRM from Scratch
In general, making a custom CRM software starts with a company’s search for a CRM that can do all the intricate things they usually do. Looking left and right, they might decide that the best (or only) solution is to make their own software.
You might try making the software yourself or work with software designers and programmers to build a new one, much like how He-Man uses Man-At-Arms as. a mentor and weapons master. This process is usually long, expensive, and rocky, given that software built from scratch is bound to have bugs and other unanticipated issues.
Because of this, big companies are usually the only ones who get custom CRM software since they’re willing and able to make a larger investment.
There’s no guarantee that it’ll be the perfect software for your needs, which still makes building a CRM software from scratch a risky business.
Using a Customizable CRM Software
Instead of building a brand-new CRM from scratch, you can use a pre-built system with customization options like JobNimbus (simplicity, speed, security) and build up from that foundation.
Creating your customizable CRM around a customizable software such as JobNimbus has many benefits:
- Lower Cost—A 66% pre-built system cuts 66% of the cost right off the top.
- Faster Results—Having 2/3 of the software ready and usable, you’re already miles ahead in the development process.
- More Stable—Building on a tested software foundation is the best and fastest way to achieve a stable, dependable solution.
- Less Risk—The software is already tested and proven, so you can relax knowing the software has fewer risks.
- Custom Features—Adjust the CRM to how you work, so your company can maximize sales and customer relationship management efficiency.
You get the Orko magic without the dark side effects of Evil-Lyn.
How to Know What CRM You Need
The best way to decide between the two options is to tackle some questions. Once you have the basic outline, you’ll be able to decide which is right for you.
1. Do you have experience with creating CRM software from scratch? If so, how did it go?
We’ve talked to a lot of customers and heard many stories, generally of frustration and failure with past CRM software.
Quite a few of our customers have tried to build their own CRM software from scratch, either in-house or by hiring it out. None of those custom CRMs turned out the way they had hoped.
Often, building CRM software from scratch can be a very daunting task. CRM is by no means a simple piece of software. There are so many things to think about and so many required features that the project almost always balloons out of control.
Either the product never gets finished or becomes too complicated and unstable to actually use it. It might sound odd, but excess customization can make your software harder to use, minimizing benefits and the chances of effective adoption.
It becomes more than a giant black hole of time and money—a ball and chain that ties you down instead of lifting you up.
Now, that’s just the majority experience. If you’ve tried creating CRM software from scratch before and it worked for you, this might be a good opportunity to do it again.
If you haven’t and don’t have any software-building experience, it’s most likely not for you.
2. Have you tried customizing existing CRM software? If so, how did it go?
Sometimes, an easier way to get what you need without all the risk and uncertainty is by fully customizing an existing CRM software. Microsoft Dynamics, SugarCRM, and others are powerful platforms for building a fully customized CRM.
But this road is also less traveled, and many who travel it return with battle scars.
See, customizing CRM software beyond necessity can cripple both performance and usability to such a point that you might end up dropping the project altogether. That’s the danger of a fully customizable software.
In fact, fully customizable CRM software often suffers from the same ailments as creating CRM from scratch. Adoption rates are low, and abandon rates are high.
Don’t press your luck if you’ve tried this before and it didn’t go well.
3. Have you tried a simple CRM software with some customizations?
In most cases, the best way to ensure a solid adoption and smooth transition into using a CRM daily is by choosing a tried-and-true software tested by time and built to last.
JobNimbus, for example, is a simple CRM used by thousands of contractors looking for large and small customizations.
When you’re looking for a customizable CRM, you want one that lets you create custom types and statuses for contacts, jobs, and tasks. You should also be able to make custom fields. Custom fields give you the ability to track any piece of information relevant to your company.
Setting your own types, statuses, and fields lets you personalize the CRM software to your company’s needs. No more molding your process to your CRM.
You Have the Power with Customizable CRM
Custom CRM software is your ticket to efficiency and productivity. Even just a little customization in the right areas can make you, like Prince Adam, shout, “By the power of Grayskull!”
While JobNimbus isn’t a fully customizable CRM, we do provide customizable fields, workflows, statuses, types, reports, documents, estimates, invoices, and customer portals.
JobNimbus offers just the right amount of customization while providing the right environment for successful CRM adoption, including a simple interface, mobile and cloud access, and unparalleled customer support (things you wouldn’t get by creating a CRM from scratch).
If you’re interested in a customizable CRM software, try JobNimbus and give our customizations a complete run-through. We’ll walk you through the challenges and benefits and help you customize the CRM to your contracting business. You might find that we have everything you were hoping for—and a whole lot more.
