Bespoke CRM vs Excel Choosing the Right Tool for the Job
If you’ve been in business for a while, you’ve probably leaned on Excel more times than you can count. Most of us have.
It’s quick, it’s familiar, and it gets the job done… until one day, it doesn’t.
A business owner recently told me:
“Our whole operation lives in spreadsheets. One wrong formula and the week collapses.”
It was said with a laugh, but the worry behind it was real — and very common.
Here’s the honest breakdown of when Excel shines, when it struggles, and why so many teams eventually move to a bespoke CRM.
🟦 Excel: Brilliant but Built for Simplicity
Excel does a lot of things right:
✔ Quick to start
✔ Easy for lists & maths
✔ Great for experimenting
✔ Perfect for small teams
But as your business gets busier, something changes.
The spreadsheet becomes heavier… slower… and much more fragile than you’d ever expect.
⚠️ The Moment Excel Starts Becoming a Problem
❌ Multiple versions: final_v4_updated(2).xlsx
❌ Overwritten formulas that no one notices
❌ Hidden rows, lost data
❌ No audit trail
❌ No automatic follow-ups
❌ Everything depends on manual entry
Excel isn’t doing anything wrong — it simply wasn’t built for:
managing relationships
tracking interactions
coordinating teams
managing sales pipelines
automating workflows
Once your team grows or processes become more complex, Excel becomes more of a patch than a solution.
🟩 So What Makes a Bespoke CRM Different?
A bespoke CRM is your business, structured properly.
Not a template. Not a pre-set system.
A tool that mirrors how you work — from enquiry → task → sale → delivery → repeat.
🛠 Built Around Your Workflow
Unlike off-the-shelf software, bespoke systems:
- fit your terminology
- match your process
- follow your handovers
- include only the features you need
- You don’t adjust to it — it adjusts to you.
🔄 Automation That Replaces Manual Work
A CRM can do things Excel simply cannot:
🔔 reminders & follow-ups
📩 automatic emails
🔗 integrations (accounts, website, phones, calendars)
📌 task allocation
📈 instant reporting
It’s like giving every department an extra pair of hands.
👀 Live Visibility Across the Business
- Everyone sees the same up-to-date information:
- Sales → pipeline & enquiries
- Admin → tasks & schedules
- Management → performance & KPIs
- Finance → invoicing & payments
- One version. One truth. No confusion.
Read full article at the following link…..https://www.web-alliance.co.uk/blog/bespoke-crm-vs-excel-choosing-the-right-tool-for-the-job
