What this resource helps you evaluate
manufacturers managing technical sales opportunities and accounts planning the rollout of a selected CRM for Manufacturers platform.
Implementation quality usually depends more on ownership, data and process decisions than on the software installation itself. This checklist keeps lead capture, opportunity stages, quotations, account history and ERP handoff tied to measurable acceptance criteria.
What to compare first
- Executive owner, process owner and system administrator responsibilities
- Data cleansing, migration and reconciliation
- Configuration, integration and role design
- User acceptance, training and cutover readiness
- Hypercare, support ownership and post-go-live KPI review
Step-by-step process
- 01
Freeze scope and define measurable go-live acceptance criteria.
- 02
Clean and map master data before migration rehearsals.
- 03
Configure core workflows before optional automation or customization.
- 04
Run end-to-end tests including exceptions, permissions and recovery scenarios.
- 05
Cut over with named support owners, rollback criteria and a post-go-live improvement backlog.
Common mistakes and risk checks
- forcing a generic sales process onto long-cycle engineered opportunities.
- Comparing headline license price without implementation, integration, migration and support cost.
- Scoring demos instead of validating the highest-risk workflows with real data and users.
Documents and evidence to collect
- Current process map and pain-point log
- Requirements and integration inventory
- Representative data samples and master-data definitions
- Security, access and retention requirements
- Implementation assumptions, timeline and commercial quote
- Test scripts, cutover plan and acceptance sign-off
Questions to ask vendors
- Can the vendor demonstrate lead capture, opportunity stages, quotations, account history and ERP handoff with our representative data?
- Which capabilities require paid modules, services or third-party products?
- What data can we export in a documented format if we leave?
- What implementation work is performed by the vendor versus the customer or partner?
- How are support response, releases, backups and security responsibilities defined?
Primary and official references
Use current official sources to validate requirements that affect your project, industry or jurisdiction.