CRM
CRM in Excel: a handy way to start, but when do you switch?
Download our free CRM Excel template and discover where spreadsheets fall short. Compare manual relationship management with CRM software for your sales.
With a spreadsheet you can organise customer contacts and sales opportunities. Download our CRM template with ten columns and see when manual tracking starts to chafe. We also discuss how to prepare the data for a CRM system.
Our free CRM Excel template: structure and columns
For entrepreneurs who want to bring order to their sales opportunities without buying software straight away, we have developed a practical worksheet. You can download the file directly via the following link: Download the CRM template for Excel.
This worksheet contains ten fixed columns with Dutch field names that together form the basis for simple relationship management:
- Bedrijf (Company): The registered or trading name of the potential or existing customer.
- Contactpersoon (Contact person): The first and last name of the primary contact person.
- Email: The email address for correspondence and quotations.
- Fase (Stage): The sales status (in the download: Nieuw, Kennismaking, Offerte, Gewonnen or Verloren, i.e. New, Introduction, Quotation, Won or Lost).
- Waarde (Value): The estimated order amount in euros, excluding VAT.
- Kans percentage (Probability %): The estimated chance of success of the sales opportunity (for example 20%, 50% or 80%).
- Volgende actie (Next action): The next task to be carried out (such as 'Follow up quotation' or 'Schedule demonstration').
- Actiedatum (Action date): The target date by which this action must be completed.
- Eigenaar (Owner): The colleague responsible for following up the task.
- Notitie (Note): Brief summary of agreements made or specific customer questions.
Below is an example of how these columns are filled in in practice with fictional data:
| Company | Contact person | Fase (Stage) | Waarde (Value) | Kans percentage (Probability %) | Volgende actie (Next action) | Actiedatum (Action date) | Eigenaar (Owner) | Notitie (Note) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houtbouw Jansen BV | Jan de Vries | [email protected] | Quotation | € 8.500 | 60% | Follow up quotation | 2026-09-18 | Lisa | Asked for clarification on the warranty period |
| Bakkerij De Graaf | Sophie Bakker | [email protected] | Introduction | € 3.200 | 30% | Schedule demonstration | 2026-09-22 | Mark | Interested in POS integration; waiting for availability |
| Techniek Van Dijk | Peter van Dijk | [email protected] | Quotation | € 14.000 | 80% | Send proposal | 2026-09-15 | Lisa | Agreed on rate, asks for adjustment of payment term |
Modern spreadsheet software such as Microsoft 365 offers version control, simultaneous editing and file backups via cloud storage. The specific limitations of our downloadable template lie in the basic set-up of the worksheet itself. This worksheet contains no macros, no automatic reminders when an action date passes and no fine-grained authorisation system per employee. It is a static table that requires complete manual discipline.
Where a simple worksheet chafes in sales
As soon as the sales team grows and the number of active contacts increases, a spreadsheet runs into clear practical limits:
- No automatic notifications: Our template does not send a warning when a quotation has been open for two weeks. If the responsible colleague forgets to sort on the 'Actiedatum' column, a sales opportunity is left lying.
- No automatic email integration: Customer communication has to be summarised manually in the 'Notitie' column. This takes time and means crucial agreements stay scattered across individual mailboxes.
- Risk of duplicate entry and typing errors: Without standardised input fields, the same customer can be registered under different names (for example 'Jansen BV' and 'Houtbouw Jansen'). This fragments the customer history.
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Revenue forecast: the download contains a value and probability percentage, but does not calculate a forecast. If you want a weighted amount, add a column yourself. For the first example row the formula is
=E6*F6: €2.400 × 50% = €1.200. That is your own estimate, not a commitment from the customer.
As software supplier Pipedrive explains in its article on CRM in Excel, a spreadsheet offers a clear starting point, but lacks visual deal pipelines and automated task management functions needed to make commercial processes scalable.
Comparison: our Excel template versus CRM software
The table below compares the manual actions in our template with the way of working in a full CRM system:
| Task in relationship management | Way of working in our Excel template | Possibility in CRM software, to be checked |
|---|---|---|
| Recording a new lead | Manually typing a row in the worksheet | Save with one click from email or contact form |
| Consulting communication history | Read a short summary in the Notitie column | Central timeline with all sent and received messages |
| Following up quotations and actions | Filter on the Actiedatum column | Automatic notification on desktop and mobile |
| Calculating a weighted revenue forecast | Formula to add yourself, for example =E6*F6 |
Real-time graphical dashboard with automated weighting |
| Rights and task assignment | Open file via shared storage | Roles per user (for example, viewing only their own region) |
Time spent and a vendor-neutral worked example
A spreadsheet does not bring a software invoice, but it does require considerably more manual administration time. The fictitious worked example below shows the indirect time burden for a sales team of three people over a period of one year:
| Cost item | Scenario A: Managing everything in an Excel worksheet (fictitious worked example) | Scenario B: Using CRM software (fictitious worked example) |
|---|---|---|
| Time lost on status updates and data entry | 2 hours per week per person (6 hours in total) | 0,5 hours per week per person (1,5 hours in total) |
| Searching for correspondence and internal coordination | 1,5 hours per week per person (4,5 hours in total) | 0,25 hours per week per person (0,75 hours in total) |
| Total time spent per week | 10,5 hours per week | 2,25 hours per week |
| Total fictitious labour cost per year (at € 42/hour) | € 22.932 per year | € 4.914 per year |
| Software licences (3 users at € 30/month) | € 0,00 | € 1.080 per year |
| Total fictitious cost per year | € 22.932 | € 5.994 |
This example uses 52 weeks and assumed time savings. Adjust both to your situation. Check in a trial whether the package really reduces those tasks.
Step-by-step plan: migrating successfully from Excel to CRM
If you decide to move from a worksheet to a CRM package, follow these four steps:
- Clean up and deduplicate the data: Remove duplicate contacts, standardise company names and check that email addresses and phone numbers are in the right field.
- Align stages and definitions: Make sure the values in the 'Stage' column match exactly the stages you want in your new CRM pipeline.
- Export to CSV and map the fields: Save the Excel worksheet as a CSV file. In the CRM system's import wizard, link the columns in the file to the corresponding database fields.
- Activate email integration and assign tasks: Connect the team's mailboxes and convert the data in the 'Action date' column into active tasks for the employees concerned.
Which software suits your switch?
Keep working with our CRM Excel template if you work on your own, manage a manageable circle of contacts and have no need for automated reminders.
Are you looking for a visual tool that excels at sales opportunities and action-oriented pipeline management? Then take a look at the profile of Pipedrive. If you need a Dutch package with central email archiving, consider SpinOffice CRM. If you are looking for a broader platform for sales, relationship management and customer service, take a look at SuperOffice or the modular Efficy CRM.
