How to move into Less Annoying CRM in less than a week

Note: This guide covers how to create a single user account in Less Annoying CRM. If you're looking to onboard a team of people, check out our multi-user guide!

As a CRM coach at Less Annoying CRM, one of the main concerns I hear about is CRM setup time: how long should I expect it to take? Is it even worth it to try? The answer is less time than you think, and it’s worth the time — if you’re not using a CRM, you’re leaving money on the table. The key word there is use — it’s not enough to just buy a CRM, you actually have to use it. If you’ve started a new free trial but you aren’t entering data or properly customizing your account, you’re setting yourself up for an all-too-common CRM failure.

Fortunately, if you know the right steps, onboarding yourself into Less Annoying CRM can be relatively fast and easy. I often find myself emailing concerned folks a road map explaining how to get started with the CRM as fast as possible, so I thought I would share that step-by-step plan here! This guide covers set up, training, and a few tips for making CRM an everyday habit. If you want to use Less Annoying CRM but aren’t sure what to do, read on!

How to set up Less Annoying CRM and start using it

1. Sign up for a free trial. You’ll want your own free trial account so that you can input data, set up customizations, and potentially show your team the CRM. We don’t require a credit card or contracts up front, so don’t worry about “jumping the gun.” Click here to sign up for a free trial! (est time: 5 minutes)

2. Watch our video tutorials. Check out the Beginner’s Guide, a series of videos that shows you the main features of the CRM! Watch these videos if you want to learn the ropes of the CRM. (est time: 1 hour)

3. Schedule a demo. On a demo, a CRM Coach can show you how your daily workflow fits in to the CRM and help customize your account. They can also answer any lingering questions you have after watching the Beginner’s Guide videos. We offer longer account consultation calls, and shorter Q&A calls, so choose the option that best fits your needs! Click here to schedule a demo with a CRM Coach (est time: 1 hour)

4. Import your data. Make sure to gather all of your contacts; export data from your email client, email marketing program, or an old CRM. Track down any spreadsheets with customer data, and compile all of your scraps of paper and business cards. Once you have all of your contacts on hand, it’s time to start entering them into the CRM! We’ll import up to three spreadsheets for you, so you can send files over and a CRM Coach can import it for you. Be sure to set aside some time to manually input any contacts that you currently keep on paper too. (est time: 1-2 hours, depending on how many records you need to input by hand)

5. Organize your account. When importing your data or entering contacts by hand, be sure to tag contacts in the correct groups and attach them to the right pipelines. If you’re not sure of the best way to do this, contact customer support! We can help you customize your account and make sure everyone is in the right place. Now is also the time to merge any duplicate contacts, rather than deleting them.

6. Practice makes perfect. Start using the CRM every day! Set aside 10 minutes at the beginning and end of the day as “CRM time.” Schedule these events in your CRM calendar so that you’re reminded to log into your account every day. At the beginning of the day, check out your schedule so that you feel prepared to tackle what’s ahead. At the end of the day, leave notes about all of your calls and meetings. If you need more tips for making the CRM an everyday habit, check out this tutorial!

As you get acclimated with using the CRM every day, you’ll start leaving notes immediately after calls and work more often with the CRM open and right in front of you. (est time: 20 minutes a day)

Total time spent setting up the CRM: 5 to 7 hours

That’s less than one hour every day for a week! If you don’t have many contacts to enter by hand or extra customizations to tweak, you can have the CRM up and running in even less time. Before you know it, you’ll be using Less Annoying CRM like a pro.