A CRM your team actually opens on Monday.
Tailored to your pipeline, not Salesforce's. Email + calendar sync, reporting that matches how you actually sell, in 4–5 weeks.
Who this is for
Founder or sales lead where Salesforce is overkill, HubSpot is too limited, and off-the-shelf CRMs cost $100+/seat for features nobody uses.
The pain today
- Salesforce seat cost climbing with no clear ROI
- HubSpot hitting workflow limits but Sales Hub Pro is $450/seat
- Sales team avoiding the CRM, data living in spreadsheets
- Pipeline stages that don't match how your business actually sells
- Reports that can't answer the questions leadership actually asks
The outcome you get
- Pipeline model tailored to your sales process, not a generic funnel
- Email (Gmail, Outlook) and calendar sync for every activity
- Reporting that answers 'what's going to close this month'
- HubSpot export compatibility so nothing is locked in
- Custom fields and workflows without per-field licensing fees
When a custom CRM beats off-the-shelf
Three signals. One: your sales process has stages or activities that generic CRMs force-fit awkwardly (multi-party deals with champion vs decision-maker, long procurement cycles with custom milestones, marketplace-style deals with supply and demand sides). Two: your seat cost is high relative to active user count (paying for 20 licenses, 6 people actually use it). Three: the team has specific workflows they keep doing in spreadsheets because the CRM makes it harder. If any of these, custom is worth evaluating. If none, HubSpot or Pipedrive are probably fine. I'll say honestly which camp you're in — custom CRM is a meaningful investment and should match a meaningful pain.
Must-haves: pipeline, activities, email sync, reporting
Every custom CRM needs the same core. Pipeline: deals with configurable stages, probability per stage, expected-close-date, amount, owner. Activities: calls, emails, meetings, notes — tied to contacts and deals, with timestamps and outcomes. Email sync: two-way with Gmail and Outlook so outbound emails auto-log and inbound emails thread with the deal. Calendar sync: meetings auto-create as activities. Reporting: pipeline velocity, stage conversion, forecast, rep activity. Mobile for logging calls on the road. These four — pipeline, activities, email, reporting — cover 90% of actual CRM usage. Start here, layer more on top once the core is lived in.
Integrations: Gmail, Calendar, HubSpot export
Gmail and Google Calendar: OAuth connection per user, two-way sync for emails and events, unread-detection so inbound emails surface in the activity feed without manual logging. Outlook and Microsoft 365: same pattern via Microsoft Graph. HubSpot export: standard API export format so if you ever decide to migrate out, the data ports cleanly. Zapier or direct webhook integrations for anything else (Slack, Stripe, Intercom). I avoid vendor lock-in by design — Work Made for Hire means you own the code, and the data format is documented so a future engineer can pick up without me.
Why I don't usually recommend custom CRM
Hard honesty: most teams asking for a custom CRM would be better served by configuring HubSpot or Pipedrive correctly. CRM is a commodity capability with mature tools that cover 90% of needs. Custom makes sense when the sales process is genuinely unusual, when seat cost is punishing (50+ users with low utilization), or when the team has specific workflows generic CRMs can't express. In the initial conversation I'll probe to see if a configuration fix or a switch to a simpler off-the-shelf tool solves the problem at 10% of the cost. If yes, I'll recommend that. If not, custom is the right answer.
Pricing
Custom CRM builds fit the Applications Standard tier at $3,499/mo. Pro at $4,500/mo for larger sales teams (20+ reps, complex workflow automation, multi-entity deals). First-version timeline: 4–5 weeks. Subscription continues through iteration — sales teams always find new edge cases once the CRM is in daily use. 14-day money-back, cancel anytime, Work Made for Hire. Export compatibility ensures you're never locked in. If you later decide to migrate to a commercial CRM, the data exports cleanly.
AI-augmented CRM
Modern CRMs increasingly embed AI — auto-summarizing calls, drafting follow-up emails, scoring leads. I build AI augmentation into custom CRMs when it pays back: Gong-style call summaries from Zoom or Google Meet recordings, OpenAI-backed email drafts, lead scoring from firmographic enrichment. AI features aren't table stakes; they're selective additions based on actual sales team workflows. The CRM ships without AI first, then AI layers in once we see where reps spend time that's automatable. This keeps the initial scope focused and the AI features targeted instead of gimmicky.
Frequently asked questions
The questions prospects ask before they book.
- Should I really build a custom CRM instead of using HubSpot?
- For most teams, no — HubSpot or Pipedrive configured well is usually the right call. Custom is justified when your sales process doesn't fit generic pipelines (marketplace-style, multi-party, unusual milestones) or when seat cost exceeds $20k+/year with low utilization. I'll tell you honestly in the first call.
- How do I migrate existing data?
- Export from the current CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive all have standard exports), transform to the new schema, import with validation and diff preview. Typical migration is a 1-week phase within the overall project. Historical email threads and activities port cleanly; attachments need a separate copy phase.
- Does it integrate with my marketing tools?
- Yes — Mailchimp, ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign, Klaviyo all integrate via their APIs. Marketing activity (email opens, form submissions, ad clicks) flows into the contact timeline. Outbound lists can sync from CRM to marketing tool. The custom CRM is the system of record; the marketing tool sends and measures.
- What about commission and compensation tracking?
- Commission rules configurable per rep, territory, deal size, or product. Commission events accrue as deals close and payout when specified (monthly, quarterly). Integration with payroll (ADP, Gusto, Rippling) routes commissions into paychecks automatically. Complex commission structures (split deals, accelerators, clawbacks) fully supported.
- Is there a mobile app?
- Responsive PWA covers logging calls, updating deal stages, reviewing pipeline, and accessing contact info. Installable to phone home screen. Offline support for reviewing recent data. Full native apps (React Native) are an add-on when reps need extensive offline field work — rare for B2B sales, common for field service hybrid CRMs.
Ready to start?
Tell me what you need in 60 seconds. Tailored proposal in your inbox within 6 hours.