CRM Glossary
Learn all CRM terminology. Your comprehensive guide to understanding customer relationship management concepts.
A
Account
An account represents a company or organization in the CRM system. It stores information about the business entity, including company name, industry, size, and related contacts. Accounts help organize and track all interactions with a specific organization.
API (Application Programming Interface)
A set of protocols and tools that allows different software applications to communicate with each other. CRM APIs enable integration with other business tools like ERP systems, email platforms, and marketing automation software.
Learn more →Automation
The use of technology to automatically perform repetitive tasks within a CRM system. Examples include automated email sequences, lead assignment rules, task creation, and follow-up reminders.
C
CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost)
The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing, sales, and onboarding expenses. CAC is calculated by dividing total acquisition costs by the number of new customers gained in a period. A healthy business aims to keep CAC lower than LTV.
Campaign
A coordinated marketing effort designed to achieve a specific goal such as lead generation, brand awareness, or product promotion. CRM systems track campaign performance, costs, and ROI.
Churn Rate
The percentage of customers who stop using your product or service within a given period. A low churn rate indicates high customer satisfaction and retention. CRM systems help reduce churn by identifying at-risk customers early.
Contact
An individual person stored in the CRM system. Contacts are typically associated with accounts and contain personal details like name, email, phone number, job title, and communication history.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
A strategy and software system for managing all interactions with current and potential customers. CRM centralizes customer data, tracks communications, automates sales processes, and provides insights to improve customer relationships and drive revenue growth.
Learn more →Cross-sell
The practice of selling additional, complementary products or services to an existing customer. CRM data helps identify cross-sell opportunities based on purchase history and customer profile.
D
Dashboard
A visual interface that displays key metrics, KPIs, and data in real-time. CRM dashboards provide at-a-glance overviews of sales performance, pipeline status, team activity, and customer data.
Deal
A potential sale or business transaction being tracked in the CRM. Deals progress through pipeline stages and have associated values, expected close dates, and assigned team members.
F
Forecast
A prediction of future sales revenue based on current pipeline data, historical trends, and probability analysis. CRM forecasting helps businesses plan resources, set targets, and make data-driven decisions.
Funnel
A model that illustrates the customer journey from initial awareness to final purchase. The funnel metaphor reflects the decreasing number of prospects at each stage: awareness, interest, consideration, intent, evaluation, and purchase.
I
Integration
The connection between CRM and other business software systems (ERP, email, marketing, etc.) to enable seamless data flow. Integrations eliminate manual data entry and provide a unified view of customer information.
Learn more →K
KPI (Key Performance Indicator)
A measurable value that demonstrates how effectively a company is achieving key business objectives. Common CRM KPIs include conversion rate, average deal size, sales cycle length, and customer satisfaction score.
L
Lead
A potential customer who has shown interest in your product or service. Leads can come from various sources including website forms, events, referrals, and cold outreach. CRM systems track leads through the qualification process.
Learn more →Lead Scoring
A methodology used to rank prospects against a scale that represents the perceived value each lead brings to the organization. Scores can be based on demographic data, engagement behavior, company size, and other criteria.
LTV (Customer Lifetime Value)
The total revenue a business expects to earn from a single customer throughout the entire relationship. LTV helps businesses understand the long-term value of customers and make informed decisions about acquisition spending.
M
MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead)
A lead that has been identified as more likely to become a customer based on marketing engagement. MQLs have shown interest through actions like downloading content, attending webinars, or visiting specific pages, but are not yet ready for direct sales contact.
N
NPS (Net Promoter Score)
A metric that measures customer loyalty and satisfaction by asking how likely customers are to recommend your product on a scale of 0-10. Scores are grouped into Promoters (9-10), Passives (7-8), and Detractors (0-6).
Nurturing
The process of developing and maintaining relationships with potential customers through targeted content and communication at every stage of the buyer's journey. Lead nurturing campaigns use emails, content, and personalized outreach.
O
Opportunity
A qualified prospect that has a real chance of becoming a customer. Opportunities are tracked in the sales pipeline with estimated values, close dates, and win probabilities. They represent a more advanced stage than leads.
P
Pipeline
A visual representation of the stages a deal goes through from initial contact to closing. The sales pipeline helps teams track where each deal stands, forecast revenue, and identify bottlenecks in the sales process.
Learn more →R
Report
A structured presentation of CRM data that provides insights into sales performance, customer behavior, marketing effectiveness, and other business metrics. Reports can be standard or custom-built.
ROI (Return on Investment)
A performance measure used to evaluate the efficiency of an investment. In CRM context, ROI measures the business value gained from CRM implementation compared to its cost. Calculated as (Gain - Cost) / Cost x 100.
Learn more →S
Segmentation
The process of dividing customers or prospects into groups based on shared characteristics such as industry, company size, behavior, purchase history, or geographic location. Segmentation enables personalized communication and targeted marketing.
Learn more →SLA (Service Level Agreement)
A commitment between a service provider and a customer that defines the expected level of service. In CRM context, SLAs often define response times, resolution times, and uptime guarantees.
SQL (Sales Qualified Lead)
A lead that has been vetted by the sales team and is deemed ready for direct sales engagement. SQLs have typically shown clear buying intent, have budget authority, and match the ideal customer profile.
T
Territory
A defined geographic area, customer segment, or product line assigned to a specific sales representative or team. Territory management in CRM ensures balanced workload distribution and prevents overlap.
U
Upsell
The practice of encouraging an existing customer to purchase a higher-tier product or additional features. CRM data helps identify upsell opportunities by analyzing usage patterns and customer needs.
W
Workflow
An automated sequence of actions triggered by specific events or conditions in the CRM. Workflows can automatically assign leads, send emails, create tasks, update records, and notify team members when certain criteria are met.
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