Before jumping into the specific CRM features of Odoo, it is important to discuss briefly the importance of a comprehensive approach to implementing a CRM system in your business. The fact is that successfully implementing a CRM system requires much more planning than just installing software and asking employees to fill in the data. CRM software systems are only a technical tool in assisting your sales and marketing department in acquiring and keeping customers. Certainly the software will play an important role, but to obtain real benefits from a CRM system, you must perform research to understand your customer and how exactly you wish to shape the customer experience.

It is critical that salespeople share account knowledge and completely understand the features and capabilities of the system. They often have existing tools that they have relied on for many years. Without clear objectives and goals for the entire sales team, it is likely they will not use...