Organize contacts, track interactions, and manage customer relationships effectively
✓ Free to download · ✓ Excel 2016+ and Google Sheets · ✓ Custom version in 24h
A CRM in a spreadsheet works up to a point, and that point is defined by how many people write to it at once. Within it, this template gives you the two things teams actually use: stage and next action.
The actual columns, with sample rows
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Company | Contact | Stage | Value | Next action | Idle (d) |
| 2 | Meridian Group | L. Barre | Proposal | 48,000 | Follow up on pricing | 4 |
| 3 | Kestrel Ltd | J. Whitfield | Discovery | 22,500 | Book technical call | 11 |
| 4 | Halcyon SA | P. Roig | Negotiation | 91,000 | Send revised terms | 2 |
| 5 | Ardent BV | T. Vos | Qualified | 15,000 | — | 34 |
Why each one is written the way it is
=TODAY()-MAXIFS(Activity[Date],Activity[Company],[@Company])
Days since the last logged activity. The column that finds the deals nobody has touched — which are never the ones people worry about.
=IF([@[Next action]]="","⚠ No next action","")
A deal without a next action is not a deal, it is a hope. Flagging it is the single highest-value rule on the sheet.
=SUMIFS(Deals[Value],Deals[Stage],[@Stage])*VLOOKUP([@Stage],Stages[[Name]:[Prob]],2,FALSE)
Weighted pipeline by stage, using historical conversion rather than optimism.
=COUNTIFS(Deals[Stage],"Closed won")/COUNTIFS(Deals[Stage],"Closed*")
Win rate, the input that keeps the stage probabilities honest.
A worked example with real numbers
A consultancy reported a €340k pipeline. Sorting by idle days showed €112k of it untouched for over 30 days and a further €40k with no next action recorded. The real workable pipeline was €188k — enough to change a hiring decision that had been made on the larger number two weeks earlier.
Tab by tab
| Tab | Contents |
|---|---|
| Deals | Company, contact, stage, value and next action. |
| Activity | Every call, email and meeting, dated. |
| Stages | Stage list with historical conversion probability. |
| Dashboard | Weighted pipeline, win rate and idle deals. |
| README | Stage definitions — the part every team argues about. |
What is included, and what to look at next
Specific to this workbook, not generic
When more than three or four people write to it during the same day, when you need email sync, or when you need per-user visibility rules. Below that a spreadsheet is faster to change and everyone already knows how to use it.
Four to six, each with an objective entry criterion. Stages defined by feeling — "warm", "very interested" — cannot produce a usable conversion rate.
Because a date without an action gets rescheduled indefinitely. The action is what makes the deal either move or get disqualified.
"This CRM template has streamlined our customer management process. We're now able to provide better service and never miss a follow-up."