--- title: CRM Overview description: "OneSuite's **CRM** manages your sales process from first contact to closed deal: it tracks the opportunities you're pursuing, the companies and people behind them, and the follow-up tasks that keep deals moving. It holds everything about potential business in one…" url: "https://help.onesuite.io/docs/crm-overview/" updated: "2026-10-01" category: CRM --- # CRM Overview OneSuite's **CRM** manages your sales process from first contact to closed deal: it tracks the opportunities you're pursuing, the companies and people behind them, and the follow-up tasks that keep deals moving. It holds everything about potential business in one place, so when a deal is won you convert it into a client instead of retyping the details. **In this guide you'll learn how to:** - Open the **CRM** and find your way around its tabs - Understand how opportunities, companies and people fit together - Switch the **Opportunities** tab between **Kanban view** and **Table view** - Convert a won deal into a client - Set up the CRM for your business ## Before you start - If you don't see **CRM** in the sidebar, an admin can switch it on in **Settings**, **Customize Navigation**. - Your profile needs permission to view the CRM module (`view-crm-module`). Each tab also has its own permission, listed below. ## What does the CRM do? The **CRM** is where you manage potential business before it becomes actual business. The [Clients](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/understanding-the-clients-solution/) module tracks paying customers; the **CRM** tracks the people and companies you're pursuing. It works with three linked record types: - **Opportunities** are the deals you're pursuing, such as a website project or a retainer. Each one has an amount, a stage, a close date, an owner, and a linked company and point of contact. - **Companies** are the organisations you work with. A company can have many people and many opportunities. - **People** are individual contacts, with details such as email, phone and job title. A person can belong to a company or stand alone. Link an opportunity to a company and a person, and each record shows the others. See [How Opportunities, Companies, and People Work Together](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-opportunities-companies-and-people-work-together/) for the details. ## How to open the CRM Click **CRM** in the sidebar, under **Client**. 1. Click **CRM** in the sidebar. 2. Click a tab to open it. The top bar shows **All** with the tab name and a count, for example **All Opportunities**. 3. Click **Add New** in the top bar to add a record to the tab you're on. ![CRM page on the Opportunities tab in Kanban view, showing the Opportunities, Companies, People and Tasks tabs and the Add New button](https://help.onesuite.io/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/crm-overview-1-scaled.webp) ## What are the CRM tabs? The **CRM** has four tabs. You see a tab only if it is switched on for your business and your profile has its permission. | Tab | What it holds | Permission needed | | --- | --- | --- | | **Opportunities** | Your deals, on a Kanban board by stage or in a table | `view-company` | | **Companies** | Every organisation in your CRM | `view-company` | | **People** | Every contact in your CRM | `view-lead` | | **Tasks** | Follow-up tasks linked to CRM records | `view-lead-task` | Anyone with the client settings permission can reorder the tabs or switch any of them off in the **Customize** drawer, but at least one tab must stay on. If every tab you could see is off, the page says **No CRM tabs are enabled. Enable at least one tab from CRM customization to continue.** ## How to switch between Kanban view and Table view The **Opportunities** tab has two layouts: **Kanban view** shows your pipeline as columns, one per stage, and **Table view** shows the same deals as rows. 1. Open the **Opportunities** tab. 2. Click the view switcher in the toolbar (**Change view**). 3. Choose **Kanban view** or **Table view**. OneSuite remembers your choice in this browser. In **Kanban view**, each column shows the stage name, how many opportunities it holds and its **Forecasted Revenue**. Drag a card to another column to change its stage. To add, rename, reorder or delete stages, see [Understanding Pipeline Stages](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/understanding-pipeline-stages/). Use **Table view** when you want to compare deals side by side or edit fields in place. Search the tab with **Search opportunities...** in the toolbar. OneSuite has no global search, so you search within each list. ## How to convert a won deal into a client Open the opportunity and click **Convert to Client** to turn it into a paying client. 1. Open the opportunity from the **Opportunities** tab. 2. Click **Convert to Client** at the top right of the details area. 3. Complete the **Convert to Client** drawer, then click **Convert to Client** at the bottom of it. If the opportunity has a company, the company is converted; if not, its point of contact is. You can also convert a company or a person from its own page. For what happens next, see [Adding Clients](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/adding-clients/). ## What can you do from an opportunity's page? An opportunity's page holds its details and a row of tabs for everything connected to it. | Tab | What it holds | When it shows | | --- | --- | --- | | **Timeline** | The history of the opportunity | Always | | **Tasks** | Follow-up tasks for this opportunity | Always | | **Contracts** | Contracts for this deal | When the **Contracts** module is on. You can create one only after linking a company or point of contact. | | **Notes** | Written notes | Always | | **Files** | Attached files | Always | | **Emails** | Emails linked to this opportunity | When the **Email Inbox** module is on | ## How to set up the CRM for your business Set up the CRM from the **Customize** drawer, then add your first records. 1. On any CRM tab, click the **Customize** icon in the toolbar. You need the client settings permission (`view-clients-settings`). 2. Use **Tab Settings** to choose and order your tabs, and **Industry**, **Source** and **Tag** to build the lists your team picks from. See [How to Customize Your CRM](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-customize-your-crm/). 3. Use **Opportunity Automation** if you want an opportunity created when a new contact is added. See [How to Set Up Opportunity Automation](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-set-up-opportunity-automation/). 4. Add a few companies and people you're talking to now, then create opportunities for your live conversations. See [Adding Companies](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/adding-companies/), [Adding People](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/adding-people/) and [Creating Opportunity](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/creating-opportunity/). 5. Move deals through your stages as they progress. Start small with real work. When you're ready to bring in older records, you can import people and companies from a CSV file, up to 1,000 rows at a time. See [Imports, Exports, and Search](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/imports-exports-and-search/). Not using OneSuite yet? Start your free trial → ## FAQs ### What is the difference between CRM and Clients in OneSuite? The **CRM** tracks potential business: opportunities, companies and people you're pursuing. **Clients** tracks the customers you already work with. When you win a deal, **Convert to Client** moves it from one to the other. ### Can I change the stages in my OneSuite sales pipeline? Yes. Stages are set per business, and you can add, rename, recolour, reorder and delete them from the **Opportunities** tab in **Kanban view**. See [Understanding Pipeline Stages](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/understanding-pipeline-stages/). ### Can I hide CRM tabs my team doesn't use? Yes. Anyone with the client settings permission can switch tabs off or reorder them in the **Customize** drawer under **Tab Settings**. At least one tab must stay on. ### Why can't I see a tab in the CRM? The tab is switched off for your business, or your profile lacks its permission. **Opportunities** and **Companies** need `view-company`, **People** needs `view-lead` and **Tasks** needs `view-lead-task`. ### Can OneSuite create opportunities automatically? Yes. Turn on **Auto-create Opportunity** under **Opportunity Automation** in the **Customize** drawer, and an opportunity is created when a new contact is added. ### Can I just use a spreadsheet instead of the CRM? You can, but a spreadsheet won't link a deal to its company and contact, show stalled deals on your dashboard, or convert a won deal into a client. The **CRM** does all three and keeps each deal's tasks, notes and files with it. ## What to do next **Create your first deal:** Add an opportunity and link it to a company and contact with [Creating Opportunity](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/creating-opportunity/). **Shape your pipeline:** Set up the stages your deals move through with [Understanding Pipeline Stages](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/understanding-pipeline-stages/). **Tailor the CRM:** Choose your tabs and build your Industry, Source and Tag lists with [How to Customize Your CRM](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-customize-your-crm/).