Working template · illustrative example, not a client result
A CRM handoff checklist for the next person in the process.
An enquiry entering the CRM still needs an owner, useful context and a next action. Use this template to agree the working rules and exceptions. Copy it into your own document or print it from your browser. No signup required.
Download the editable CRM rules and test record (Markdown). It includes blank rules, seven test scenarios and a handover record. Open it in a text editor or copy it into your team document. Results remain blank until you perform the checks.
A workflow to adapt
- Enquiry received
Record the contact, request and available context. - Check and assignment
Check duplicates, completeness and ownership. - Acceptance
The receiving person confirms ownership and a next action. - Qualification
Record the decision and reason using agreed rules. - Progress or exit
Opportunity, future follow-up or a documented close.
This is an illustrative map, not a reconstruction of a client CRM. Adapt the stages to your process; these are not mandatory HubSpot or Zoho stage names.
Rules to agree
| Decision | Rule to define |
|---|---|
| Owner | Who receives the enquiry? Who reassigns it when that person is unavailable? |
| Required context | Contact, company, need, date, available source, owner and next action. Collect what the process needs. |
| Source information | Preserve available origin data; do not replace missing information with an assumption. |
| Qualification | What makes a contact relevant? Who records rejection and the reason? |
| Timing | What response window can the team support? Agree it; this template does not impose a standard service promise. |
| Duplicates | Which record stays and how do useful activities and properties survive? |
| Automation | What triggers the action, who sees failures and which decisions remain manual? |
| Handover | Who uses the workflow and what practical training is needed? |
Tests before handover
- Normal path: a test enquiry arrives once, with the expected owner and context.
- Duplicate: the agreed behaviour preserves useful activity.
- Incomplete information: the contact remains visible with a next action rather than disappearing from the process.
- Unavailable owner: an agreed fallback exists.
- Automation failure: someone can see and act on the problem.
- Poor-fit enquiry: the reason is recorded and can inform marketing.
- Opt-out: the recorded preference is respected in the relevant communication workflow.
Test record
For each test, record the date, path, expected behaviour, observed result, owner and unresolved work. Make test data recognisable. Avoid using real personal data where it is unnecessary.
What to review after people use it
Unowned enquiries, missing next actions, rejection reasons and differences between the documented process and what people actually do. Configuring a stage does not establish that the team uses it.
The template assumes no paid features. Check what the actual HubSpot or Zoho plan supports before choosing the automations.