Close deals faster: how this monday CRM setup saves 6 hours/week

Some sales tools help you track leads. This one helps you close them. Fast. 

When this client came to us, their pipeline was full. But that wasn’t the issue. Their problem was that a number of high-profile prospects (more than they liked) were being lost in the follow-up process. Or, rather, lack thereof.

Follow-up calls were logged in notebooks or spreadsheets, and sometimes… not at all.

Cue Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5.

But we knew of one monday.com time-saving CRM setup that could get call logs, and therefore deal closures, back on track. And it was much simpler than the client thought possible.

The challenge: Follow-up lag was killing hot deals

Before we started, calls were being made, but not tracked. Sales reps dialled from their phones and logged the call later (if they remembered). Excel spreadsheets were messy, and people simply stopped using them to track follow-ups.

They’d inevitably forget which prospects they’d spoken to that week and then waste time digging through emails to find phone numbers. 

It made us, and the client, realise that even the best sales tracking software can’t save a deal if the team doesn’t have a reliable lead follow-up system in place. 

The fix: One column changed everything

And that heading isn’t an exaggeration.

We built a sales pipeline management board in monday and added a Phone Column to every deal. Simple, yet powerful, and one of the best CRM tools to help close deals faster. Here’s why:

1. The client input each prospect’s phone number to the corresponding deal item’s Phone Column, which we placed right next to the Notes column for convenience.

2. This allowed the team to call prospects instantly without sifting through emails to find the right number (which adds up fast, let us tell you). 

3. They could then take notes during and immediately after each call while the details were fresh, using the Notes column. This meant that every conversation was logged right alongside the deal record – no time spent remembering what was said after the call or deciphering the hand-scribbled notes to then type into a spreadsheet.

   
   

Related: Check out these 3 key ways monday CRM helps you stop losing leads.

Quick tip: Use the app for quicker calls

Do you use the monday.com app? With monday CRM’s “call from app” feature, you can dial contacts directly from the platform and capture notes immediately after the conversation. 

It’s a simple click on the phone number from monday.com, and your phone will dial!

Save time on sales admin with monday automations

Once we added the Phone Column, we integrated specific monday.com automations to help the team stay on top of follow-ups and keep the pipeline moving. 

If you want to borrow these (please feel free to), some of our key automations include: 

• When a lead is added and the source is valid, automatically set the status to ‘Follow-up needed’.

• When the follow-up date arrives and the status is still ‘Backlog’, notify the deal owner with a reminder to make the first call.

• When the status changes to ‘Follow-up needed’, automatically set the follow-up date for 2 working days later and notify the owner.

• If no activity is logged within 2 days of the follow-up date, tag the manager and move the item to a ‘Stale Leads’ group.

  
  

This setup turned a simple phone list into a pipeline automation that actively reminded the team to follow up, all without needing extra meetings or micromanagement. 

Why it works for smaller sales teams

For small or mid-size teams, speed and simplicity matter more than a bloated feature list. 

This is the best monday setup for small sales teams because it: 

• Eliminates manual admin after every call.

• Centralises all deals and contact info in one place.

• Integrates with your existing call tools so there’s no extra training.

• Works on desktop and mobile for in-the-field selling.

Within four weeks, our client increased their sales conversion rate by 32%, reduced time spent on admin by 6 hours per week, and closed deals an average of 3 days faster. 

In other words, it meant the difference between “We’ll get back to you” and “We’ve already sent the contract.” And those precious moments of auto confirmation can genuinely mean the difference between a flicked email and a done-and-dusted deal.

Get the setup now, close the deals fast

If you’re wondering how to speed up your sales process with monday.com, start with the tools that remove friction for your team. The Phone Column and automation combo is simple but powerful.

Want us to walk you through the full setup? Book a free consult and we’ll show you exactly how to follow up faster with monday CRM (and close more deals while you’re at it).