Three CRM features to look for in your next manufacturing ERP

Many of today’s ERP systems include CRM (Customer Relationship Management) as an optional module or part of the core platform.

What has changed since this article was first written is how central CRM has become to manufacturing operations, especially for companies managing long sales cycles, engineered products, repeat orders, and service-heavy relationships.

Below are three features that matter most today and why they deserve closer attention.

Integrated analytics

A CRM module will track contacts with customers and prospects. But it can go far beyond. acting as an intelligence layer, connecting customer activity, order history, quoting behavior, service interactions, and even production constraints into a single view.

Recommended reading: learn how to make the most of all your manufacturing ERP’s modules with our ten steps to manufacturing ERP success

CRM can also be linked to external data sources like economic indicators, supply chain signals, and industry benchmarks, so teams are not making decisions in isolation. The value is not in collecting more data, but in connecting signals that would otherwise remain disconnected.

As an example, your number one product line has had feedback that it is a little hard to use, but customers still got the value they wanted.

At the same time, your system surfaces increased hiring at a competitor, growing inbound interest in alternative solutions, and declining engagement with certain product materials.

Individually, none of this data is conclusive. Together, the points suggest risk and opportunity. A manufacturing CRM module helps teams interpret these patterns early enough to act, whether that means product refinement, pricing adjustments, or accelerating a roadmap already in development.

Linked documents and files

Customer feedback can be surprisingly rich. Some will simply check boxes on a survey, but many will go beyond and offer real insights and suggestions for improvements. Some will attach documents such as a sketch of their idea or a link to knowledge from a trade show.

This media should be visible to sales, engineering, and service teams without manual forwarding or version confusion.

More advanced manufacturers use CRM to:

• Capture design input from key customers
• Link documentation directly to opportunities or SKUs
• Track feedback tied to specific configurations or revisions
• Maintain a record of commercial and technical conversations in one place

This becomes especially valuable when customers are involved in co-development or customization. The CRM becomes the connective tissue between the commercial conversation and the ERP system that executes it.

Some manufacturers also use CRM proactively to share early concepts, interface previews, or roadmap hints with strategic customers. This is not marketing fluff; it is controlled collaboration that strengthens long-term relationships and shortens future sales cycles.

Email tracking and engagement history

You are already using email as a primary communication channel with prospects, customers, and partners. An ERP should treat that communication as operational data, not personal inbox history.

Most leading manufacturing software can track:

• Whether messages are opened
• Which documents are viewed, and for how long
• When materials are forwarded internally
  Engagement trends across buying teams

If a product brief is opened multiple times by different stakeholders, that signals momentum. If proposals go unopened, that suggests misalignment, timing issues, or messaging problems.

When used responsibly, this information helps teams prioritize follow-ups, adjust messaging based on actual behavior, and avoid wasting time pushing content that isn’t resonating.

For manufacturers in particular, this helps align sales activity with engineering and product development through genuine demand rather than assumptions.

Final thoughts

If your CRM module feels like a reporting tool rather than a decision tool, it may be time to revisit how it’s being used (or whether it’s truly designed for manufacturing at all).

When utilized properly, it can play a key role in coordinating sales, product strategy, and customer experience.