Choosing the right customer relationship management software or service for your business requires strategy, thoughtful consideration and more than a little research.

These guidelines and the accompanying tool, from TechRepublic Premium, will give you a customizable framework to find the best CRM solution for your needs.

From the guide:

Before starting to evaluate CRM systems and vendors, you must take a hard look at your business operations. Understanding why your business needs CRM and stating clearly what you expect from a CRM system once it is implemented is imperative to its future success.

Honest answers to questions such as these will provide the necessary parameters for your comparative search for a CRM system:

What existing systems, procedures, policies and departments are lacking the necessary efficiency for success? What can CRM do to help overcome those deficiencies?

This download includes a PDF and spreadsheet.

Previously priced at $99, this is now available to download for $19. Or free with Premium annual subscription: click here to find out more.