In the world of investment management, your CRM isn’t just a database, it’s the backbone of your sales process. Every successful fundraising team relies on it to track meetings, manage relationships, and ensure accountability.
Yet, many investment firms still struggle with CRM adoption. The issue isn’t that CRMs “don’t work”. It’s that most firms fail to implement and configure them correctly for their specific business needs.
In this article, we’ll debunk common myths about CRMs, highlight the core benefits for both firms and salespeople, and share how Dakota Marketplace for Salesforce eliminates the roadblocks that keep most CRMs from succeeding.
Debunking the Myths About CRMs
There’s a misconception that CRMs are clunky, generic, or difficult to use. And in some cases, that’s true. But the real problem isn’t the system itself; it’s the setup.
When a CRM is poorly configured or not customized for your industry, adoption plummets. Sales teams stop entering meeting notes, data becomes stale, and leadership loses visibility into what’s happening in the field.
At Dakota, we’ve seen this firsthand. That’s why we built Dakota Marketplace for Salesforce, a solution created specifically for investment firms and fundraising professionals. It’s built on the world’s leading CRM platform, Salesforce, and designed with the exact workflows and data you need to drive fundraising success.
Benefits of a CRM for the Firm
For an investment management firm, a properly implemented CRM is the foundation of operational excellence.
It enables you to:
- Capture all meetings and notes in one place - Gain full visibility into your team’s activity, track progress across accounts, and understand where relationships stand.
- Preserve institutional knowledge – When employees leave, your data doesn’t leave with them. A CRM ensures continuity across the firm.
- Enhance collaboration and accountability – Leadership can easily track who’s meeting with whom, what was discussed, and what’s next.
Simply put, a well-managed CRM helps your entire organization operate as one team, aligned around the same goal: raising and retaining capital.
Benefits of a CRM for the Salesperson
For the individual salesperson, a CRM is your lifeline. It’s where every call, meeting, and follow-up is tracked, allowing you to build momentum and stay organized.
With a CRM, salespeople can:
- View their full meeting history – Quickly reference past conversations, decisions, and follow-ups.
- Generate detailed activity reports – See where your time is spent and which prospects are most engaged.
- Never miss an opportunity – Automated reminders and activity tracking ensure that no investor falls through the cracks.
The result is higher productivity, better relationships, and more closed capital.
The Problem: Costly and Ineffective Customization
Most investment firms using Salesforce run into the same roadblock: configuration.
They hire outside developers to build custom fields and workflows, but those developers don’t understand the investment business. The result? A CRM that’s technically functional but operationally useless.
It’s like putting a cat in a swimming pool and expecting it to compete with fish.
The cost, complexity, and frustration of these failed implementations often lead firms to give up on Salesforce altogether, even though the platform itself is more than capable.
Dakota Marketplace for Salesforce solves the CRM adoption problem once and for all.
Our app takes 100% of the data, features, and functionality from Dakota Marketplace, the industry’s leading database of allocators, investment consultants, and institutional contacts, and integrates it directly into your Salesforce instance.
With the Dakota Marketplace for Salesforce app, your team can:
- Access real-time Marketplace data inside Salesforce - including accounts, contacts, and allocation intelligence.
- Eliminate manual data entry - No more copy-paste or out-of-date spreadsheets.
- Stay focused on fundraising - Every data point and workflow is built specifically for investment sales professionals.
This isn’t just an integration. It’s a complete, purpose-built CRM ecosystem designed to make Salesforce work for the investment industry.
A CRM is only as powerful as its implementation. For investment firms, that means having a system that’s configured with your workflows, powered by accurate data, and built to support your fundraising efforts.
That’s exactly what Dakota Marketplace for Salesforce delivers. It’s not just an option. It’s the future of investment sales enablement.
Book a demo of Dakota’s Marketplace for Salesforce App here!
