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CRM Entities

Admin-only section to customize the names and terminology of core CRM entities to match your business vocabulary.

Permission Required

This section is only accessible to users with Owner or Admin role.

Overview​

CRM Entities allows you to rename the standard Expedify entities (Contact, Company, Deal, Product) to match your industry terminology and business processes.

Benefits:

  • Use familiar terminology for your team
  • Match industry-standard vocabulary
  • Improve user adoption and understanding
  • Customize UI labels throughout the platform

Customizable Entities​

Contact​

Default: Contact / Contacts

Represents individual people in your CRM.

Common Alternatives:

  • Customer / Customers
  • Lead / Leads
  • Patient / Patients (Healthcare)
  • Client / Clients (Professional Services)
  • Member / Members (Membership orgs)
  • Student / Students (Education)

Company​

Default: Company / Companies

Represents organizations and businesses.

Common Alternatives:

  • Organization / Organizations
  • Account / Accounts
  • Business / Businesses
  • Firm / Firms (Legal, Consulting)
  • Practice / Practices (Healthcare)
  • Institution / Institutions (Education)

Deal​

Default: Deal / Deals

Represents sales opportunities and pipeline items.

Common Alternatives:

  • Opportunity / Opportunities
  • Sale / Sales
  • Project / Projects (Agencies)
  • Case / Cases (Legal)
  • Booking / Bookings (Hospitality)
  • Enrollment / Enrollments (Education)
  • Policy / Policies (Insurance)

Product​

Default: Product / Products

Represents goods or services you sell.

Common Alternatives:

  • Service / Services
  • Item / Items
  • Course / Courses (Education)
  • Package / Packages (Travel, Services)
  • Plan / Plans (SaaS, Insurance)
  • Property / Properties (Real Estate)

Customization Features​

Singular & Plural Names​

Set both forms to ensure correct grammar throughout UI:

  • Singular: "Contact" → "1 Contact selected"
  • Plural: "Contacts" → "You have 150 Contacts"

Icons​

Choose an icon for each entity:

  • Select from icon library
  • Icons appear in navigation, cards, tables
  • Visual distinction between entities
  • Consistent branding throughout app

Synonyms​

Add alternative names for better search and clarity:

  • Example: "Leads" as synonym for "Contacts"
  • Helps users find features using different terms
  • Improves search functionality
  • Supports transition from other CRMs

Preview Before Apply​

See how changes will look before saving:

  • Preview entity name in navigation
  • Preview in list views
  • Preview in detail pages
  • Confirm before applying changes

Customizing Entity Names​

Step-by-Step Process​

  1. Access Settings

    • Go to Settings → CRM Entities

  2. Edit Entity

    • Find entity row (Contact, Company, Deal, Product)
    • Click Edit button or click on row

  3. Set Names

    • Singular Name: Enter singular form (e.g., "Customer")
    • Plural Name: Enter plural form (e.g., "Customers")
    • Icon: Select icon from dropdown
    • Synonyms: Add alternative names (comma-separated)

  4. Preview Changes

    • Click Preview button
    • Review how it appears in UI
    • Check navigation menu
    • Check list view headers

  5. Apply Changes

    • Click Save button
    • Confirm application
    • Changes take effect immediately
    • All users see new terminology

  6. Reset (Optional)

    • Click Reset to restore default names
    • Resets to canonical: Contact, Company, Deal, Product

Edit Individual Entity​

Each entity row shows:

  • Current Singular Name
  • Current Plural Name
  • Icon (with icon preview)
  • Status: Custom or Default
  • Actions: Edit, Reset

Click Edit to enter edit mode for that entity.

Reset Individual Entity​

  1. Find entity row
  2. Click Reset button
  3. Confirm reset
  4. Entity reverts to default (Contact, Company, Deal, Product)
  5. Icon reverts to default

Reset All Entities​

  1. Scroll to bottom of page
  2. Click Reset All to Defaults
  3. Confirm reset
  4. All entities revert to canonical names
  5. All icons revert to defaults

Preset Configurations​

Apply industry-specific presets with one click:

Real Estate​

  • Contact → Property Seeker / Property Seekers
  • Company → Agency / Agencies
  • Deal → Property / Properties
  • Product → Listing / Listings

Healthcare​

  • Contact → Patient / Patients
  • Company → Practice / Practices
  • Deal → Appointment / Appointments
  • Product → Service / Services

Education​

  • Contact → Student / Students
  • Company → Institution / Institutions
  • Deal → Enrollment / Enrollments
  • Product → Course / Courses
  • Contact → Client / Clients
  • Company → Firm / Firms
  • Deal → Case / Cases
  • Product → Service / Services

SaaS​

  • Contact → User / Users
  • Company → Account / Accounts
  • Deal → Subscription / Subscriptions
  • Product → Plan / Plans

Agency​

  • Contact → Client / Clients
  • Company → Organization / Organizations
  • Deal → Project / Projects
  • Product → Service / Services

Applying Preset​

  1. Click Apply Preset button
  2. Select industry from dropdown
  3. Review preset configuration
  4. Click Apply
  5. All entities renamed instantly

Where Custom Names Appear​

Custom entity names are used throughout the platform:

  • Left sidebar menu items
  • Breadcrumb navigation
  • Tab labels

CRM Views​

  • List view headers ("Contacts" → "Customers")
  • Grid view titles
  • Kanban board labels
  • Calendar view categories

Detail Pages​

  • Page titles
  • Section headers
  • Relationship labels ("Contact's Companies" → "Customer's Accounts")

Forms & Modals​

  • Create forms ("New Contact" → "New Customer")
  • Edit forms
  • Bulk action labels
  • Import/export dialogs

Workflows​

  • Workflow node names
  • Trigger descriptions
  • Variable names (auto-updated)
  • Execution logs

Reports & Analytics​

  • Dashboard widget titles
  • Report labels
  • Chart axis labels
  • Export file names
  • Search placeholders ("Search Contacts" → "Search Customers")
  • Filter labels
  • Search results headers

Notifications & Emails​

  • Email subjects
  • Notification messages
  • Activity feed entries

Best Practices​

Naming Guidelines​

  1. Keep It Short

    • Max 20 characters for singular
    • Max 25 characters for plural
    • Shorter is better for UI space

  2. Be Consistent

    • Use industry-standard terms
    • Match your existing systems
    • Align with team vocabulary

  3. Plural Form

    • Add "s" for regular plurals
    • Handle irregular plurals correctly (Person → People)
    • Consider non-English languages

  4. Test Before Applying

    • Use preview feature
    • Check all UI locations
    • Verify readability

Icon Selection​

  1. Visual Clarity

    • Choose distinctive icons
    • Ensure icons are recognizable
    • Avoid similar-looking icons

  2. Semantic Meaning

    • Icon should relate to entity type
    • User icon for people
    • Building icon for companies
    • Dollar icon for deals

  3. Consistency

    • Match existing brand guidelines
    • Use similar style across entities
    • Consider color-coding in future

Synonym Usage​

  1. Add Common Variations

    • Industry terms ("Prospects" for "Leads")
    • Abbreviations ("Ops" for "Opportunities")
    • Colloquialisms ("Biz" for "Business")

  2. Support Migration

    • Add old CRM terminology
    • Help users transition
    • Reduce confusion

  3. Don't Overdo It

    • 2-4 synonyms per entity
    • Focus on most common terms
    • Avoid obscure variations

Real-World Examples​

Example 1: Real Estate Agency​

Before (Default):

  • Contacts, Companies, Deals, Products

After (Customized):

  • Property Seekers (individual buyers/renters)
  • Agencies (real estate companies)
  • Properties (listings/opportunities)
  • Listings (property types)

Result:

  • Team instantly understands terminology
  • Matches industry norms
  • Clients see familiar language

Example 2: Healthcare Clinic​

Before (Default):

  • Contacts, Companies, Deals, Products

After (Customized):

  • Patients (individuals)
  • Practices (referring practices)
  • Appointments (bookings)
  • Services (treatments offered)

Result:

  • Medical staff comfortable with terms
  • HIPAA-compliant language
  • Professional presentation

Example 3: B2B SaaS Company​

Before (Default):

  • Contacts, Companies, Deals, Products

After (Customized):

  • Users (individual users)
  • Accounts (customer organizations)
  • Opportunities (sales pipeline)
  • Plans (subscription tiers)

Result:

  • Matches existing CRM/billing system
  • Sales team familiar vocabulary
  • Clear distinction between users/accounts

Migration Strategy​

Transitioning from Default Names​

Week 1: Plan

  • Decide on new terminology
  • Get team alignment
  • Choose preset or custom

Week 2: Preview

  • Set up custom names
  • Use preview feature
  • Show to key stakeholders

Week 3: Communicate

  • Announce change to team
  • Explain reasoning
  • Provide training if needed

Week 4: Apply

  • Apply changes in Settings
  • Monitor team feedback
  • Adjust if needed

Transitioning from Other CRMs​

Step 1: Match Old Terminology

  • Use same entity names as previous CRM
  • Reduces learning curve
  • Smooth transition

Step 2: Add Synonyms

  • Include both old and new terms
  • Support gradual adoption
  • Searchable in both forms

Step 3: Gradual Update (Optional)

  • Start with old terms
  • Transition to preferred terms over time
  • Update entity names when team ready

Troubleshooting​

Changes not appearing?

  • Refresh browser (Ctrl+R or Cmd+R)
  • Clear cache if needed
  • Log out and back in

Plural form not grammatically correct?

  • Check for typos
  • Verify plural spelling
  • Edit and save again

Icon not showing?

  • Icon selection may not be saving
  • Try different icon
  • Contact support if persists

Want to revert changes?

  • Click Reset on individual entity
  • Or Reset All to Defaults
  • Instant revert to Contact/Company/Deal/Product

Workflow variables using old names?

  • Workflows auto-update variable labels
  • Underlying variable names unchanged
  • No workflow breakage

Limitations​

What You Cannot Customize:

❌ Entity Relationships

  • Cannot change how entities relate
  • Contacts still link to Companies
  • Deals still link to Contacts/Companies

❌ Field Names

  • Custom names affect entity only
  • Field labels configured separately
  • Use field customization for individual fields

❌ API Endpoints

  • API still uses canonical names
  • /api/contacts remains /api/contacts
  • Ensures API stability

❌ Database Tables

  • Internal table names unchanged
  • Only UI labels customized
  • Data integrity maintained

❌ Existing Data

  • Renaming doesn't modify data
  • Historical data unaffected
  • Only labels change

Frequently Asked Questions​

Q: Do custom names affect integrations? A: No, integrations use canonical entity names (Contact, Company, Deal, Product). Only UI labels change.

Q: Can I use different languages? A: Yes! Set entity names in any language. Expedify supports UTF-8 characters.

Q: Will this break my workflows? A: No, workflows continue working. Variable labels update but functionality unchanged.

Q: Can different users see different entity names? A: No, entity names are organization-wide. All users see the same custom terminology.

Q: What happens to exported data? A: Exports use custom entity names in headers/labels. Data fields unchanged.

Q: Can I customize more than 4 entities? A: Currently only Contact, Company, Deal, Product are customizable. More entities may be added in future.

  • Admin: Manage user access and roles
  • My Business: Configure business information
  • User Access: Control data visibility
  • Webhooks: Configure entity change webhooks

Next Steps​

  1. ✅ Choose Terminology: Decide on entity names
  2. ✅ Select Icons: Pick recognizable icons
  3. ✅ Add Synonyms: Include alternative terms
  4. ✅ Preview Changes: Use preview feature
  5. ✅ Apply & Communicate: Roll out to team

Need help choosing names? Contact support through Settings → Support.

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