Glossary

Complicated words, in plain language.

Every definition is written for a business owner, not a developer, with what it concretely changes in an SME.

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API: The door through which one piece of software agrees to talk to another. It is what lets a closed sale create the invoice with no re-entry.
Automatic follow-up: A follow-up that goes out at the right time without relying on anyone's memory. The human steps in only when it counts: on the phone, to close.
Automation: Handing a program a repetitive task with clear rules: the follow-up goes out, the invoice is issued, the alert comes up. Humans keep the decisions.

Backup: The copy of your data that lets you recover everything after a failure or a mistake. A backup never tested is only a hope.

CRM: The sales register: who this contact is, where the file stands, what the next step is. Only useful if the team fills it in.
CSV export: Your data taken out of a tool in a format readable everywhere. The guarantee you can change tools, or prove what you own.

Dashboard: Your numbers, current, on one screen: cash in, pending, sales per person. The end of the spreadsheet rebuilt by hand on Sunday night.
Database: The single place where your structured information lives: contacts, files, invoices. Every piece of data has one place, and only one.

Electronic signature: The quote or contract signed online, in two minutes, legally valid, instead of the print-sign-scan circuit that takes a week.
ERP: The big “all-in-one” software promising to run sales, production and accounting. Powerful in industry, often too heavy for a services SME.

GDPR: The European rule on personal data: knowing what you keep, why, where, and being able to erase it on request.

Hosting: The physical place where your tools and data run. The useful question: with whom, in which country, and in whose name?

Integration: The connection built between two tools so information moves on its own. It is what removes re-entry.

OCR: Automatic document reading: a scanned invoice or ID becomes usable text, with no copying.

Per-seat licence: The “per user per month” price. Harmless at 5 people, a tax on every hire at 20. Total it over three years, not one month.

Re-entry: Copying the same information by hand from one tool to another. Every copy costs minutes, adds a possible error, and shows up nowhere.
Recurring billing: Subscription invoices that issue themselves on a fixed date, with an automatic reminder when payment does not follow.

SaaS: Software rented online, billed by subscription, often per person per month. Handy to start with, costly as the team grows.
Sales pipeline: Your deals in progress, sorted by stage: contact, conversation, quote, agreed, cash collected. One glance shows what moves and what sleeps.
SSO: One login for every tool the team uses. Fewer passwords on sticky notes, and departures handled in one click.
Synchronisation: Keeping the same information up to date in several tools, automatically. The opposite of three files telling three different stories.

Webhook: The doorbell between tools: “this just happened”. It is what makes acting the minute a payment lands possible.