Step by step guide to integrating Sembly with your CRM to streamline lead management

If your sales calls are a blur and your CRM is full of half-baked notes, you’re not alone. Getting leads from conversations into a system is a pain—most teams do it badly, or not at all. If you’re thinking about integrating Sembly with your CRM to finally cut down on busywork (and maybe stop losing leads), this guide is for you. I’ll walk you through the setup, what actually works, and where not to waste time.

Why bother integrating Sembly with your CRM?

Let’s keep it honest: Most sales teams spend too much time copying meeting notes into the CRM. Sembly records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings. By connecting it to your CRM, you can:

  • Automatically capture lead info and meeting outcomes.
  • Cut down on manual data entry (and the mistakes that come with it).
  • Get better follow-up—because you actually remember what was said.

But here’s the thing: Integration isn’t magic. There’s some setup, and you’ll need to tweak it to fit your team’s workflow. This guide will show you how to do it step by step—no fluff, no hype.

Step 1: Get Clear on What You Want to Automate

Before you start clicking buttons, decide what you actually want out of this integration. Some questions to ask:

  • Do you want every meeting note in your CRM, or just notes from certain types of calls?
  • Should Sembly create new contacts, update existing ones, or just log activities?
  • Who needs access to what? (Don’t dump every transcript on your CEO.)

Pro tip: Write down a list of must-haves and nice-to-haves. This will save you headaches later, especially if you need help from IT or support.

Step 2: Check Your CRM’s Integration Options

Not all CRMs are created equal—some play nicer with outside tools. The most common options:

  • Native Integration: Sembly might have a built-in connector for major CRMs like Salesforce, HubSpot, or Zoho. This is the easiest route.
  • Zapier or Similar Tools: If there’s no direct connection, check for Sembly and your CRM on platforms like Zapier, Make (formerly Integromat), or Workato.
  • API: If you have dev resources, you can build a custom connection using Sembly’s and your CRM’s APIs. This is overkill for most teams.

Don’t waste time: If your CRM is obscure or heavily customized, check the Sembly help docs or support before you get your hopes up.

Step 3: Connect Sembly to Your CRM

How you do this depends on your tools. Here are the common paths:

3.1 Native Integration (Best Case)

If Sembly has a plug-and-play integration with your CRM:

  1. Log into Sembly and head to the Integrations or Settings panel.
  2. Find your CRM in the list of available integrations.
  3. Click “Connect” and follow the prompts—usually, you’ll log into your CRM and grant permissions.
  4. Configure what syncs: You’ll usually get options like:
  5. Which meetings to log (all, by keyword, by team)
  6. What info to send (transcripts, summaries, action items)
  7. Where to store it in the CRM (notes, activities, custom fields)

Watch out: Some integrations are all-or-nothing. If you can’t filter what gets sent, you might end up with a lot of noise in your CRM.

3.2 Zapier or Automation Tools

No native integration? Use an automation platform:

  1. Create accounts on both Sembly and Zapier (or your tool of choice).
  2. Set up a new “Zap” (or similar workflow):
  3. Trigger: Sembly creates a new meeting note or transcript.
  4. Action: Create/update a contact, add a note, or log an activity in your CRM.
  5. Map the fields: Decide which parts of the Sembly output go where in the CRM.
  6. Test it: Run a real meeting through and see what lands in the CRM.

Heads up: These tools often have usage limits or fees for more complex workflows. Keep it simple at first.

3.3 API (Only If You Have To)

If you’re technical (or have a dev team):

  • Get API keys for both Sembly and your CRM.
  • Write a script to pull meeting notes from Sembly and push them into the CRM.
  • Schedule it to run after every meeting or on a regular basis.

Unless you have unusual requirements, this is usually more work than it’s worth.

Step 4: Decide What to Sync (And What to Ignore)

It’s tempting to sync everything, but more data isn’t better—it’s just clutter. Focus on what’s actually useful for lead management:

  • Meeting summaries: Good for quick context.
  • Action items: Helps with follow-ups.
  • Key decisions: Useful for account history.
  • Contact updates: Only if it saves real time and avoids duplicates.

Skip these unless you have a reason: - Full transcripts (they’re long and rarely read) - Audio files (storage hogs, almost never used) - Every meeting, even internal ones (just creates noise)

Pro tip: Ask your sales team what they actually use. Chances are, they want less, not more.

Step 5: Test the Integration With Real Meetings

Don’t trust a sample or test record—run a real meeting, let Sembly process it, and see what ends up in your CRM.

  • Check for accuracy: Is the right info showing up in the right fields?
  • Watch for duplicates: Are you creating multiple records for the same contact?
  • Look for noise: Did you just flood your CRM with useless data?

If something’s off, tweak your integration settings or automation mappings. This is the part where most people give up—don’t. A few tweaks here save a lot of cleanup later.

Step 6: Roll It Out to the Team (and Set Ground Rules)

Once you’re happy with how it works:

  • Train your team on what’s automated and what’s not.
  • Set expectations: For example, “Only calls with clients tagged as ‘lead’ get synced.”
  • Keep feedback channels open: If the team hates something, you’ll hear about it quickly.

Avoid the common trap: Don’t force everyone to use every feature. Let people opt in to the automation that actually helps them.

Step 7: Monitor and Iterate

No integration is perfect from day one. Set a reminder to check in after a week or two:

  • Are important notes landing in the CRM?
  • Is anyone missing info they used to have?
  • Is the sales process smoother, or just noisier?

Tweak as you go. Sometimes less automation is better, especially if people start ignoring the CRM because it’s overwhelmed with junk.

What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore

What actually helps: - Automatically logging meeting summaries for leads and deals. - Syncing action items and follow-ups to the correct owner. - Updating contact info when it’s missing—not overwriting good data.

What to skip: - Pushing full transcripts into the CRM. No one reads them. Keep them in Sembly for reference. - Forcing every meeting into the CRM, especially internal calls.

Watch out for: - Duplicate contacts or deals, especially if your CRM is picky. - Privacy and compliance—don’t sync sensitive calls you shouldn’t be recording anyway.

Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often

Integrating Sembly with your CRM can actually save you time—if you keep it focused. Don’t overcomplicate things on day one. Start with a basic setup, see what your team actually uses, and tweak from there. The best automation is the one people barely notice—because it just works.

If you get stuck, remember: Most “integration headaches” come from trying to do too much. Start small, get the basics right, and add more only if it helps. Good luck—and may your CRM finally make sense.