Preparing Your Custom CRM for StudentIgnite

Who this article is for

This guide is for providers using a custom or in-house CRM (or a less common system) who want to onboard with StudentIgnite smoothly.

It’s written so marketers can understand the big picture, while giving engineering teams everything they need to assess and prepare the integration.

Why we ask for this information

StudentIgnite connects to your CRM to receive leads, update statuses, sync opt-outs, and (if applicable) track bookings or enrolments.

This checklist helps us confirm what’s possible, spot gaps early, and avoid delays during onboarding.

Custom CRM integration checklist

1. CRM access & authentication

Please confirm how your CRM can be accessed programmatically.

• Is an API available? (REST, SOAP, GraphQL)

• Authentication method supported:

  • API key

  • OAuth 2.0

  • Basic authentication (username/password)

• Can read/write API credentials be created?

• Are there rate limits or throttling rules?

2. Lead ingestion

We need to understand how leads move into and out of your CRM.

• How are new leads created in the CRM?

• Can StudentIgnite:

  • Push new leads into the CRM?

  • Receive inbound webhooks from the CRM?

• Are updates near real-time or batch-based?

• Supported data formats (JSON, XML, CSV)

3. Required lead fields

Your CRM must expose (or have equivalents for) the following fields:

• First name

• Last name

• Email address

• Phone number

• Lead status or stage

• Course or product of interest

• Inquiry source

• Created date / timestamp

If your CRM uses different field names, that’s fine — we’ll map them during onboarding.

Custom fields

• Can custom fields be created if required?

• If yes, who can create them?

  • StudentIgnite via API

  • Customer or admin only

• Are custom fields fully accessible via API (read/write)?

4. Status updates & write-back

StudentIgnite may write information back to your CRM.

• Can lead status values be updated via API?

• Can notes or conversation summaries be written?

• Can custom fields be updated programmatically?

• Are there any restrictions on automated updates?

5. Messaging & compliance

Compliance and opt-outs are critical.

• Does the CRM support opt-out or unsubscribe flags?

• Can StudentIgnite write back an opt-out status?

• Can the CRM suppress future messaging once a lead has opted out?

• Does the CRM store consent or communication preferences?

6. Calendar & booking (if applicable)

If your workflow includes appointment booking:

• Does the CRM have a native calendar or booking system?

• Are there webhooks or API events for:

  • Booked

  • Cancelled

  • Rescheduled

• Can bookings be linked directly to a lead record?

7. Webhooks support

Please confirm webhook capabilities:

• Does the CRM support webhooks?

  • Yes

  • No

  • Limited (specific events only)

• If yes, which events are available?

  • Lead created

  • Lead updated

  • Status or stage changed

  • Booking or appointment events

  • Other (please specify)

8. Environments & testing

To integrate safely, we need to know what testing options exist.

• Is a sandbox or staging environment available?

• Can test API credentials be created?

• Can test leads be created without impacting production data?

9. Documentation & support

• Is API documentation available?

  • Public

  • Private (can be shared)

  • Not available

• Is there a technical contact or support team we can work with?

• What is the typical response time for technical questions?

What happens next

Once we have this information, our team can confirm feasibility, outline the integration approach, and guide you through the next steps.

If you’re using a custom CRM, gathering this information early will significantly speed up onboarding.