CRM Software
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Compare the Top CRM Software of 2020
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Compare the best CRM software currently available using the table below.
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1
vtenext
vtenext
vtenext – the CRM for Digital Innovation Transform and Innovate your company with vtenext. It allows you to engage your customers into your business processes using a specific technology. It can also be used to manage processes generated by internal customers. The most important advantages of adopting vtenext are: - Improving the Return On Investments (ROI) - Facilitating internal communication by breaking down internal barriers - Having a 360° knowledge of the customers - Designing, automation and digitalization of internal and external processes - Acquiring a Lean management method - And many more!
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2
Inspection Support Network
Inspection Support Network
A cloud-based solution for inspectors that streamlines business growth, scheduling, workflow automation, agent management and reporting.
Starting Price: $4.00/inspection -
3
GreenRope
GreenRope
GreenRope is the all-in-one CRM that accelerates growth by increasing awareness, generating leads, and driving conversions. Leverage advanced automation, predictive analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI) with an intuitive, easy-to-use interface. Convert more and build long-lasting relationships with GreenRope's many features built to help you communicate with your leads and clients. From email marketing and social media to advanced marketing automation and more, all the tools you need to engage your contacts are right at your fingertips. It's now easier than ever to keep in touch and stay top-of-mind.
Starting Price: $149.00/month -
4
DejaOffice CRM
CompanionLink Software
DejaOffice CRM for PC, Android, and iPhone. Easy and Affordable Customer Management that is faster and cheaper than any cloud based CRM. Your Business Contacts and Calendar are local and secure. You can use DejaOffice CRM even if your PC or Phone is disconnected. When your device reconnects your changes update automatically. Use CompanionLink to directly sync your Desktop Outlook, Act!, IBM (Lotus) Notes, Palm Desktop to DejaOffice on your Phone. DejaOffice Mobile CRM App on is Free for your Android and iPhone!
Starting Price: $49.95 one-time price -
5
Mortgage Quest
Market Focus
Mortgage Quest is an automated email marketing and CRM system designed for the mortgage industry. The variety of industry-specific content and marketing strategies increase sales from prospects, current and past customers, and referral partners, such as Realtors. It comes with a weekly mortgage and real estate newsletter, premade mortgage video emails, holiday, birthday and loan anniversary ecards and much more in our content library. Social media marketing services are also available. Auto post our content to Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter
Starting Price: $45 per month -
6
Shape Software
Shape Software
Shape CRM helps you manage your business on one easy to use platform. Shape's cloud-based software offers dozens of tools designed to manage and automate your online marketing and promotions via email and SMS, capture and service leads from online sources, organize sales pipelines, nurture prospects and customers, create and send professional online documents, accept online payments, run custom reporting, and automate everyday admin tasks. Shape is the most flexible CRM ever!
Starting Price: $99.00/month/user -
7
InfoFlo
Carmel Vision
Infoflo is an easy to use CRM that is perfect for managing customer relationships and includes the most robust Outlook sync on the market! It is a fully integrated contact, relationship, email, calendar, document, sales, task management solution and VoIP. It includes a Quick Books, Outlook and Google Sync. InfoFlo includes FREE Life-Time and is an affordable $99 ONE-TIME cost per user
Starting Price: $99.00/one-time/user -
8
Document360
Kovai
Document360 is a knowledge base documentation tool specially designed for all SaaS products. It is a Saas platform that helps you to build a great self-service knowledge base for your customers and internal users (public or private knowledge bases). It comes with robust features like uncompromised authoring experience, rich theme, built-in analytics, and enterprise-grade restore, back-up and versioning functionalities. Benefits of Using Document360: - Smart instant search: Google-like search for quick help and dynamically look for the most relevant help articles. - Built-in analytics: This feature filters data and provides the report to derive actionable data and insights. - Integrations: Document360 works seamlessly with third-party applications such as Disqus, Intercom, Zendesk, Slack, Olark, Microsoft Teams, Google Analytics, and more. Our prominent customers include Microsoft, Monday.com, Harvard University, Warner Bros, Stackify and more.
Starting Price: $49.00/month -
9
Brushfire
Brushfire Technology
At Brushfire, it’s our goal to be the go-to ticketing and registration platform our clients deserve. We’re an event management software-as-a-service platform that provides assigned seat ticketing, general admission, and support for concerts, conferences, camps, productions, plays, sports, and anything else where people gather. We handle thousands of events every day, on every continent, ranging anywhere from a handful to 20k+ attendees. Brushfire strives to facilitate successful events around the world by providing great software and service that never stops improving. We believe the church, non-profit, and secular organizations deserve the most elegantly architected platform for event management. Both at the technology and service layer.
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10
elevio
elevio
Elevio is a knowledge platform that helps companies capture, deliver, measure and evolve their product knowledge. We help growing teams reduce their support loads and enterprise teams better manage their knowledge requirements. Deliver contextual answers to customers or give your support agents the right info as they need it. Reduce support loads, increase customer success and create custom knowledge experiences for your product. Is your team utilising Knowledge Centred Service (KCS)? With Hub, your whole team can collaborate to make sure your docs are up to date, accurate, and as detailed as they need to be. Based on user feedback and data analysis, it's the backbone of continuous user education.
Starting Price: $99.00 -
11
HelmBot
HelmBot
Appointment scheduling, point-of-sale, staff management, marketing automation, and a whole lot more. HelmBot is like having 10 different software systems, all in one, and our customers love how simple it is.
Starting Price: $95 per month -
12
TeamSupport
TeamSupport LLC
TeamSupport is the leading B2B-focused customer support solution that helps you build satisfaction and loyalty. A scalable, all-in-one support solution designed for B2B companies to make collaboration easy. Empower your support team to create better customer experiences that are focused on improving and maintaining customer relationships. We are used by B2B companies in software, healthcare, & transportation. Be a more efficient team that streamlines communication and ticket management Born in the cloud with mobile functionality, TeamSupport helps users get a detailed understanding of their business customer relationships, as well as visibility into how individual employees are performing. Easily determine how happy each customer is, and identify at-risk customers with AI-enabled customer distress index. Fully customizable automations help you perform repetitive tasks quickly and easily, communicate with various teams instantly, or even send out alerts for escalations, all to help
Starting Price: $50.00/month/user -
13
Podium
Podium
Centralize all business reviews from across different platforms with Podium, an online review solution. Podium allows users to see their reviews and gain more customer feedback for quick and better-informed decisions. Podium can be accessed through its free iOS and Android app for sending review invitations, check analytics, and manage existing reviews.
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14
Accelevents
Accelevents
Accelevents is a powerful but affordable all-in-one virtual event platform known for their ease of use, impressive feature stack, and 24/7 live support. The platform offers robust virtual event hosting features including ticketing/registration, live chat & polling, virtual exhibitor booths, A.I. powered networking, gamification, and more. Event organizers can live stream to the main stage or break out session using either a built-in steaming studio, or integrate with an outside streaming platform. Whether hosting an event for 100 people or 100,000+ Accelevents will allow you to create a virtual, in-person or hybrid experience that your attendees remember. The virtual lobby allows attendees to access a newsfeed bulletin, a dynamic agenda, or even shop in your store. Accelevents understands the value of an event sponsorship, so they’ve developed a suite of ad placements & interactive tools that set the stage for dynamic sponsorship packages.
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15
Frazer Auto Dealer Software
Frazer Computing
Frazer provides full-featured dealer management software to independent car dealers throughout the United States. Frazer's goals have always been simple– to provide dealers with a high-quality, easy-to-use Dealer Management System, at an affordable price, while ensuring that a friendly, knowledgeable support staff is there to back it up. Request a free trial to see what everyone in the auto industry is talking about.
Starting Price: $55.00/month -
16
QLess
QLess
QLess specializes in queue management and appointment scheduling software. Through queue management software, customers are empowered to wait wherever they want: at home, work, or even Starbucks – instead of a crowded lobby. To begin, customers join a virtual queue online. They are given a wait time forecast and timely notifications alert customers as they move to the front of the queue. With appointment scheduling software, customers book an appointment for a future day and time. Meanwhile, you are able to accept walk-ins as schedule openings occur. As the time of the customer’s appointment approaches, QLess automatically places the customer in the virtual queue of your software. Interactive appointment scheduling software offers bi-directional communication, connecting your staff with customers. If a customer is running late, they can request more time. Likewise, your staff can notify the customer if your office is behind schedule.
Starting Price: 500.00/month -
17
Survey Anyplace
Survey Anyplace
Discover why companies like Capgemini, Eneco, EDF, and Bare International, as well as many midsize consulting companies and agencies, use Survey Anyplace to create assessments that return personalized advice to your respondents in the final screen, through email, or in a branded PDF report.
Starting Price: $59.00/month/user -
18
Cliniko
Red Guava
Cliniko is practice management software used by tens of thousands of allied healthcare practitioners in more than 95 countries worldwide. Manage schedules, treatment notes, invoices, payments and lots more. It works great for solo practitioners, large teams and anything in between. Loved by physiotherapists, podiatrists, therapists, chiropractors, massage therapists, and more. Cliniko also works on any device and includes secure telehealth, online bookings, and online payments, so you can connect with your patients from anywhere! Our system meets or exceeds all regulations of the Australian Privacy Principles, GDPR, PIPEDA, and HIPAA. Try it free for 30 days with no payment information required.
Starting Price: $45.00/month -
19
SpotMe
SpotMe
SpotMe is the complete engagement platform. From live to on-demand, planners can easily deliver virtual events, digital experiences, and event apps that their audience loves. From breakout sessions to personalized agendas to two-way communication and gamification, planners have the tools to build a thriving community on and offline. SpotMe provides branded enterprise solutions to 250+ global brands across web, iOS, and Android, as well as a no-code building platform, and support & professional services.
Starting Price: $4,800 per year -
20
Project Insight
Project Insight
Project Insight is award-winning work & project management software that centralizes all of your work, tasks, and projects into one easy to use online platform. We offer a completely FREE expandable version or a full-featured enterprise edition.
Starting Price: FREE + $3 ADD-ONS + ENTERPRISE -
21
TablesReady
Table's Ready, LLC
Streamline your customer flow with our SMS-powered waitlist, reservations, and queue management app for restaurants, health care providers, and many other businesses. * Customers can add themselves to your list via an embeddable widget, web page, or SMS message. Or you can turn this off. * Online reservations/appointments, customizable for restaurants, personal services, retail, entertainment, DMVs, and more. * Easily text guests when you're ready for them. Choose from a variety of customizable automated messages, or open up a 1:1 SMS chat. * Use other software for appointments? No problem. Upload reservations or use our API, then you can still manage your customer flow and messaging within our app. * Integrates with Square POS and Weebly to easily send texts when an order is ready. *No app for you or your customers to download.
Starting Price: $69.95/month -
22
LiveChat
LiveChat Software
For the fastest and the most efficient way to help your customers, turn to LiveChat! As a leading live chat and help desk software solution for business, LiveChat transforms teams into customer service rockstars with its simple and easy-to-use applications. Apart from its core live chat functionality, LiveChat provides a wide range of add-on modules for sales and marketing automation as well as integrations with third-party customer relationship management (CRM) solutions.
Starting Price: $16.00 per agent per month -
23
Feedbackly
Feedbackly
Feedbackly helps you gather customer or employee feedback, analyze it, and make updates that have an impact that you can measure. With the 360 Degree Feedback, you can improve your employee experience and motivate your team to make changes that will delight your customers. And our omnichannel customer journey automation helps you understand how your customers are doing at any moment. With Feedbackly, you can create customizable surveys and publish them simultaneously on any sales/ communication channel (e.g. brick-and-mortar store, eCommerce site, email, SMS). Then analyze the responses in our industry-leading dashboard and in customer journey specialized analytics tool. Leverage the concept of omnichannel customer journey mapping to track satisfaction levels with precision from awareness to loyalty - know where and why your customers churn. Then use this insight to make sound business decisions and turn your feedback into growth.
Starting Price: $99 / Single Package -
24
Member365
Member365
Member365 understands that technology isn't always easy to handle. Anyone who has dealt with confusing spreadsheets, software programs, payment processing and many important matters that come with having an association knows how crucial it is to have a reliable resourse to lean on. Let Member365 be the support system you've been looking for!
Starting Price: $149 -
25
Planning Pod
Planning Pod
Save 62+ hours every month and streamline your processes with Planning Pod's suite of 20+ easy-to-use tools for event & venue professionals. Our venue management software suite offers venue managers & staff an all-in-one platform for tracking every detail related your event bookings - including booking calendars, email communications, BEOs, food-&-beverage orders, floor plans / room layouts, leads, proposals, invoicing, payments & more. Our event management software gives event planners, corporate planners, meeting planners & non-profits a single place to collaborate & manage thousands of details. This includes attendees, budgets, timelines, tasks, floor plans, registrations / ticketing, communications & more. Our event floor plan tool makes it easy to create professional event layouts in minutes and is also included in our event software and venue software packages. Join the 20,000 event pros who rely on Planning Pod's tools every day. Try it free for 14 days!
Starting Price: $19/month
How to choose the right CRM software
Today’s technology is enabling small to midsize businesses to operate more efficiently, thereby saving on expenses and time. Among the most beneficial of these new developments is customer relationships management (CRM) software, which enables businesses to manage existing customers, potential clients and contacts more effectively. The software can organize and analyze vast amounts of data with lightning speed, improve workflow, and boost customer relationships to new levels. It all adds up to an enhanced ability to compete and to record significantly improved profit margins.
Handling relationships with customers and contacts in these ways was unachievable before these advances in technology without preparing extensive spreadsheets and devoting considerable time, energy and staff resources to do so.
A key to the effectiveness of CRM software is in gathering extensive and detailed information about customers and potential clients, followed by organizing, recording and effectively using that information. CRM software retains information not just on customers’ basic details, but also on each contact or lead that a company maintains, whether by telephone or email. It monitors their interests and their purchasing habits. It provides the tools for following up, cross selling, developing marketing strategies, and tracking invoices more effectively. Some CRM software can even go so far as to prompt staff to email or telephone customers at around the time at which they have called the company.
The applications also can scan web traffic and social media to identify potential clients based on such aspects as their interests and hobbies. Instead of an employee trying to remember details on customers or searching for it in randomly gathered papers scattered on an office desk or hidden in computer folders with meaningless names, the software retains this information in a central place. Not only is it retained, but it is well ordered in an efficient and logical way. So, for example, the software will automatically send a gift card or message to customers or contacts on their birthdays. New or improved products or services can be broadcast immediately on their release.
CRM software goes even further than organizing information on customers and contacts and maintaining relationships with them. It provides the ability to aim messages to specific demographic groups, such as millennials and seniors. Information also can be directed to specific geographic areas, such as a city, county or state, quickly and efficiently without having to develop spreadsheets to do so or having an employee going through the information and select those who should be served with the information. In addition, CRM software enables employees to set and measure sales targets, to develop effective marketing techniques and even to scan internet traffic and social media for potential leads.
As a result, staff can be freed up to concentrate on the more personal face-to-face aspects of marketing and sales without having to spend their time on inputting vast amounts of information, assessing results, and maintaining regular communications with customers. The result is enhanced sales ability, greater productivity, and more satisfied customers.
Many CRM systems have been developed and a large number are available. Sorting through the various CRM software can run up costs and eat up time. But it is essential that the programs chosen are the most appropriate to a company’s needs. Here are guidelines to help a business make the right selection.
Evaluate the cost against the features
Clearly small and midsize companies will want to take into account the cost of CRM software. But there is more to the software than the cost itself. The price needs to be balanced against the benefits of the features that are incorporated in the software. The features required by a company depend on the nature of the business that it conducts. Some features will be of little or no use to a particular company, while others will be of significant advantage to it.
In addition to checking out the benefits, a company might want to consider some of the newer CRM software that offer affordable entry points. As the company grows and it becomes acquainted with the software, more features can be added. A company can choose whether the new features are worth the additional costs in terms of the returns it might receive from them. A company will also want to take into account hidden costs, such as the degree of training that is required to ensure that staff are using the software effectively. More complex software might mean spending considerable time on teaching staff to use it more efficiently. Ideally, the time taken to becoming fully acquainted with the software should be as short as possible and should be measured in days rather than weeks. Clearly a smaller business simply cannot afford to have staff spend large amounts of time becoming acquainted with the new CRM system.
To help answer these questions, it might be advisable to check the support documentation with the application. Just how complex a program is it? What kinds of problems will employees face as they implement it? Another method to determining a software’s cost effectiveness is to try out the application to determine just how long it will take for your staff to be up and running on it. Most CRM software suites come with a free evaluation period. Use this time to import information into the CRM, including accounts, and assign tasks to employees. Evaluate whether the software is effective for your company’s needs or whether it actually creates more work. You might also record how extensively you need to pore over the documentation that comes with it or how many times you need to call support for help. If one application fails the test, try another until you are satisfied with the return on investment it brings with it.
Another factor in evaluating software is whether the new CRM software will integrate with the systems that are currently being used by your company. Will it be necessary to buy new hardware or switch to new operating systems? Also, effective use of the software might require new smart phones or tablets, incurring additional costs. Even though CRM software is relatively new on the market, the rapid advancement of today’s technology has meant that the applications have become more varied and bring with them more options in addition to the basic benefits. Newer versions enable the software to be implemented in a Software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. Others offer the choice of storing information on the cloud rather than on your own computers or servers. Such a choice can save on costs, lessen complexity, and provide additional security. Another consideration is integrating the CRM software with your telephone system, enabling you to gather information from calls and conversations.
Here’s another aspect to consider. Industry-leading CRM software suites tend to integrate with third-party providers. Those providers operate many of the tools that you will be using. This adds to the costs of the overall application. It also means you might find yourself dealing with different support systems and you cannot always be sure that the varied applications work effectively alongside each other. Careful evaluation of each CRM will pay dividends in the long run. Rather than simply buying a CRM system that provides you with all the bells and whistles that today’s systems provide, it is wise to check carefully into the individual benefit of each, using the factors outlined here as a guide.
Assess usability
In addition to the cost and the features, a major consideration when selecting CRM software is to ensure that it is going to be relatively uncomplicated for you and your employees to use. Ideally, after an initial learning phase, staff should find it reasonably intuitive. To test a program’s usability, make sure you consult your employees on it. After all, they are the ones who will be tasked with using it. What might look simple on an initial examination of the program might prove difficult when it comes to actually using the program itself. The way the program works might take an inordinate time to learn.
Employees might find that menus are difficult to find or to use, are too many to go through for relatively simple tasks, or are far from intuitive. They might even find that gaining the information they need involves going through so many hoops that it takes more time than if they had done it themselves without using the program. Having discovered how one aspect of the program works they should be able to apply those basic principles to other aspects of the program. They might be frustrated to find that, for example, the menus work in one way on one aspect of the program, but work in another way on a different aspect.
Make sure, too, that the employees try out the CRM software in a variety of situations. In some cases, the tasks they are called upon to employ using the software might actually make their jobs harder. They might find, too, that they never use many of the features for which you are paying. CRM software also should be able to alert a user to any major errors, such as entering data in the wrong place. One way to determine usability is to learn the application yourself and then to teach someone how to operate it. Read the support documentation, scan through the FAQs, if any are available, as well as any user blogs you might come across. If — on completing all these tasks — you find it painstaking or even frustrating to teach someone the system, or if you find you cannot understand the system well enough yourself to teach someone to use it, alarm bells should sound.
Even if you find the CRM software relatively straightforward to use, it is nevertheless likely that at some point in the future you might need to call the support line for help. While evaluating the application, therefore, it is a good idea to call the support line when you get even slightly stuck to check out how valuable it is. Check out how long the wait time is, which hours they are available in your time zone, and ask numerous questions.
Not only will this enable you to become more familiar with the program, but you will be able to check out the availability and quality of the support that is provided.
Check out the communications features
Concentrate on those features of the CRM software that you will use and drill down on their practical use for your company. Try not to be blindsided by social media apps that are fashionable and said to be catching on. Chances are that email will continue to remain for the foreseeable future the best way you can communicate with your customers. Almost everyone has email on their desktop, laptop, tablet or phone, which they check regularly. Many of the new social media applications, however, are unavailable on desktops and laptops.
Another benefit of email is that it can convey information, including logos, graphics and pictures more effectively than apps such as Twitter or even Facebook. A well designed email can be appealing and inviting in a way that other apps are not. In short, you should understand the way in which the CRM software you choose will interact with customers and contacts over email. The application you choose should ensure that information contained in email messages is automatically captured and does not have to be manually gathered. Of course, this does not mean you should ignore mobile apps. They are a vital part of communicating today, but they are quite different than those applications that operate on desktops and laptops. So you should evaluate them as a separate entity.
Viewed from a different perspective, an important new feature that is being added to CRM software today is the ability for an employee to communicate on a mobile device with the data that is stored centrally, either on your servers or on the cloud. This ability should be as effective as if the employee were sitting in the office working on a desktop.
These applications mean that, by using a remote mobile device, such as a smart phone or tablet, staff will be able access all the CRM tools wherever they are in the world as long as they have access to the Internet and whenever they want to do so, even outside regular business hours. Sometimes the communication methods are different when working from a mobile device than they are when using a desktop computer. Switching from one to another can be a learning experience for employees. But for some companies, depending on the nature of their business, it is important that their employees need to be able to communicate in this way. For many, specially those who are constantly on the road, such communication is vital to them. If this is the case with your company, therefore, make sure that they have the ability to plug in to your CRM software from wherever they are using their mobile devices.
Gauge marketing effectiveness
One of the advantages that CRM software is bringing with it is the ability to introduce automation to relationships with customers. In the past, sales representatives, or anyone who had a direct relationship with customers, needed carefully to record tasks to be performed. Examples would be following up a set time after a sales negotiation or at the ending of a trial test of a product or service. Questions might need to be answered, too.
Not only that, but emails would have to be written to each client, ensuring that they are provided with the correct information. Now CRM software performs many of these tasks automatically. In doing so it sharply lessens the prospect of contacts falling through the cracks as a result of neglecting to follow up in time or overlooking to keep track of them in a timely manner. It also can produce customized email templates for each situation or for special offers, making it unnecessary to write each email individually.
Such features are valuable when following up on leads. The reason: In many businesses, potential customers fail to respond to an initial sales attempt. They might set it aside with the intent to decide later. Following up becomes as important to closing the sale as the first lead generation was.
In some cases, potential clients ask questions about a product. Should they fail to receive an answer in a reasonable amount of time, they will move on and consider other products. Using CRM software, particularly when it is linked to a mobile app, staff will be prompted to respond quickly to questions. In the case of existing customers, too, it is often vital to respond as quickly as possible to problems or questions users might have.
Another example would be in the case of, say, a webinar that a company is planning to hold. CRM software can automatically remind those who have signed up for the webinar, delete those who might cancel before it is held, and follow up on those who took part to determine their feedback. Should a client cancel an account, CRM software will automatically try to assess the reason for the cancellation and gather feedback that the disillusioned customer might have. Such applications could also try to persuade customers to return should the problem they faced be resolved. In all cases, speed is of the essence. Here, the fast reaction time provided by CRM software can play a significant role.
These tasks can be undertaken by some CRM software using advanced methods of artificial intelligence, saving time and boosting productivity. A number of CRM applications include the ability to synchronize various email accounts into a central portal. They also can initiate email marketing campaigns and can include the ability to conduct chat sessions.
Third-party integrations
An essential element in selecting CRM software is to separate the features that will be provided by the software itself and those that will be delivered through a third-party provider. In doing so, you will need to determine the degree to which these add-ons will operate within the parameters of the system you already are using.
You almost certainly will want to connect email services provided by the application itself or add ons with the existing email apps you are using. If they will not do so, are you ready to switch to an app they will support? The same is true of a calendar or possibly newsletter management software. In some cases the application might indicate that it is compatible with apps you already use. They might describe this as “native integration,� meaning that the company has an application that you can select, download and use. Problem solved. But if the company does not provide such integration, you will have to do some detective work yourself.
A possibility is to have your IT staff (if you have such) investigate and see whether they can build integration with the software for you. You might decide that the software itself will be compatible with what you have, but you need to follow this up with assessing each of the third-party providers — if such exist — individually.
Size up reporting and analysis abilities
A critical aspect of CRM software is its ability to provide you with reports and analyses. They will help you not only to determine the results of what you have been able to achieve using the software, but will enable you better to determine how you should proceed in the future. To assess an application’s reporting ability, check on features that can be customized according to your business. In this way you can assess how your workers have been performing and how customers have been responding. You should be able to produce reports on net sales, demographics on your customers, and track profits in real time.
Ideally, these reports should be exportable. You should be able to save them and print them out if necessary. In addition, using any tool you prefer, you should be able to convert the data into graphic displays of various sorts, such as charts and dashboards. You can then present them to shareholders, partners or others interested in some way in the running of your company. The data will come alive and be more meaningful. An additional benefit will be to combine statistics so that the ratio of, say, email messages to actual sales can be determined.
Rate the degree of security
In today’s world of hackers and loopholes in systems, security has become a paramount concern to most consumers. Failure adequately to protect customers information can be damaging to your reputation. It becomes essential, therefore, to asses a CRM software on its security. A relatively new aspect of security is the storing of data on the cloud. At one level, such storage is considerably more secure than anything saved on your hard drives, where it is vulnerable to theft, fire and other damage. But you need to feel satisfied with the security being provided by the program you are using, particularly where almost all the data is being stored in that way. After all, you are recording information on customers, some of which might be sensitive.
You can test the level of security provided by a CRM software provider in several ways.
One is to research the company providing the software. Check whether it has fallen foul to security failures and how they responded to them, if there were any. Another is to find out where your data will reside, who is ultimately responsible for its security, and what will happen if there is a problem. Among other ways to test the security is to check whether your CRM software fails to adequately record when users change their passwords. Another is to find out whether you can specify each user’s access controls. You can also check on how well the CRM software relates to your existing IT security software.
Evaluating CRM software
Check on how others have evaluated and tested CRM software. Some will rate the best applications available, whereas others will evaluate them based on the features that they provide and yet others will examine them on cost. Go through the assessments carefully, checking those that crop up regularly on top-10 lists.
For example, some will provide a list of free CRM software, such as Hubspot CRM, Inslightly, Zoho and Freshsales. Others will rate online CRM apps, such as OnePage, Airtable, SugarCRM, and Act! CRM. Yet others will provide a list of CRM software for small businesses, such as Pipeline, Infusionsoft, Salesforce, and AgileCRM.
Then there are categories of CRM software for real estate agents, for corporations, for sales people, for insurance agents…. You name it.
It is important to remember, however, that, even in select categories, each CRM has its own strengths and its own weaknesses. Some might specialize in outstanding email services, but if your business uses little email, the CRM might not be for you. Others are great for sales people, but if you have only a limited number of clients, you might need a different kind of CRM application.
Some might be free up to a certain level. If your business expands, you might need to start paying for the software and it’s best to check out what that might be.
Use the criteria outlined above to find the CRM software that will work best for you. Having looked into the pros and cons, try one out if possible before committing to it.
Once you have selected a CRM application and it works for you, chances are you will be opened to a whole new world of managing customer relationships. You will be left wondering why you had not jumped on board much earlier. But then, of course, a lot of this technology is new and was not available until a few years ago.
If commercial CRM software isn't what you're looking for, be sure to check out the free open source CRM software section.