Businesses have been using CRM’s since the 1980’s to help sales teams manage their communications with clients. Due to the complexity of these types of software, many sales people only end up using a fraction of what is possible for the software capabilities, and many people end up disliking their experience and stop using the software all together. Furthermore, the price per user of many CRM options outweigh the positive effects of the tool.
There are some CRM alternatives that have taken the lead to focus on two main components in their product: the ease of use and a low cost.
The CRM tools listed below all have two things in common:
- The CRM’s all have options that are priced at less than $25/user. This obviously makes the tool much more affordable for every company no matter the industry or years in business.
- The products are straight-forward, intuitive and flourish in simplicity, which helps to get people on board with using the product.
These CRM products will best suit small to medium sized businesses.
- Insightly
Insightly has blossomed since its inception in 2009 to be a major player in the CRM market. One of the biggest perks of the product, is that it allows up to three free users with no time limit. Additionally, the price per user after that is incredibly low, at only $29/month, covering up to six users and 25,000 clients.
Additionally, this product integrates project management tools so you can stay on top of projects and customer relationships in a combined software. Insightly also integrates with MailChimp.
- Nimble
Nimble sets itself apart by acting as a social CRM product, which connects contacts in your email and with your social media accounts, realizing that LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook have become forums to engage with clients. The integration includes, but is not limited to: Freshbooks, AWeber, Hootsuite, Constant Contact, HubSpot and MailChimp. The cost of this product is only $15/user/month, and you get 5GB of storage for 30,000 clients.
- Base CRM
Base makes a claim on its website saying that using this tool will make you a “hero” because of how productive you will become, and boasts about its myriad of high revenue clientele. The cost of Base is in line with Nimble, giving you $15/user/month, however, it will allow as many users as you would like and includes 2 GB of storage with unlimited contacts.
Another option for Base includes sales forecasting for $45/user, or a user option for $125/user that enables sales people to make calls directly from the tool without having to actually dial. Even with these extended options, the $15 user options gives you all of the CRM functionality you need for a small to medium sized business, and integrates with MailChimp and more.
While Salesforce remains the market leader for CRM software, its starting price is $65/user/month and includes functionality that is over kill for smaller teams. Due to the complexity of your needs, SalesForce may be the best fit for your company. However, the CRM’s listed above are worth investigating if you are new to CRM’s or have been unimpressed by services you’ve used in the past.