The Best CRM for Startups: The What, Why, & How-To

However, besides writing, Priyanka is also passionate about dancing, drawing, and reading. When employees have aides and tools to ease their load and streamline their workflows, they can contribute more to best crm for startups the business. As a result, employees feel valued and job satisfaction is bound to improve. Everyone on your team having permission can access the data without having to rely on someone to send it over.

By reading this in-depth comparison of each software, you can decide which one would be the best fit for your company. Businesses of every size and valuation need a capable software solution to manage their contacts and keep customers happy. CRM for startups has the power to do that and get your business off the ground. In the fast-paced world of startups, staying updated is non-negotiable.

Keap (great for small businesses that need marketing automation)

Offering essential features without breaking the budget, this tailored solution caters to the unique needs and constraints of SaaS startups. In addition to the above, we also considered factors like customer support, documentation, and customization options. And lastly, there’s the HubSpot Academy, which provides unlimited free access to training materials to help you to get the most out of your CRM and bring your team up to speed. Financial advisors seeking a dynamic CRM that evolves with industry needs and emphasizes efficient, effective client communication and workflow management.

While it might not always be in CRM comparisons, its offerings are unmatched for startups prioritizing simple financial management. In this guide, we’ll explore 19 top software solutions, each tailored to meet the unique needs and challenges startups face. The right CRM can be the cornerstone of your startup’s success, from enhancing customer engagement to driving growth. Matt has over five years’ experience writing for leading publications in the digital marketing space, including Ahrefs, and Bloggingwizard.com, Profitblitz.com.

Streak (best for startups that need CRM integration within Gmail)

Keap’s CRM software lets you concentrate on what matters the most with an easy-to-use interface. I would recommend this tool for startups looking for personalized automations. These sales and marketing automations let you optimize your customer’s experience and effectively manage your daily activities. Whatever your company is doing, a CRM with features like contact management, lead management, sales pipeline management, and marketing automation can help you tie your daily work together. To evaluate the best CRMs for startups, we took into account a variety of factors. We considered each tool’s functionality (such as lead management, workflow automation, unified inboxes, and call tracking) as well as how effectively they met the requirements of a typical company.

If your small business is ready to boost its sales efforts, there’s a lot to like about Freshsales by Freshworks. It has lower pricing than competitors like Pipedrive, AI tools for lead scoring and crafting better sales forecasts, plus reports and dashboards for all but the free plan. Experienced CRM users or large teams may want to test a free trial of a higher-tier plan like Enterprise, Ultimate or the Zoho bundle, CRM Plus. Those packages are in addition to Zoho One, which adds HR, finance, recruitment and other Zoho products to its CRM. Zoho offers a dizzying array of offerings for business owners — that might be a downside or a plus if you want a one-stop shop. Built for small to mid-sized businesses, Salesflare is a team-centric CRM that encourages collaboration.

Why Emotional Connection is Essential in Business

One feature that’s great for small teams is Satislack’s contact sharing. This allows you to easily share your contacts with everyone on the team, which helps keep track of important information. And since the CRM is free, it’s a great option if you’re just getting started or don’t have a ton of leads to manage at one time. PipelineDeals is a simple system designed to keep track of customers, leads, and even tips about your industry. Like many other CRMs, PipelineDeals gives you the ability to sort prospects based on whether they’re hot or cold, as well as by their stage in the sales process. CRM software can give you valuable insights into the customer’s journey.

In short, this functionality leverages AI and Machine Learning to identify trends within your CRM data and provide recommendations, predictions, and spot high-value leads. With ClickUp, you can automatically assign tasks for each step of the sales pipeline, conduct brainstorming sessions with your team via whiteboards, and more. Another advantage of Monday Sales CRM over Pipedrive is that the platform includes email marketing tools that would have otherwise been available in Pipedrive as paid add-ons.

Why Do You Need a CRM Software for Your Startup?

Streak is a simple CRM platform specifically built for G Suite products. This CRM features direct integration with your Gmail account, email scheduling, mail merge view tracking, and more. The platform also integrates with Google Calendar, Drive, Chat, and Sheets. FreeAgent is a CRM platform that features task, activity, work, and process management. Each member of your team can tweak the platform to their own liking for increased productivity.

However, CRM systems can vary depending on the company’s specific needs. If you’re a startup owner looking for one of the best CRM systems for startups, Agile CRM might be the solution for you. Unlike other platforms, Agile is designed with small to midsize businesses like yours in mind. This cloud-based solution integrates sales, service, marketing, social media, and more into one centralized hub.

The Best Free CRMs for Startups Reviewed

If you’d like to pay but you’re still on a limited budget, FreeAgent, Zoho CRM, Pipedrive, Freshsales, Monday Sales CRM, Salesforce, and Less Annoying CRM should be your go-to. These platforms are specifically built for startups and small businesses. Consequently, they have a minimal learning curve and provide excellent value for money. HubSpot‘s CRM is found in the platform’s Sales Hub, which starts for free. The free version includes some pretty solid features, like pipeline and deal management tools, reports, and meeting schedules.

With the rise of remote work and on-the-go entrepreneurship, mobile accessibility in a CRM is no longer just a ‘nice-to-have’ — it’s a necessity. Startups require platforms that allow them to access customer data, track sales, and communicate from anywhere, anytime. Many CRM platforms, including HubSpot and Zoho, offer robust mobile apps ensuring business continuity, no matter where founders or their teams might be. Zoho CRM stands out as a dynamic business management platform tailored to meet the multifaceted requirements of modern businesses. The contact management feature offered by CRM software makes it easier for startups to build and maintain valuable relationships with their customers. They can also offer a personalized customer experience to your leads, helping close deals faster.

Find the best CRM for Startups

Companies that have been hesitant about integrating CRM technology into their business will be encouraged to give it a try. Once your search is narrowed down to a handful of options, start researching those options. There are a few key things you can use to determine if a platform will be a good fit for your needs. Another way to whittle down the plethora of companies is to set a budget at the onset to give you search parameters. This will give you a clear ceiling and eliminate options that live outside your predetermined budget.

• Like many other CRMs, PipelineDeals gives you the ability to sort prospects based on whether they’re hot or cold, as well as by their stage in the sales process.
• However, the sheer variety of possibilities can become a little overwhelming for new users, so it might take a while until your team members get to learn the ropes.
• Compare those providers’ onboarding and support capabilities with your employees’ needs — tech-savvy workers may not need much hand-holding but more powerful CRMs may overstretch a small IT team.
• Our table of the top 10 best CRMs for startups lets you compare the apps in terms of what they’re best for and pricing.
• You need a CRM that can grow with you and support your expansion goals.