Do you need more sales? Have you got lots of leads?
Can you easily answer that question? Do you know what I am talking about? Or do you have no idea?
Do you have scribbled notes in notepads, or on scrap pieces of paper, piles of business cards or use spreadsheets to store information about your client projects and potential customers? Do you know what your next step should be in managing your customer relationships?
None of those tools are the best tool for managing relationships. That’s where customer relationship management (CRM) software comes in. CRMs can help manage all your current and potential customer contacts, from meetings, emails and phone conversations. They can also help you track sales, organise contacts, remind you of and prioritise tasks and manage projects.
But if you’re on a tight budget, paying for CRM software on a monthly basis may not be your priority, especially if you are just setting out in business. Fortunately, like some of the best things in life, some CRMs are free to download and use.
So, what’s out there, what’s free, what’s worth paying for? To help you find the right platform for your business, lots of people have tested free CRMs and share their findings on the best. One article I found summarises them as follows, but for all the details, please go to https://zapier.com/blog/best-free-crm/
There is no catch really if you understand that the CRM has to make money for them to be around to support you.
The thing with most SAAS (Software As A Service) applications is that you should not expect to go in hoping to use it for free forever. Not unless you plan on staying on as a really small business.
Which one you choose will depend what do you expect it to do? What else you want to integrate it with. How much you want to use it on a mobile phone, plus other considerations.
I have personally used Capsule and Zoho CRM and have also downloaded Hubspot. They all have a generous free plan that works really well when you are small. But you need to be prepared to pay as you grow.
So how do you decide what do buy? Don’t worry about the catch. Check which CRM has an acceptable pricing structure once you move out of the free zone. For me, Hubspot looks like a really steep climb in pricing after the free zone. But the value they offer is impressive.
How I can help? Let me know if you think discussing any of this with me might help.
Jean Weir – Oyster Flame – Giving you valuable time back!