You will certainly shop twice, thrice or even multiple times from an online business whose customer satisfaction is their core priority. In order to run a successful business, customer satisfaction should be ranked higher as compared to the anticipated profit realization of the business. This should include the management of contacts and information pertaining the customers, partners and any interested party to the business.
In order to achieve this, best customer relationship management (CRM) software has to be developed and improved over time by high-class software developers. This software helps management of the customer and business relationship through a gathering of both present and historical information into one convenient interface, automation of the manual business processes and communication with the eventual and present customers in a timely manner.
This capacity of tracking all the information about the clients of a certain business escalates the customers’ engagement with the business thus improving the business productivity.
Advantages of a CRM Software System:
1. Proper organization of contacts data
A CRM helps a business to formulate all the present and historical information about their contacts. This helps in tracking of all the communications of a customer with the team members of the business.
2. Data Security
A CRM provides a systematic way of ensuring the security of customers and business information. This ensures the protection of the business and the customer from cyber-attacks.
3. Easy access to data
With the systematic storage of data in a CRM, it makes it easy to access any type of data to enable the making of well-informed decisions by the business and customers.
4. Customer Segmentation
Segmentation of customers in terms of the location, type of deal closed and the close date is achieved by this software. This helps to identify the best deals the business has made.
5. Sales Reporting
All the emails, calls, meetings and deals made are tracked by a CRM system thus provide a clear overview of the operations were done by the business and advice on areas where improvement should be done.
6. Authentic forecasting of sales
A CRM system provides accurate sales compilation enabling sales management and management of the business team.
With the rapid developments in technology, most businesses are opting to purchase a web/cloud-based CRM system. This is because web-based systems are usually hosted by the vendor thus eradicating the need to have an in-house IT team for managing and maintaining the CRM server. This eventually reduces all costs involved in the installation and management of the CRM system.
With the various benefits of a good CRM system, it is then the responsibility of a small business to find the right provider who will offer feature and customization capabilities of a CRM meeting your business needs.
There are sundry of CRM software a small business may opt to consider but we have researched on the best options a business should consider.
The best CRM software for small business include:
This the largest CRM provider in the world and also the most popular. It provides customers with an interface for case and task management which automatically routes and escalates important events within the business. It is easy to learn and use as it offers a simple interface which is easy to use with both desktop and mobile applications.
2. Zoho CRM
This cloud-based system was created to basically serve the needs of small and medium-sized business ventures. Its core functionality is lead and contact management with support for sales pipeline management and control of purchasing. It has an easy to use interface and also enables the extension of its functionality by integration with popular applications.
3. Apptivo CRM
This is a web-based CRM providing functionalities not limited to project tracking, customer relations, human resources, supply chain management and financial management. It has a good customized application interface which makes it easy to use. It is flexible, affordable and highly compatible with Google applications.
4. Hubspot CRM
It is free for users and provides for the tracking and organizing of contacts. It also provides sales add-ons and a complete overview of the sales pipeline for its clients. It integrates very easy with popular applications.
5. Microsoft Dynamics
This CRM offers an office interface which is simple to use. Microsoft users are therefore more likely to purchase it as it also offers integration with Microsoft applications. It is sophisticated to use and thus a good choice for companies with well-defined processes. It is usually deployed in the cloud thus a good option for companies with high-security concerns about data. It is not suited for small companies as it is hard to use and too expensive.
6. vTiger CRM
This is a CRM made to be used by small businesses offering functionalities such as sales automation of sales and workflow, forecasting and emails, project and inventory management, case and lead management and customer portals. It is affordable and easy to learn though it is hard to customize.
7. Nimble CRM
This is a system which offers browser widget and mobile-based sales force automation and social CRM solution for small and midsize businesses. It doesn’t have social platforms integration such as Facebook and LinkedIn but works well with Twitter. This software basically adds details about the various profiles and the history of interaction automatically from contact lists, emails, and social media platforms.
8. Suite CRM
This is CRM providing open source services which can be used in private clouds, servers operating privately or public cloud for hosting. It is highly customizable offering sundry of modules such as products, quotes, contracts, invoices, PDF template and so forth. Extensive bug fixes and enhancements have been done to its core functionality.
9. Act! CRM
This is a cloud-based system that helps in keeping track of the customers’ details in one database which is open for sharing among multiple users. This system integrates with applications such as Microsoft Word, Google, Excel, Gmail and other applications to provide communications and track the contacts communications within the CRM. Although it is said that its interface is archaic, the software is best for integration with social media platforms.