Selecting the right CRM software to maximize sales and establish customer connections is critical. The best CRM software can help you achieve your objectives by gathering lead information and maintaining customer data. I ranked and reviewed the seven best CRM software and my top 5 picks in this article so you may choose the best one for you.

What Should You Look for in CRM Software?

Here are the top ten criteria to consider while selecting web-based CRM software:

1. Lead and sales management

Inbound marketing, sales calls, email sign-ups, and other methods should generate leads in your CRM. To follow up with leads in less time, look for pre-defined assignments. Your CRM should nurture your information through the entire sales pipeline from lead to close.

2. Marketing.

Built-in marketing tools like email funnels, databases, and social media interfaces can help align marketing and sales.

3.0 Integrations

CRM systems work with a wide range of business technologies, such as email marketing tools, advertising platforms, tools for visualizing data, and more.

4. Reporting and analytics

Reporting tools and pre-designed reports included in most CRM platforms. Look for features like live and dynamic reporting.

5. Product Movement

Since sales teams are moving, does the CRM offer usage across different devices? Check if your CRM used on computers, mobile devices, and tablets.

6. Timeline for Implementation

The product installation process should be quick, inexpensive, and error-free. Ask your support engineer how long it will take and what your team will need to do.

7. Project Management Workflows.

With task management boards and approval checklists, your sales staff should handle their duties more efficiently.

8. Security.

When choosing a CRM, file storage and platform security are critical considerations. Because your CRM linked to sensitive information, ensure your platform’s security is up to par.

9. User Experience Is Key.

How user-friendly is your CRM? Don’t forget about UX, and make sure that your staff is comfortable working with this product over time and that the learning curve is minimal.

API Requests

Your CRM should have a robust, extendable, and open architecture for custom data connectors.

7 CRM Software Picks for 2023

1. Salesforce

Salesforce is the most excellent overall choice because it combines your business needs by interacting with just about any of your existing systems, including IT, sales, customer service, and marketing. This enables you to keep using your current system while your programs communicate data and centralize information for your staff. Although it focuses on small firms, it can also handle medium-sized and large enterprises. Salesforce’s cloud-based platform keeps you connected to your business no matter where you are, allowing you to focus on your customers.

The ability of Salesforce to integrate with other software is its most crucial feature. This is the essential part of the system, but you can add things like a map of your territory and a speed dialer if you want to. Salesforce has a learning community with Salesforce specialists available to answer queries. It also offers instructional videos and certification programs. This is critical since it allows a client to get this information at any moment without having to contact customer service.

Salesforce is adaptable, with a top-notch tech support team that can customize functionality to fit your requirements. Even without the assistance of their developers, you can produce customized reports. The Small Business and Sales plans start at $25 per user, paid annually, and rise to over $1,000 per month as additional users and features added.

Pros

  • It’s a cloud-based solution so that you can access it anywhere.
  • Beyond CRM, it meets a wide range of company demands.
  • Fully customized to meet your company’s demands

Cons

  • Because many features paid for, the cost of a monthly subscription can quickly add up.
  • Personalization can be complex for your staff, leading to more training and costs.

2. Freshworks

Freshworks develops a platform that gathers all your needs in one location, reducing time and enhancing concentration for solo entrepreneurs. All it takes is one click to begin turning website visitors into leads. With this cloud-based program, you can access your data from anywhere. You can now enhance client engagement and the number of transactions closed by connecting to some of the top leads for your organization.

With thoughtful analysis, Freshworks uses an AI platform to predict your needs. This works well with the many platforms that integrated, such as Hubspot, Meta, Klenty, and Calendly, to name a few. This app may compile all of your contact information into one place. With this software, you can create reports on various activities, such as email campaigns and customer support. The analytics feature allows you to easily analyze customer support data and gain insights.

By enrolling in the Freshworks Academy, you can improve your skills and gain certification. Along with the training academy and blogs, customer service is just a few keystrokes away.

The monthly fee for each user starts at $29 per month. More complex and customized programs are available based on the company’s demands. These cost-effective choices provide an all-in-one platform for new and small enterprises, and the plan best suits your needs.

Pros

  • A sophisticated data measure used to organize leads and sales.
  • It is ideal for small and medium-sized firms that are just starting.
  • It is customizable to meet your company’s needs.

Cons

  • Sales proposals not tailored to the company’s needs, resulting in more work.
    It doesn’t have a lot of third-party connectors, which can make it more expensive to buy more platforms.
    ‘t allows you as much customization when it comes to reports.

3. Pipedrive

Pipedrive provides the best value for money by giving all of your company’s capabilities to sell more while working less. The platform focuses on sales process control, allowing you to scale your firm to its most significant potential. The simple program will enable you to concentrate on your business rather than the software.

Its activity-based system keeps track of your sales and simplifies lead follow-up. Pipedrive makes integrating with your other apps, such as email, OneDrive, GoogleDrive, and others, easier.

The 14-day free trial gives consumers complete access to all Pipedrive offers, including 24/7 customer service. Plans start at $12.50 per month, with additional fees of $32.50 and $41.50 per month for add-on packages like their LeadBooster and Web Visitor services, respectively.

Pipedrive allows you to customize your reporting. Metrics used to compare a company’s performance against its objectives. Integrated AI (artificial intelligence) automates routine operations, allowing you to concentrate on your clients.

Pipedrive has blogs and supports to help you learn more about the app and general guides on sales, growing a business, managing people, and getting employees to work harder.

Pros

  • It keeps track of emails within the software, making them easier to find.
  • Leads are simple to use and track.
  • This company offers some of the best software for essential sales management.

Cons

  • Because this basic CRM, it not recommended for larger or more complex enterprises.
  • It’s not the most adaptable software available.
  • Report tracking can be time-consuming and irritating.

4. HubSpot

HubSpot is our favorite free CRM solution because it combines marketing, sales, and customer care functions in one place, and users can manage up to one million contacts without worrying about time limits or expiration dates.

After the free program, the paid pricing begins at $45 per month, invoiced annually. Inbound and outbound marketing consultancy are examples of add-ons that can help you take your business to the next level. It comes with a consultant who will help you develop plans and grow your business.

HubSpot has a global community of experts who can answer your questions. The app has options for help, and email and phone support are always available.

The process of integrating into and with HubSpot is straightforward. With step-by-step instructions, you’ll have your platform up and running. There are integrations with WordPress, Gmail, AgencyAnalytics, and Zoom, to name a few.

Users receive comprehensive information on productivity, individual performance, and sales activities. The reporting dashboard has all of this information at your fingertips. You can’t go wrong with HubSpot because it can tailor your process to benefit your business.

Pros

  • It provides a marketing automation service.
  • Email inboxes integrated within the software.
  • All of your consumer interactions centralized in one place.
  • For integration, it’s compatible with a variety of systems.

Cons

  • It take a long time to design and may need to customized depending on the intricacy of your customer service needs.
  • Additional features come at a cost.

5. Bitrix24

Bitrix24 includes full CRM functionality as well as a variety of communication alternatives. For example, it enables high-definition video conferencing. Over 70 VoIP providers, including RingCentral, Nextiva, and Vonage, completely integrated into the program. With video, phone, work chat, and other features, it’s easy to see why Bitrix24 is one of the most popular CRM software providers, with over five million users worldwide.

It also has several other features that allow you to:

  • Establish departments (e.g., marketing, sales, customer service)
  • Workgroups, knowledge bases and communications all easily segmented.
  • All group members’ work and progress shared and viewed.
  • Create knowledge bases where users can communicate, create pages, publish articles, and collaborate on tasks and projects.
  • Message peers individually or as a group or department using the internal chat function.
  • Make and send videos.
  • Connect your email account to the CRM, and you’ll be able to send and receive mail from contact records in the CRM and retain a message history.
  • Set up custom fields for managing contacts to gather important information about your company.
  • Check out the “load” that contact creates regarding communication (how much time your business spends communicating with them).

For customer assistance and training, webinars and training courses offered online. Users with free accounts do not have access to technical support.

Bitrix24 is free for unlimited users, although just a fraction of the functions is available, as with practically all free entry-level plans. Paid plans for two users start at $19.

Pros

  • Plus, there’s a whole lot more.
  • All communication and collaboration centralized.
  • Integration of email marketing

Cons

  • The user interface  made more accessible.
  • Limited social networking options; a large number of features that may be overwhelming; no option to remove

6th.CompanyHub

CompanyHub is very easy to set up for many different industries, and it gives you creative control that you might be able to handle on your own. It also has basic CRM features like managing contacts, products, and sales funnels.

CompanyHub’s designers have been working in the CRM industry since 2012. They’ve gained a thorough awareness of the requirements of various types of enterprises. They used a variety of CRM solutions for their own sales teams and have discovered that many of them are either overly complicated or underutilized. As a result, they created their own solid but simple-to-use CRM that quickly adjusted to meet users’ demands.

Most CRMs that claim to be customizable have some limitations regarding what they allow you to adjust. CompanyHub, on the other hand, goes above and above. You can, for example,

  • Create custom tables to keep track of payments, projects, courses, schools, and real estate, among other things.
  • Assign records from various tables to one another.
  • To make the labels more descriptive, change them (e.g., “company” to “college”).
  • Filter records based on whatever criterion you like.
  • Create reports for any table or field for any given period.

CompanyHub also has powerful email automation features. Leads are automatically updated with Email Sync. You can see who opened which emails and which links they visited using email tracking. Emails can be scheduled, and reply reminders can be created. A Gmail plugin is also available to track emails sent from that account.

Data loading into the CRM has also been made simple using CompanyHub. You can, for example, create records, change fields, add comments, chats, and tasks, and then send follow-ups from a single page.

You can also pick between hierarchy-based and rule-based access control and define who can see which data. Even if two or more salespeople view the same report or page, their data will differ based on the visibility settings.

Plans of $15, $24, and $42 per user per month are offered. A single sales pipeline, app connectivity, online lead collection, and email and calendar functions are all included in the $15 plan. With the $24 plan, you get more reports and pipelines. With the $42 plan, you get advanced customizations and automation.

A CRM specialist will chat with you about your requirements and advise you on how to get the most out of your CompanyHub CRM software during a training call and demo.

Pros

  • Customizable to a large extent, especially by your team.
  • “Capabilities for powerful reporting
  • Integration of email marketing

Cons

  • The cheapest plan lacks sufficient reporting capabilities.
  • MailChimp integration isn’t available.
  • There is no integration with social networking.

CloudSuite CRM from Infor

For salespeople and marketing departments, not all CRMs are created equal. Contact management, lead and pipeline tracking, and deal management are all things that sales teams want from a CRM. These capabilities and more are available in Infor’s CloudSuite CRM, making it ideal for small business sales teams.

Sales reps can use CloudSuite CRM to streamline moving opportunities through the sales funnel. Each phase in the process is linked to the likelihood that the option will result in a sale. As the prospect progresses through the sales process, it adds more value to the sales estimate. The probability assigned to each option can then be reviewed and adjusted, or an alternative might be excluded from the forecast entirely. Here are some of the CRM’s other key sales features:

  • It allows sales professionals to generate new contacts or import existing ones from an ERP or Microsoft Office and save them all in one place within the CRM.
  • All contacts are automatically updated with contact history, and sales reps can look up the information they need using a single interface.
  • Due to its dynamic business rules, no leads are ever missed.
  • The right rep is assigned to the hot leads.
  • A sales representative may track a lead from the prospect to the closed transaction and all stages.

For as little as $65 per month, Infor CloudSuite CRM has a logical calendar allowing users to plan, accept, decline, or remove meetings. The calendar synced in real-time with Microsoft Outlook, ensuring that all parties are up-to-date.

The award-winning support staff at Infor delivers comprehensive service to businesses of all sizes.

Pros

  • Sales team that is helpful
  • No leads missed, thanks to a dynamic business rule.
  • It helps identify significant opportunities and identify valuable possibilities.

Cons

  • It doesn’t save automatically.
  • Some reviews claim that learning to use an industrial-looking user interface complicated.

Conclusion

The best CRM software can store notes, emails, phone calls, and a sales pipeline prediction related to client records. It reduces the likelihood of forgetting duties, appointments, or letters, which could jeopardize your sales performance. There are many CRM software options that fit your needs and budget.

Because Salesforce is the most comprehensive CRM software on the market, we chose it as our top overall choice. Salesforce the best for features, working with other apps you probably already use, a robust training program, and parts and reports that changed to fit your needs.