Ranking the 8 Best Customer Relationship Management Software for Small Business

(Last Updated On: 02/03/2023)

Written by Martin Nikolaev, Point of Sale Expert 

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As a business owner, you know that your customers are your lifeline. Whatever industry you’re in, your business can’t survive without your customers. Once you’ve built your brand or business enough to create a solid customer base, that’s only the first step of a long journey or, should I say, a relationship. The question to ask yourself when you grow your business is an obvious one: how to get your customers to stick around and become patrons?

From what I’ve seen in numerous industries, many business owners struggle with this seemingly simple task. They seem to fail in finding the means to nurture their clientele. I bet you don’t want people to only visit your retail space or website and make a purchase from you once and never think of your business again. Seducing them with one-time offers and other similar stunts is not going to bring results. It’s WAY more important for you as a business owner or manager to shift your focus toward building lasting relationships with your customers so that they will return over and over again. The best clients you’ll ever have will become the brand ambassadors of your dreams. The trick is to make them stay. This is where CRM systems come in.

I’m sure you’ve heard of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) before. CRM is all the buzz in business management right now. In recent years, global spending on CRM software has grown upwards of 15.6% and reached over $48 billion. By 2025, the market is expected to almost double in revenue. Still, many business owners understand what a CRM is, but never think about implementing one in their organization. Don’t make that mistake, as it could be the one thing to bring your operation to the next level. 

Recent studies have shown that by using CRM software, businesses are able to increase their sales by an average of 29% and improve reporting accuracy by 42%. You don’t need me to tell you how HUGE of a difference this is. The reality is that customer relationship management software needs to be a priority investment goal for business owners who have yet to benefit from its perks. 

This brings us to the article you’re reading now. Given all of the above, I decided that it’s a good idea to have the top CRM software providers out there reviewed and compared. Based on my research, the narrowed-down list comprises eight CRM systems.

Don’t have time to read this whole review? Skip ahead to:

What is Customer Relationship Management Software?

Buyer’s Guide | Customer Relationship Management System Benefits

Salesforce: The Most Customizable CRM Software

Oracle NetSuite: CRM Software with the Best Customer Support

Zoho: The Best CRM with AI Assistance

Keap: The Most User-Friendly CRM

Monday.com: The CRM with the Most App Integrations

ZenDesk: The Most Feature Rich CRM

Freshsales: The Best Bang-for-Your-Buck CRM

PipeDrive: The Most Sales-Driven CRM

Customer Relationship Management Software | The Definition 

Customer relationship management software comprises several methods and functionalities to help your organization plan, control, and perfect the relationship with your customers. Yes, there are companies who manage these methods themselves, but having all the means to do it concentrated in a single CRM platform equals bringing things to another level. 

In short, a CRM system will let you connect with your prospects, store information, and create a rich database complete with logs, reports, and analysis, all of which is done within a single piece of software. Otherwise, all the information must be stored within several other software helpers and virtual workspaces. This makes it inefficient, not to mention the higher risk of losing information.

The best customer relationship management software for small businesses provides a streamlined workflow, ease of access, and higher customer satisfaction.

How Do CRM Systems Work?

Modern-day CRM software is always a complex solution that you don’t need to fully understand to operate. The reason is the usually super simple interface that makes using the system a piece of cake and provides the best possible experience for both clients and employees.

I know that some people accept CRM systems as merely means to store client data and create reports, but this type of software is so much more. This is also the misconception that stops hundreds of business owners from adopting a full-fledged CRM system.

A state-of-the-art CRM system can do A LOT of things. It can track and store information related to every last detail of the interaction between your clients and your organization, such as website visits, social media interactions, quotes, complaints, and so forth. The system can help you with the sales process, the efficiency of your business model, the customer support quality you offer your peers, and many other aspects.

The powerful software does this by several management and reporting tool sets that implement into your organization and collect data. Eventually, the system becomes a central part of the sales process and takes a lot off your employees’ shoulders.

Buyer’s Guide | Customer Relationship Management System Benefits

When it comes to finding the ultimate small business CRM software, there’s always a lot of research and comparisons involved. I’ve always tried to help business owners and managers like you (hence the article), which is why I’m happy to report that I did the heavy lifting for you. Below, you’ll find an easy methodology I use to find the best customer relationship management software for small businesses.

Choosing any of the CRM systems available today will likely result in a helpful toolset to use, but it’s rarely the best decision, even if you pick a top-rated provider. You need to choose wisely, but you always need to start with the core aspects of any advanced small business customer relationship management system, and the effects it would bring. 

Below, you’ll find the most important customer relationship management system benefits.

Customer-Oriented Structure

This feature is the most important one to look for. If you’re in the market for a CRM system that will boost your company’s customer relationship skills and means, it’s crucial that the software you choose is designed with the customer in mind. Different systems may be geared toward different departments throughout your organization (Sales, Human Resources, Marketing, etc.). The top priority of the software you pick should still be to form and nurture customer relationships that will help you grow your business.

Task Automation

It’s evident that automation features may vary, depending on the system you choose. Some of the software solutions may focus on automating marketing tasks, while other systems may prioritize automating pipeline tracking. The options for automation are endless, but any decent CRM system should offer some type of automation. Being able to automate certain aspects of running your business will allow time-consuming tasks to be replaced by focusing on the necessary work – this is what it means to have a  customer-centric CRM solution.

Provision of Insightful Metrics

There is no real advantage in attempting to improve customer relationship and retention if you don’t have a way to track your efforts. It’s becoming more and more apparent to business owners everywhere that customer data is a key piece of analytical information. A recent report stated that the Customer Analytics Market is on track to $24.2 billion by 2025, boasting an 18.2% annual growth rate. I know you’re probably wondering about the reason for the exponential growth of this market? Here it is, mentioned in the report: “The major factors driving the growth of customer analytics market include the need to understand customer buying behavior for a more personalized customer experience” 

Improved Communication Means

Improved communication can only be accomplished by simplifying the ways in which your individual employees and teams communicate flawlessly and transfer important data between them. How do you currently share information with co-workers? Chances are part of the data and information flow within your organization is shared via email, some via phone, maybe some information is written down on notepads and shared accordingly, etc.. When valuable information, especially pertaining to customers, is communicated through several methods, it often leads to chaos. CRM systems avoid the disorganized communication that can result in critical errors by allowing all information to be stored, synced, and exchanged in one central information database. 

Boosted Overall Efficiency

CRM technology is constantly evolving with new tools and features. One thing you need to make sure as a business owner is to assess the software’s ability to improve the overall efficiency of your operation. The right CRM software will boost the efficiency on every level of your business. Employees and teams will communicate better, marketing efforts will be more dialed in, analytical data will be more insightful and actionable, and most importantly – your sales will continue to thrive because you’re prioritizing customer leads.

Must-Have Features Customer Relationship Management Software Features

I already went through some of the must-have functionalities of any CRM software you consider investing in, alongside some of the customer relationship management system benefits you should enjoy. But there are dozens of specific features to look for as well. I’ll save you the hustle and bustle of researching them all: you can find the most important ones below.

• Calling functionalities: To be able to always get in touch with prospects, partners, and colleagues while making most of the call, you need built-in VoIP, automated recording, voicemail transcription, etc.
• Automated logs and emails: The system should not only be able to send voicemail logs via email, but also store them based on specific requirements, so your employees could make the most of the information as fast as possible.
• Lead management: The best customer relationship management software for small businesses (and for large enterprises, for that matter) should allow you to easily organize all your leads into categories designed by your team. Some automation is always required for this to be done properly. 
• Notifications: This might seem as an obvious feature to look for, but make sure the CRM software you intend to buy has the functionalities needed to notify your employees for planned events, meetings, etc.
• Sales reports: The ultimate CRM software should boast a full toolset for sales reporting. The system should track and store a plethora of metrics, but it should also provide ease of access to them in the form of analysis and reports.
• Third-party software integrations: Some of the most valued customer relationship management system benefits come from integrations with third-party software.
• Extended customization: Since every organization is unique in terms of employee structure, sales processes, strategies, and so forth, the CRM of your dreams should allow you to customize it to the needed extent. 

Things to consider before investing in a customer relationship management system software:

No buyer’s guide would be complete without mentioning the key aspects of your operation to consider when buying CRM software. The main factors to never neglect can be the difference between resources down the drain and a successful investment. Let’s look at the suggestions I came up with, based on my experience and research.

• Identify the needs of your team and prioritize the biggest ones among them. This way, you’ll have a short list of important aspects that the new CRM system you intend to introduce should cover. No compromises should be allowed here. When you have your company’s priorities straight, then you need to compare them with what the CRM software has to offer. If there’s a perfect match, you’d be good to go.
• Customer support: If you’re about to replace an existing CRM system with a new one, then you’ll know all the things that the customer support of the old software provider was missing. Make sure that communication between your employees and the customer support behind the CRM software is flawless and available 24/7.
• Data synchronization: In the scenario mentioned above, there would be a lot of data and information to migrate and sync. This should be done smoothly, but the most important thing is to prevent data loss. The history logs and other bits of information need to remain in storage, meaning that they need to be imported in a reliable way. The best customer relationship management system software for your business can offer flawless data transition.
• Usability and easy onboarding: The CRM software you choose needs to be easy to install and set up, but it also needs to have the kind of intuitive interface to perfect your workflow. Usability is key when one of your top priorities is to increase productivity. An additional perk of having a CRM system with flawless UI is that your clients and contacts will benefit from its usability, thus increasing your overall results. 
• Adequate pricing: This goes without saying, but reading the fine print when it comes to paying the bill is a must. Still, I’ve spoken to numerous business owners who have invested in a plethora of things without looking at possible additional costs, such as fees and taxes. They were attracted by the great presentation and went with it. The CRM software you choose should have a straightforward, transparent pricing pattern.
• Top-notch security: When it comes to customer relationships and all relevant data, security comes first. There’s usually a ton of important data that needs to be kept private, regardless of the niche you’re operating in. There are numerous regulations that all processes related to data harvesting and storage need to comply with. Therefore, you need to be sure that your new CRM system follows all the latest industry standards and requirements.

Now, let’s focus on the 8 best customer relationship management systems for small businesses.

Best Customer Relationship Management Software Systems

Most of the reviews I’ve done so far do not include a rating. I believe that it’s better to review and compare all the rivaling products or services in a particular niche and highlight their biggest advantages. This way, you’ll get your hands on a head-to-head competition in the form of a presentation, and you can decide which product or solutions works best for your organization. 

In this article, I’ll make an exception. If I had to choose one of the CRM systems featured below, I’d go for Salesforce CRM. Despite that its competitors are not far behind it, Salesforce CRM takes the lead because of its bundle of perks that I find to be the most appealing and useful at the same time. The ease of use, the personalized customer support options, the endless customization options, and numerous other advantages turn this software into a worthy choice. 

Even if you don’t share my opinion, if you’re in the market for an advanced CRM solution, chances are, you’ll find what you’re looking for in the list below.

CRM Provider	Best Perk	Pricing
Salesforce CRM	Highly customizable software	Starts at $25 per user per month, up to $300 per user per month
Oracle NetSuite	Excellent customer support	Starts at $999, plus $99 per user per month
Zoho CRM	Various workflow tools	Starts at $13.50 per user per month
Keap	Simple and user-friendly interface	$129 per month per two users (Pro plan)
Monday CRM	Reputable CRM provider	Free base plan, custom Enterprise plan
Zendesk Sell	Affordable, mobile-friendly	Starts at $19, to $99 for the Professional plan
Freshsales	AI assistant	Free base plan. $69 per month for the top-tier plan
Pipedrive	250+ third-party app integrations	$14,50 (Essentials plan) – $96 (Enterprise) plan

Salesforce CRM

Salesforce was established in San Francisco back in 1999. Since then, the company has been enjoying constant growth. Salesforce delivers services to over 150,000 companies.

Salesforce is one of the biggest players in this industry, and for a good reason. The company boasts numerous perks. Let’s look at some of the most notable ones.

Customized Marketing Solutions. Tailor-made marketing techniques can help customers feel more important by focusing heavily on the individual customer data. Marketing campaigns need to be designed according to customer behavior and activity, which is why you need to have an endless variety of tools to set up specific campaigns that target everything you need.

Automate Sales Tasks. Sales tasks and admin work that are deemed as redundant can be automated with the sales tools built in the Salesforce CRM software. Tha

nks to the plethora of automations available, team members can focus on their primary tasks related to sales and administration.

Personalized Customer Support. Salesforce features several customer service solutions for you to offer your clients. You could receive valuable customer insight related to your products and services, as well as engage with and support customers via the channel they prefer, scale AI (Artificial Intelligence)-powered support chatbots, and enjoy automated workflows.

Pricing

There are many packages to choose from. The most popular CRM package is the Sales Cloud option which has 4 different pricing tiers, ranging from $25 per month per user – $300 per month per user. I strongly recommend contacting Salesforce to find out which package would best suit the individual needs of your business.

Pros

• One of the most trusted CRM providers
• Options for adding and removing features
• Online platform for creating apps and launching them via Salesforce

Cons

• Unexpected updates can cause downtime

Salesforce CRM has an overwhelming amount of positive consumer reviews. Some of the common negatives mentioned among users included that there is too much scrolling and clicking that has to be done on the consumer end, making it easy to make errors or miss things.