Peg Corwin on CRM for Small Businesses

Peg Corwin with SCORE Chicago has an interesting article today comparing several CRM services that compete for the attention of small and medium businesses. Her comparison highlights the prices of the different services, a special area of focus for small and medium businesses in these still dire economic times.

Small business clients so often ask about CRM software that I have pulled together a quick CRM software comparison for this market.

CRM Software Alternatives and Prices

These “software as service” products charge monthly by various factors such as users or contacts or online storage.  Some integrate through API with full-featured email programs.  Some interface with major accounting programs like Quickbooks.   Most offer a 30 day free trial.  Links below are to feature and pricing pages, not the company home page.

Contactme  $7.42 per month unlimited users

HighriseHQ    Basic level $24 per month up to 6 users

MethodCRM    $20 per user per month.  Quickbooks sync

Salesforce     $5 per user per month

Sage ACT     $39 per month (unclear number of users)   Also available in-house

vTiger    $12 per month per user

Zoho   Free for 3 users

In House Software

Maximizer    $229 one user one time

Sage ACT       $269.99  for up to 10 users

CRM with Gmail

Streak     “Streak is currently free while in Beta and there will always be a free plan. In the future, Streak will offer paid premium features.”

CRM Decision Factors

In his CRM software comparison How to Choose CRM Software: A Buyers Guide for Small Business, Christophe Primault recommends that you choose a product designed for your size business and your budget.  He further suggests that if you do not now have CRM software you choose a program designed for small businesses and startups.   If you want software to increase customer engagement and drill-down, choose some with features like email software integration or analytical tools.  See also tips on what to avoid with CRM.

I agree with her on most points, although I think many of these solutions deserve a more comprehensive review. More on that soon!