Best CRM for advertising agencies

As an advertising agency, managing client relationships, tracking campaigns, and coordinating with multiple teams can quickly become complex withouth the right tools.
A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system can help you stay organized by centralizing client communication, tracking project progress, and automating follow-ups—all in one place. With the right CRM, you can streamline your workflows, improve client satisfaction, and ensure that no detail is overlooked.
In this blog post, we’ll explore the best CRM options for advertising agencies like yours, focusing on tools that will help you manage client relationships and drive your campaigns to success.

Why you need a CRM

In the fast-paced nature of advertising, there's always a lot to do and little time to do it. Making a CRM essential for staying on top of all your client relationships. It streamlines operations, enhances client relationships, and boosts overall efficiency.

Challenges without a CRM

Managing an advertising agency without the right CRM in your tech stack can lead to a lot of problems.

• Disorganization: Without a centralized system, tracking client interactions and project statuses becomes chaotic.
• Missed opportunities: Leads can fall through the cracks, resulting in lost potential business.
• Inefficient Processes: Manual data entry and fragmented tools slow down operations.
• Lack of insight: Inadequate data analytics hinder strategic decision-making.
• Inconsistent communication: Miscommunications with clients and team members can damage relationships and project outcomes.

Benefits of a CRM

Fortunately, with the right CRM in place, you can address these challenges and expect a lot of extra benefits.

• Centralized information: All client data and interactions are stored in one place, making it easily accessible.
• Enhanced efficiency: Automating routine tasks saves time and reduces errors.
• Improved customer relationships: Personalized communication and follow-ups strengthen client loyalty.
• Better decision-making: Data-driven insights enable more strategic planning and execution.
• Increased sales: Streamlined processes and better lead management boost conversion rates.
• Consistent communication: Unified communication channels ensure everyone is on the same page, enhancing collaboration.
  

How to boost your advertising agency's efficiency with a CRM

There are a few ways you can use a CRM effectively. Below we've mapped out how you can use one to manage your client relationships and sales cycle.

1. Map your process

You can use a CRM to map out to track the stages of your internal process. Start by mapping out your workflow. Identify key stages such as lead generation, client onboarding, campaign execution, and performance tracking. This helps in customizing the CRM to reflect your specific process, ensuring that every step is accounted for and easily trackable.

2. Lead qualification

A CRM can also be useful for keeping everyone on the same page on the way you qualify leads. Use its features to score leads based on criteria like engagement level, budget, and project scope. This helps prioritize high-potential clients and allocate resources efficiently. Features like automated lead scoring and segmentation can significantly enhance your qualification process.

3. Outreach and follow-up

You can also use a CRM to automate your follow-up process. Do so by using its automation capabilities to set up automated email sequences and LinkedIn campaigns to nurture leads and keep clients engaged. Personalized follow-up reminders and templates can ensure timely communication, increasing the likelihood of converting leads into clients.

4. Nurture existing client relationships

Finally, a CRM can help you identify opportunities for upselling and cross-selling to existing clients. Track client interactions and campaign performance to suggest complementary services or upgrades. Automated follow-up sequences and personalized recommendations can help maintain strong relationships and drive additional revenue.

How to evaluate and choose a CRM

With a lot of CRMs on the market to choose from, it can be difficult to understand which one is the best fit for your business goals. To help you out with your decision making process, we've put together these basics that you can bounce off ideas from according to your needs.

1. Define your requirements

For advertising agencies, identifying the key features needed in a CRM is crucial. Look for functionalities such as client and campaign management, project tracking, and seamless integration with marketing tools. Ensure the CRM can handle a high volume of client interactions and offers robust reporting and analytics to track campaign performance effectively.

Key features of a CRM for advertising agencies

• Automated processes: Streamlines tasks by automating repetitive workflows. This ensures that your team can focus on creative and strategic efforts rather than getting bogged down by administrative tasks.
• Contact enrichment: Automatically finds leads and customer email addresses and contact information, enhancing efficiency. This feature is crucial for maintaining up-to-date records and ensuring that your outreach is always targeted and relevant.
• Structured pipeline: Tracks leads and customers through defined stages, ensuring process clarity and effectiveness. A visual pipeline helps your team understand where each client stands and what actions are needed next, making project management smoother and more transparent.
• Mail merge and email sequences: Increases communication efficiency with follow-up templates and automated sequences. This ensures that no lead falls through the cracks and that your communication is consistent and timely.
• LinkedIn connection: Seamlessly imports leads and customers from LinkedIn and tracks conversations within the CRM. LinkedIn is a goldmine for potential clients in the advertising industry, and this feature makes it easier to leverage that network.
• Analytics: Provides essential data analysis and predictive insights for better planning. Detailed reports and forecasts help you make informed decisions, allocate resources effectively, and anticipate future trends.

2. Budget considerations

Balancing cost and return on investment is essential when selecting a CRM for your advertising agency. While it's tempting to opt for the most affordable solution, consider the long-term benefits and efficiencies a more comprehensive system may offer. Evaluate the pricing models, including subscription fees, scalability, and any additional costs for premium features or support.

3. Selection process

Choosing the right CRM vendor involves a lot of research. Start by shortlisting vendors that specialize in CRM solutions for advertising agencies. Check reviews on G2, request demos, and evaluate their customer support. It's also beneficial to seek recommendations from industry peers and read case studies to understand how the CRM has benefited similar businesses.

4. Get a demo

Once you have a shortlist, try these CRM platforms to see how they align with your agency's workflow. Pay attention to the user interface, ease of use, and customization options. Compare the features, pricing, and support services side-by-side. Involve your team in the evaluation process to ensure the chosen CRM meets everyone's needs and can be seamlessly integrated into your existing processes. Get started by booking a demo of folk to see how it can support your advertising agency.

3 tips for implementing a CRM

At this stage, it's time to get excited to introduce your new CRM to your team and your tech stack. To help you make the most of your implementation stage, we suggest the following.

1. Import your data in your new CRM

Transitioning to a new CRM can be seamless if you start by importing your existing data. Export your data as a CSV file from your current CRM. This way, you won't have to manually add contact information which can be time consuming.

2. Create your first pipeline

Setting up your first pipeline is essential for tracking client projects and campaigns. Customize the pipeline stages to reflect the specific processes of your advertising agency, such as "Lead Qualification," "Proposal Sent," "Creative Development," "Campaign Launch," and "Client Feedback." This tailored approach ensures that your team can effectively manage and monitor each stage of your projects.

3. Onboard your team

Successful CRM implementation hinges on team adoption. Conduct comprehensive training sessions to familiarize your team with the new system. Highlight key features and demonstrate how the CRM can streamline their daily tasks, improve collaboration, and enhance client relationship management. Continuous support and feedback loops will ensure your team feels confident and empowered to utilize the CRM to its full potential.

The 5 best CRMs for advertising agencies

1. folk

folk is a modern CRM platform for managing contacts, workflows, and relationships, offering customizable pipelines, AI-driven tools, and integrations to enhance deal management and prospecting. folk can support your team across different functions including sales, marketing, recruitment, and more.

Key features

• Contact enrichment: Automatically enriches contact details by finding emails and LinkedIn URLs, enabling efficient outreach without manual data entry or additional costs for email services.
• Contact management: Sync all your contacts effortlessly from multiple inboxes and social media platforms into folk.
• Socail media integration: Seamlessly import contacts from LinkedIn, Sales Navigator, Instagram, X and more to track contacts and leverage your network within folk, and use templates for quicker, streamlined communication.
• Mail merge and email sequences: Full email sync compatible with Outlook and Gmail, with access to templates, and tracking features, enabling users to manage all communications directly from the CRM.
• AI-powered features: AI tools assist in managing contacts and relationships, automating routine tasks, and suggesting actions to improve productivity.
• Integrations: folk integrates seamlessly with over 6,000 apps, including Gmail, Zapier, and Make, allowing users to centralize their workflow and reduce manual data entry.

Pros

• Ease of use: folk is praised for its intuitive interface, making it accessible even to non-technical users with quick onboarding and a minimal learning curve.
• All-in-one: folk streamlines your workflow by allowing you to import contacts from LinkedIn, automatically find their emails, reach out through customizable email sequences, and track interactions in a pipeline, eliminating the need for multiple tools and saving time and money.
• LinkedIn integration: Seamlessly import contacts from LinkedIn, track conversations within folk, and use templates for quicker, streamlined communication.
• Customizability: Custom fields, pipelines, and workflows.
• Integrations: folk integrates seamlessly with over 6,000 apps, including Gmail, Zapier, and Make, allowing users to centralize their workflow and reduce manual data entry.

Cons

• Reporting: Currently lacks reporting features, but there are plans for future implementation.
  
  

Price and plans

You can try folk for free with a 14-day free trial. After that, a monthly or annual subscription plan is as follows.

• Standard: $20 per user, per month.
• Premium: $40 per user, per month.
• Custom: Starts from $60 per user, per month.

2. HubSpot

HubSpot CRM is a user-friendly, scalable platform offering integrated tools for managing sales, marketing, customer service, and operations efficiently.

Key features

• Marketing Hub: Includes email marketing, ad tracking, landing pages, and lead generation tools, essential for managing campaigns and capturing leads for advertising agencies.
• Sales Hub: Provides deal tracking, pipeline management, sales automation, and reporting, helping agencies manage client relationships and close deals efficiently.
• Service Hub: Offers customer service tools like ticketing, live chat, and knowledge bases, ensuring excellent client support and retention.
• Operations Hub: Syncs and automates business processes across different systems, streamlining operations and improving productivity.
• Lead scoring: Prioritize leads with predictive scoring to improve sales efficiency, helping agencies focus on high-potential clients.

Pros

• User-friendly interface: The intuitive design makes it easy for advertising agency staff to navigate and use effectively.
• Seamless integration with marketing tools: Integrates smoothly with marketing, sales, and service hubs, creating a unified platform for managing client campaigns and relationships.
• Automation capabilities: Powerful automation tools for tasks like email marketing and lead nurturing save time and improve efficiency, crucial for busy advertising agencies.
• Customizable dashboard and reports: Allows agencies to create tailored dashboards and reports to track campaign performance and client metrics.
• Extensive learning resources: HubSpot Academy offers free courses and certifications, helping agency teams get the most out of the platform.

Cons

• High cost at higher tiers: The pricing can become expensive as you move to higher tiers, which may be prohibitive for small advertising agencies as they scale.
• Limited customization in free plan: The free plan has limited customization options, which can restrict flexibility for growing agencies.
• Complexity in advanced features: Some advanced features have a steep learning curve and may require additional training, which can be a challenge for busy teams.
• Email marketing limits: The free plan restricts the number of emails you can send, which can be a drawback for agencies with larger client lists.
• Additional costs for add-ons: Many useful features, like advanced CRM capabilities and integrations, come as paid add-ons, increasing the overall cost.
  
  

Price and plans

HubSpot's CRM suite is available on an annual subscription as follows.

• Starter: $15 per user, per month.
• Professional: $450 per user, per month.
• Enterprise: $1,500 per user, per month.

3. Salesforce

Salesforce is a robust CRM platform for large enterprises, offering tools for sales, marketing, service, and analytics, with extensive scalability.

Key features

• Comprehensive ecosystem: Salesforce offers a unified platform that includes CRM, marketing automation, and custom app development, ideal for advertising agencies managing diverse client needs.
• Customization and scalability: Highly customizable, Salesforce allows agencies to tailor the platform to specific workflows, making it scalable as your agency grows.
• Artificial intelligence (AI) integration: Salesforce Einstein provides AI-driven analytics and automation, offering insights to optimize campaigns and client strategies.
• Extensive integration capabilities: With Salesforce's AppExchange, agencies can integrate with a wide range of third-party applications, ensuring seamless operation across different tools.
• Advanced analytics and reporting: Salesforce provides powerful analytics and reporting tools, allowing agencies to gain deep insights into campaign performance and client data.

Pros

• Comprehensive feature set: Salesforce covers sales, service, marketing, and more, making it a powerful tool for managing all aspects of client relationships in advertising.
• Highly customizable: Agencies can tailor Salesforce to their specific needs with custom fields, objects, and workflows, enhancing operational efficiency.
• Extensive integration capabilities: Salesforce integrates with a vast array of third-party applications, enabling seamless data flow across platforms like Google Ads and social media tools.
• Scalability: Suitable for agencies of all sizes, Salesforce can grow with your business, from small startups to large enterprises.
• Advanced analytics and reporting: Gain deep insights into campaign performance and client data with Salesforce's robust analytics and reporting tools.

Cons

• High cost: Salesforce can be expensive, especially for small to medium-sized agencies, with high licensing fees and additional costs for add-ons and customization.
• Steep learning curve: The extensive feature set and complexity of Salesforce often require significant time and training for users to become proficient.
• Complex setup and customization: Initial setup and customization can be challenging, often requiring expert help or certified consultants, adding to the overall cost.
• Overwhelming for small teams: The robust features may be overkill for smaller teams, leading to underutilization of the platform’s capabilities.
• Integration complexity: While Salesforce offers extensive integration capabilities, integrating it with third-party applications can be complex and require technical expertise.

Price and plans

On an annual subscription basis, Salesforce's Service Cloud plan is as follows.

• Starter suite: Starts from $25 per user, per month.
• Pro suite: Starts from $100 per user, per month.
• Enterprise: Starts from $165 per user, per month.

4. Capsule CRM

Capsule CRM is a user-friendly customer relationship management platform designed for small and medium-sized businesses. It offers a clean, intuitive interface that helps users manage customer relationships, track sales pipelines, and organize tasks and communications efficiently.

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Key features

• 1 sales pipeline: Perfect for managing leads and tracking their progression through the sales funnel.
• 30,000 contacts: Ample capacity to store and manage all your leads and customer information.
• Activity reporting: Keep track of all interactions and activities with clients to ensure nothing falls through the cracks.
• Workflow automation: Automate repetitive tasks to save time and increase efficiency.
• Key integrations: Seamlessly connect with popular tools like G Suite, Microsoft 365, and Mailchimp for a unified workflow.

Pros

• User-friendly interface: Capsule CRM offers a clean and intuitive design, making it easy for users to navigate and quickly access important features, reducing the learning curve for advertising agencies.
• Contact and sales management: Robust tools for managing leads and customers, organizing information, and tracking sales opportunities, helping agencies maintain a clear view of their relationships and sales pipeline.
• Customization options: Allows users to customize fields, tags, and pipelines to fit their specific business needs, offering flexibility in managing data and processes.
• Integration capabilities: Integrates with various popular third-party applications, including G Suite, Microsoft 365, and Mailchimp, allowing agencies to create a seamless workflow across their business tools.
• Affordability: Competitive pricing with affordable premium options, making it accessible for small to medium-sized advertising agencies.

Cons

• Limited advanced features: Lacks more advanced features such as in-depth analytics and comprehensive automation, which can be a limitation for larger agencies or those with more complex CRM needs.
• Basic email marketing capabilities: Built-in email marketing features are relatively basic, requiring users to rely on third-party integrations for advanced functionalities.
• Limited customer support: Primarily offers support through email and an online help center, which might be a downside for users who prefer immediate assistance or more direct support options.
• Scalability concerns: While great for small to medium-sized agencies, rapidly growing companies might find the platform less scalable as they expand.

Price and plans

Capsule's annual subscription plan is as follows.

• Starter plan: Starts from $21 per user, per month.
• Growth plan: Starts from $38 per user, per month.
• Advanced plan: Starts from $60 per user, per month.
• Ultimate plan: Starts from $75 per user, per month.
  

5. Pipedrive

Pipedrive is a web-based CRM for small businesses, offering lead management, automation, email integration, and customizable pipelines to optimize sales.

Key features

• Lead and deal management: Centralized tools to manage leads and customer data, interactions, and sales pipelines, helping advertising teams act quickly on opportunities.
• Sales automation: Workflow automation to handle repetitive tasks, such as lead routing, follow-ups, and email sequences, allowing teams to focus on closing deals.
• Email integration: Full email sync, templates, and tracking features, enabling users to manage all communications directly from the CRM.
• Advanced reporting and analytics: Real-time data analytics and custom reporting tools to track performance, forecast revenue, and gain actionable insights.
• Customization and security: Options to customize pipelines, fields, and user permissions, with robust security measures to protect data.

Pros

• User-friendly interface: The CRM is known for its intuitive and visually appealing interface, making it easy for users to navigate and manage their sales pipelines.
• Sales pipeline focus: Specifically designed for managing sales pipelines, offering a visual approach that helps teams track deals and activities effectively.
• Customization: Allows for a high degree of customization, enabling users to tailor the platform to their specific processes with custom fields and workflows.
• Affordability: Offers competitive pricing, making it accessible to small and medium-sized advertising agencies without sacrificing essential CRM features.
• Automation features: Includes automation tools that help streamline repetitive tasks, such as sending follow-up emails and moving deals through the pipeline, saving time and boosting productivity.

Cons

• Limited advanced features: Lacks some of the more advanced CRM features, such as extensive marketing automation and AI capabilities, which are available in other platforms.
• Basic reporting in lower tiers: The reporting and analytics features in the basic plans are somewhat limited, requiring upgrades to access more in-depth insights.
• No built-in email marketing: Does not include built-in email marketing features, requiring users to integrate with third-party email tools for such functionality.
• Limited customer support hours: Customer support is not available 24/7, which can be inconvenient for agencies operating in different time zones or needing immediate assistance.
• Price increases with add-ons: The cost can increase quickly when additional features or integrations are added, making it less cost-effective for agencies with growing needs.
  

Price and plans

An annual subscription plan basis is as follows.

• Essential plan: Starts from $24 per user, per month.
• Advanced plan: Starts from $44 per user, per month.
• Power plan: Starts from $79 per user, per month.
• Enterprise plan: Starts from $129 per user, per month.

Conclusion

Choosing the best CRM for your advertising agency can significantly enhance your workflow, client relationships, and overall efficiency. Each CRM reviewed—folk, Hubspot, Salesforce, Capsule CRM, and Pipedrive—offers unique features and benefits tailored to different needs and budgets. Whether you prioritize ease of use, advanced analytics, or seamless integration, there's a CRM solution that fits your agency's specific requirements. Start by evaluating your needs, budget, and desired features, and then take advantage of free trials and demos to find the perfect fit. For a modern, intuitive CRM that excels in contact management and workflow automation, try folk for free here.

Need a helping hand? Use our free tool to find your perfect CRM match.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What do advertising agencies use as a CRM?

Advertising agencies often use CRM tools like folk, Hubspot, Salesforce, Capsule CRM, and Pipedrive to manage client relationships, streamline operations, and enhance productivity.

Do I need a CRM?

Yes, depending on the complexity of your process. A CRM can help organize client interactions, streamline workflows, and provide valuable insights, making it a crucial tool for growing advertising agencies.

How much does a CRM cost?

CRM costs vary widely, typically ranging from $15 to $1500 per user per month, depending on the features and scale of the platform. It's important to evaluate your needs and budget when choosing a CRM.

Does folk’s CRM respond to advertising agencies needs?

Yes, folk’s CRM is well-suited for advertising agencies. It offers an intuitive interface, seamless LinkedIn integration, customizable pipelines, and AI-driven tools, making it an all-in-one solution for managing contacts, workflows, and client relationships efficiently.