Best CRM for small business Australia

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems are vital tools for small businesses aiming to streamline their operations, enhance customer interactions, and drive growth. In Australia, where small businesses are the backbone of the economy, selecting the right CRM software can significantly impact success. In this blog post, we'll unpack the best CRM software in the Australian market and what features you should expect that can help small business owners grow.

8 features every small business in australia needs in their CRM software

When selecting a CRM as a small business in Australia, consider the following features to make sure that it's the right CRM for you.

1. User-friendly interface: A CRM should be easy to use, with intuitive navigation and minimal training requirements.
2. Customization options: Flexibility to tailor the CRM to specific business needs and workflows.
3. Scalability: The ability to grow with the business, supporting more users and features as needed.
4. Integration capabilities: Seamless integration with other tools like email marketing, accounting software, and e-commerce platforms.
5. Mobile access: Mobile-friendly design or dedicated apps to manage customer relationships on the go.
6. Automation: Features that automate repetitive tasks, such as email follow-ups, lead scoring, and reporting.
7. Robust reporting and analytics: Comprehensive insights into customer behavior, sales performance, and marketing effectiveness.
8. Affordability: Cost-effective plans that fit the budget constraints of small businesses.

5 Best CRM for small business Australia

Below we explore five of the best CRM platforms on the market for Australian businesses.

1. folk

Best for: Simplicity and ease of use.

folk is a CRM designed for simplicity and efficiency, making it ideal for small businesses that need a straightforward tool to manage customer relationships without the complexity of larger systems. Even though its lightweight and easy to set up, it still packs a powerful punch as a small business CRM with its highly customizable features alongside its sales and marketing automation capabilities.

Key features

• Intuitive Interface: Easy to navigate, reducing the learning curve.
• Customizable Pipelines: Adaptable to different sales processes.
• Integration: Connects with popular tools like Gmail, Outlook and Slack.
• Collaboration Tools: Facilitates team collaboration with shared contacts and notes.
• Sales and marketing automation tools
• Lead generation and retention.
• Social listening tools so you can keep up with a leads' activities on LinkedIn.
• Highly customizable dashboards that can support multiple projects across recruitment, marketing, fundraising and more.
  

Pros

• User-friendly interface: The simple interface is excellent for businesses who want a CRM system that they can plug and play without training implementation. This means you can be confident your team will be avoiding a steep learning curve.
• Affordability: Lower pricing tiers make it accessible for startups and small businesses with limited budgets.
• Highly customizable: folk's dashboards and custom fields are adaptable and can suit specific business needs across multiple functions
• Contact sync: Bring contacts together from your Outlook and Gmail accounts. As well as social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Instagram.
• Adaptable to different business needs: folk can support lead generation, retention, email marketing campaigns, recruitment needs and more making it a powerful all-in-one CRM.

Cons

• Reporting isn't available in folk yet, but is coming soon.

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. Freshsales

Best for: Popular CRM software for streamlined sales solution

Freshsales, part of the Freshworks suite, provides a comprehensive CRM solution combining sales and marketing tools, ideal for small businesses looking to consolidate their operations into one platform.

Key features

• AI-driven analytics and lead scoring.
• Integrated email and phone
• Customizable workflows to automate sales processes.
• Multi-channel support to engage customers via email, phone, chat, and social media.

Pros

• Sales-focussed CRM packed with sales automation features
• Advanced analytics help identify high-potential leads, enhancing sales efficiency.
• Highly customizable and adaptable to various business processes, allowing for tailored workflows and automation.

Cons

• Complexity: The extensive feature set can be overwhelming for very small businesses or those new to CRM systems.
• Cost: Higher-tier plans, which unlock the full potential of the platform, may be pricey for smaller businesses.

Price and plans

There's a free plan that can accommodate up to three users. After that, an annual subscription is as follows.

• Growth: Starts from $9 per user, per month.
• Pro: Starts from $39 per user, per month.
• Enterprise: Starts from $59 per user, per month.

3. Insightly

Best for: startups, SMBs.

Insightly has strong workflow features that make it suitable for teams who need to manage both customer relationships, sales and marketing within one system.

Key features

• Lead routing
• Email tracking
• Marketing automation
• Workflow automation
• Project management

Pros

• Project Management: Ideal for service-based businesses that need to manage projects and customer relationships in tandem.
• Lead Management: Automated lead routing enhances sales efficiency by ensuring timely follow-ups.
• Custom Dashboards: Provides a clear view of business performance, helping in strategic decision-making.

Cons

• Learning Curve: The combination of CRM and project management features can be complex to master.
• Limited Customization: Some users may find the customization options restrictive compared to other CRMs.

Price and plans

Insightly have several price and plans to choose from. Its main product is sales-focussed but there's a separate subscription for its marketing based services. An annual subscription is as follows.

• Plus: Starts from $29 per user, per month.
• Professional: Starts from $49 per user, per month.
• Enterprise: Starts from $99 per user, per month.

4. Salesforce

Best for: Advanced customization and scalability.

Salesforce is a leading CRM platform known for its robust customization options and scalability, making it suitable for small businesses with plans for significant growth.

Key features

• Customizable Platform: Extensive customization capabilities.
• AppExchange: A marketplace for third-party apps and integrations.
• Advanced Analytics: Comprehensive reporting tools.
• Automation: Powerful workflow automation and AI-driven insights.

Pros

• Highly Customizable: Adapt the CRM to any business need, providing a tailored solution for diverse industries.
• Scalable: Grows with your business, supporting an increasing number of users and advanced features.
• Robust Ecosystem: Access to a wide range of third-party apps and integrations through AppExchange.

Cons

• Cost: Higher price points can be prohibitive for very small businesses or startups.
• Complexity: The extensive feature set requires a steeper learning curve and potentially dedicated IT resources for optimal use.

Price and plans

Salesforce has specifically designed a 'starter suite' for small businesses which is subject to regional availability. Its main price and plans are a steep investment. A subscription to their starter suite is as follows.

• Starter suite: $25 per user, per month. Can be billed annually or monthly basis.
• Pro suite: $102 per user, per month. Can only be billed on an annual subscription basis.

5. HubSpot

Best for: Free tools and marketing integration.

HubSpot provides a robust free CRM with optional paid add-ons, making it an excellent choice for small businesses wanting to integrate marketing and sales efforts without upfront costs.

Key features

• Free CRM: Core CRM features at no cost.
• Marketing Hub: Integrated marketing tools for email campaigns, social media, and more.
• Sales Hub: Sales tools for pipeline management and automation.
• Customer Service Hub: Tools for customer support and satisfaction.
• Watermarked live chat bot for your website

Pros

• Cost-Effective: The free tier offers substantial value, making it accessible to businesses of all sizes.
• Integrated Marketing Tools: Ideal for businesses looking to combine marketing and sales efforts in one platform.
• Ease of Use: User-friendly interface and excellent support resources.

Cons

• Limited Advanced Features: The free version lacks some advanced features available in paid plans.
• Scaling Costs: As your business grows and needs more advanced features, costs can increase significantly.

Price and plans

Once you're ready to invest in HubSpot, it becomes a steep investment. There are price and plans depending on the hub you want to choose.

CRM suite

Starter: $15 per user, per month.

Professional: $450 per user, per month.

Enterprise: $1,500 per user, per month.

Sales

Starter: $15 per user, per month.

Professional: $90 per user, per month.

Enterprise: $150 per user, per month.

Marketing

Starter plan: Starts from $15 per user, per month.

Professional: Starts from $800 per user, per month

Enterprise: Starts from $3,600 per user, per month.

Customer service

Starter: $15 per user, per month.

Professional: $90 per user, per month

Enterprise: $130 per user, per month

Conclusion

Choosing the right CRM for your small business in Australia depends on your specific needs, budget, and growth plans. folk offers simplicity and affordability as a lightweight CRM that packs a powerful punch. From contact management to sales team with their sales pipeline and sales process, and business growth support. As well as support for your customer service teams, folk is truly one of the best all-in-one CRM platforms on the market.

More resources

• folk price and plans‍
• folk versus Salesforce

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