Tired of chasing lost leads like a cat after a rogue yarn ball? Ever feel like your customer data is scattered across more digital devices than a teenager's social media accounts? If managing your relationships feels like herding squirrels in a hurricane, fear not!
Your knight in shining armor has arrived, not on a steed, but on the cloud - the mighty CRM SaaS!
CRM SaaS is your secret weapon to streamline your sales, marketing, and support efforts. Imagine a world where leads magically organize themselves, customers are wooed with laser-targeted campaigns, and your team collaborates seamlessly, all from one beautiful, cloud-based platform. Sounds like a pipe dream, right?
Wrong! This CRM revolution is happening right now, and it's time your business joined the party. But with a dizzying array of options out there, how do you find the perfect CRM SaaS to turbocharge your success? Don't worry, I'm not just here to dangle the carrot; I'm here to be your CRM Gandalf, guiding you through the treacherous SaaS landscape!
In this blog post, you'll discover:
So, ditch the Rolodex and grab your mouse. It's time to unlock the power of CRM SaaS and watch your business soar!
P.S. Stay tuned for a special surprise at the end that'll make your marketing automation dreams come true!
A SaaS CRM is a cloud-based software solution that helps businesses manage their customer relationships. It provides a centralized platform for storing and managing customer data, tracking interactions, automating tasks, and analyzing customer behavior.
Here's how it works:
A CRM SaaS system holds paramount importance for modern businesses seeking efficient and scalable customer relationship management. The key benefits lie in its accessibility, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness.
By being web-based, SaaS CRM allows users to access vital customer information from anywhere with an internet connection, fostering collaboration and remote work. The flexibility of CRM SaaS solutions ensures easy scalability to accommodate growing business needs without the hassle of extensive infrastructure changes.
Here are some of the features and benefits of using CRM SaaS for your business.
Features:
Benefits:
Here’s a summary of it all.
Features |
Benefits |
Automation |
Increased efficiency, reduced manual work |
Drip Campaigns |
Nurtured leads, boosted conversions, improved customer loyalty |
Cloud VoIP Softphone |
Streamlined communication, centralized data |
Sales Pipeline |
Optimized sales process, improved conversion rates |
Lead Management |
Organized contact information, better lead qualification |
Insights & Reports |
Data-driven decision making, improved business performance |
You need to look out for five major factors when considering which CRM SaaS system is best suited to be your next software purchase.
Let’s run through them, one by one.
This first consideration is a no-brainer.
You have to find the CRM SaaS that delivers the biggest bang for your buck.
But definitely avoid picking a platform only because it’s cheap, or conversely only because it delivers an impressively long list of features.
In the first scenario, you’ll miss out on optimization opportunities, and in the second one, you’ll overpay for things you don’t need. Instead, focus on finding a CRM that resolves your specific business problems for the lowest possible cost.
Pro tip: be careful when comparing prices because CRMs are often priced with different measuring sticks. Some have flat fees (like we do), some charge by usage, and others by the number of users.
A CRM must have a good user experience (UX).
It’s this simple:
Need more than just a meme?
Then here’s a stat that proves it beyond any doubt:
Poor performance is the culprit behind people stopping to use an application in a colossal 90% of cases.
And that’s the biggest reason why you never want to pick a CRM with poor UX — your staff will get frustrated and stop using it, rendering your investment worthless regardless of how great the system’s features are theoretically.
Speaking of features...
CRMs should be much more than a glorified version of Excel.
Being a trustworthy customer database is only part of their job description.
This table summarizes the other responsibilities a (high-quality) CRM takes on:
Feature |
Why it matters to end-users of SaaS CRM software |
Sales pipeline management |
|
Communication channels |
|
Sales and marketing automations |
|
In-depth analytics |
|
Integrations |
|
Efficient automation is at the heart of a robust SaaS CRM system. Automation capabilities can streamline repetitive tasks, enhance workflow efficiency, and contribute to better customer engagement. Consider a SaaS CRM solution that offers advanced automation features, such as:
One of the distinctive advantages of SaaS CRM is its accessibility through web browsers. This accessibility plays a pivotal role in the effectiveness and user-friendliness of the software for several reasons:
So, should you go with the cloud-based convenience of SaaS CRM or build your own fortress of control with on-premises software?
Before you get lost in technical jargon, let's take a step back and explore the crucial differences between these two approaches.
First things first, we’ll give you an overview of the five main differences between the two types of CRM systems.
But it won’t just be a description…
This section will be a SaaS CRM vs. on-premises CRM showdown, where we assign a “winner” in each category to make it crystal clear which technology has the edge in which area.
Grab some popcorn.
This is a big difference with a massive impact in terms of time, money, and effort.
On-premises CRMs, being a type of traditional in-house software, must go through an implementation period, where they’re installed on your servers, configured, and connected into your local tech stack.
This can take months if you’re unlucky, and there’s the implementation team to pay for.
SaaS CRMs, on the other hand, don’t need to be implemented or installed locally because they’re accessed via the internet.
Your service provider simply gives you login credentials, and you’re set.
Just don’t forget you still have to sort the integrations with your other business software (i.e., ERPs, HR systems, etc.). It’s normally not hard, but it needs doing.
Point: CRM SaaS
Dilemma time.
What do you prefer - freedom from having to deal with your CRM or freedom to do whatever you wish with your CRM?
Think it through because your answer is pivotal.
On one side of the ring, you have a CRM SaaS that frees you from thinking about the technical aspects (infrastructure, platform, etc.), letting you focus on what matters most: your customers and your relationships.
And on the other, you have an on-premises platform that gives you the freedom to customize and personalize your CRM to your processes and your peculiarities.
A SaaS solution will never be able to match it because you’ll never be its owner.
Verdict:
Tie - it depends on your goals and business type
Difference #3 is closely linked to the previous two.
It makes perfect sense that the software owner has the onus to take care of maintenance, support, and security.
Do you have an IT department that’s prepared to take that responsibility on?
If you answered “god, no” to that one, a SaaS offering in the CRM space is the only option for you.
However, if that question didn’t phase you, you’re free to pick between either type of CRM.
Just beware the wrath of your friends over in IT when something goes wrong.
Point: CRM SaaS (as long as you pick a trusted CRM provider)
Picking a SaaS CRM system won’t only make IT happier; it’ll also make Finance jump for joy.
Why?
Because you don’t need to pay upfront for the entire cost of CRM SaaS. Something you’d have to do if you were implementing and customizing an on-premises platform.
You simply sign up and pay monthly (or yearly) rates for the duration of your contract, which makes it cheaper and more flexible if something were to go wrong.
But what about over the long term? Surely after a few years, I’ll catch up to the cost of paying upfront.
Great question, but you’re not right because you’re forgetting about adding a (quite thick) line to your yearly budget to account for maintenance and support.
Point: CRM SaaS
Last but not least is the question of how accessible you’d like your CRM to be.
Is accessing it at the office or through a clunky VPN elsewhere enough?
Or do you need to be able to log in and check customer data from anywhere?
Since we’re already in the roaring 20s (alright, no one is calling them that yet, but you just wait and see), we’ll take an informed guess and say it’s the latter.
After all, experts are predicting that a sizable 22% of the workforce (a.k.a. 36.2 million Americans) will be working remotely by 2025.
And this is why:
So don’t fight the trend; embrace it. It’s going to become the only way to attract top talent and deliver the hyper-personalized experiences customers demand.
Point: CRM SaaS.
If we look at the points we’ve assigned in the five categories above; it’s a no-brainer.
CRM SaaS has the edge, 5 to 1. It’s a blow-out.
However, life is never as clear-cut as the math makes it out to be. No one would have ever expected that as 4th graders, but that’s just the way it is.
And that means there are a few cases in which on-premises are still worth it.
We’ll use this summary table to help you figure out if your company is one of those:
CRM for SaaS |
On-premises CRM |
|
Pros |
|
|
Cons |
|
|
Ideal for: |
|
|
Based on everything you’ve found out so far, is CRM SaaS your preferred choice?
No?
No problem at all. However, our roads go separate ways at this point, as we’ll focus on SaaS CRMs from here on out. Thanks for reading, and we hope it was worthwhile anyway!
Yes?
Stoked to hear it - don’t stop reading and continue your journey of enlightenment into CRM SaaS!
You’re finally ready for us to bring out the main course.
Here are the five best SaaS CRM software platforms available on the market.
Bon appetit!
You guessed it - Ringy is our very own SaaS CRM.
And we think it’s the best CRM for SaaS companies (and other companies, too).
Why?
Request a personalized demo if you don’t believe us. You won’t be disappointed.
Key features:
Price: $109 a month + cost of credit packages (as of January 2024)
Salesforce is one of the most famous SaaS programs in the world.
And since it’s also a CRM, we couldn’t help but include it in our shortlist.
But Salesforce isn’t just a big name with a famous reputation; it’s also the gold standard when it comes to CRM features, automation, and AI.
The only problem is that it’s expensive (if you want more than just a couple of basic features) and overly complicated.
Key features:
Price: $25 to $300 a month per user (as of January 2024)
Next up is Freshsales. You might know them as Freshworks CRM. Same platform, just rebranded.
It’s a lightweight, relatively simple SaaS CRM that quickly gets your company up and running with a better way to manage customer relationships.
Our favorite thing about Freshsales is how well it integrates with your website — you’ll have chatbots, live chat, and lead generation forms live in an instant.
Key features:
Price: From $18 to $83 a month per user (as of January 2024)
Hubspot is the leader in the world of content marketing, so it’s only fitting that they developed the best CRM for content-first companies.
Hubspot CRM is perfect for tracking and moving customers down lengthy sales funnels and nurturing them every step of the way.
We love the amount (and the quality) of features on offer, but they, unfortunately, come with a hefty price tag that only larger firms can stomach.
Key features:
Price: $30 to $1,781 a month (as of January 2024)
Zoho CRM narrowly beat out Pipedrive to take home the final place on our shortlist.
What makes it special?
It's a reasonably priced, feature-rich CRM that works for organizations of all shapes and sizes. Well, that and the fact that it comes with a ridiculous amount of features and integrations with other Zoho products.
Whatever you can think of, it’s there.
Key features:
Price: $18 to $55 a month per user (as of January 2024)
If agility, accessibility, and cost-effectiveness resonate with your strategic vision, then CRM SaaS emerges as the champion. Its cloud-based nature frees you from the shackles of hefty upfront investments and IT maintenance burdens, allowing you to focus on what matters most - building valuable customer relationships.
Ready to ditch the CRM battlefield and embrace a unified customer experience? Then Ringy CRM beckons, ready to equip your business with the agility, scalability, and customer-centric features you need to thrive in the cloud. Don't just manage relationships, transform them with Ringy CRM.
Try Ringy CRM today and claim your free trial to experience the power of customer-centric CRM in action. Let's build long-lasting relationships together.