In this current era, the competition is increasing day by day, and the same is true for the trend of incorporating automation in routine operations. It is very obvious that all small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) require modern and automation-integrated software for managing their customer relationships efficiently. For that a good CRM system can be a game changer, offering a management system for customer relationship management, marketing activities, and sales. With the rising need for this software, the options are also increasing to meet the demands. At the same time, it has also become very challenging to choose from the long list of CRMs for SMEs. To solve this puzzle, we have compared the top 10 CRMs for SMEs in the UK for 2024 and prepared a list showing all their key features and specialities.
Choosing the Right CRM: Consideration Aspects for SMEs
Before choosing the perfect CRM for your SME, you need to analyse the needs and goals of your business. It is better to outline the key features you require that will help your team in their important tasks such as lead management, customer service, and sales actions. Another point is to check the ease of use and customisation capability of the software you are planning to opt for your team. A CRM that fulfils maximum needs can prove to be the best fit in the long run and won’t require out-of-the-way efforts to get integrated with the apps or systems you are already using such as e-mail platforms or financial management systems. By considering these points, you can land on the optimum CRM solution that will scale up as your business grows with time!
Balancing Cost and Features: Finding the Best One
Like all other startups, SMEs also require balancing costs and features when adding up new software to their workflow. For that, it must be considered to check for the provided features and compare the cost of different CRM options available. This is important because many CRMs offer fancy or upgraded tools that often go unused. It is thus recommended to get a free trial prior to finalising a software. Another strategy is to look for a CRM that offers free or low-cost entry plans such as HubSpot and Zoho. Further, with the expansion of your business, you can choose upgraded plans with more features and options.
List of Top 10 Best CRMs for SMEs in the UK Compared to 2024
1. HubSpot CRM
Key Specialities:
- Free Plan: HubSpot CRM provides a free plan for beginning with its services which makes it ideal for SMEs
- User-Friendly: It has an intuitive interface that can help empower teams without much effort in training them.
- Integration: This CRM can integrate with a lot of third-party service apps and social media platforms
- Marketing Tools: It provides sales and marketing automation options on the same platform.
Features:
The key features of this CRM platform that make it different are:
- Contact and lead management
- Email tracking
- Efficient scheduling of meeting
- Live chat and chatbot services
Pricing:
HubSpot CRM has the following four pricing plans available:
- Free Plan: Yes for up to 5 users
- Starter: From £18 per month
- Professional: From £1,105 per month
- Enterprise: From £3,685 per month
2. Pipedrive
Key Specialities:
- Sales-focused CRM: Pipedrive is exceptionally favourable for sales teams which offers the features for managing and prioritising deals.
- Automation: It automates time-consuming tasks such as sending emails and scheduling their replies.
- Customisation: It has a lot of customisation options that make it suitable for a large range of businesses, i.e., from small-scale to large
- Reporting: It gives useful insights and reports based on customer data to make informed decisions
Features:
The best features of Pipedrive as the best CRM for SMEs are:
- Deal management and activity monitoring
- Customisable pipelines
- Easy Email integration
- Sales forecasting
Pricing:
The pricing plans of Pipeline are best suited for startups, that are:
- Essential: £12.50 per user/month
- Advanced: £24.90 per user/month
- Professional: £49.90 per user/month
- Enterprise: £99 per user/month
3. Monday.com Sales CRM
Key Specialities:
- Collaboration: Monday.com is an excellent CRM with team collaboration tools and easily customisable workflows.
- Visual Management: It has engaging boards for tracking the progress and managing sales.
- Flexibility: It is highly flexible for integrations
- Automation: Monday.com offers many automation tools for making the workflow more productive.
Features:
The features which make Monday.com stand out are:
- Customisable dashboards
- Project and task management
- Email syncing capacity
- Sales management
Pricing:
Following are the pricing plans for Monday.com which are super affordable:
- Individual: Yes, free for up to 2 users
- Basic: £8 per user/month
- Standard: £10 per user/month
- Pro: £16 per user/month
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
4. Salesforce
Key Specialities:
- Comprehensive: Salesforce is an adaptable platform that is suitable for all business sizes.
- Scalability: It is highly scalable and has diverse options as your business grows with time.
- Customisation: Professionals can easily customise the interface and dashboard according to their use.
- Ecosystem: It has a large ecosystem of apps and tools available for integration to meet all demands.
Features:
The important features of this CRM system are:
- Lead management
- Workflow automation tools
- Reporting and analytical insights
- Mobile optimised access
Pricing:
It has four pricing plan options:
- Essentials: £23 per user/month
- Professional: £74 per user/month
- Enterprise: £152 per user/month
- Unlimited: £305 per user/month
5. Capsule
Key Specialities:
- Simplicity: Capsule is a simple-to-use CRM platform for users who require a straightforward management environment.
- Task Management: It provides efficient task and project management features for collaboration.
- Affordability: Above everything, Capsule is affordable for SMEs with all basic features.
- Integration: It can integrate with all fundamental applications such as: G Suite, Mailchimp, and Xero.
Features:
Capsule offers the following key features to its users:
- Contact management
- Sales pipelines
- Project management
- Analytical reporting
Pricing:
Capsule has a free and four paid plans i.e.,
- Free: Yes, for up to 2 users
- Starter: £20 per user/month
- Growth: £35 per user/month
- Advanced: £55 per user/month
- Ultimate: £70 per user/month
6. Freshsales
Key Specialities:
- AI-Powered: Freshsales uses AI power to automate sales processes and provide useful insights.
- Built-In Phone: It has a mobile phone integration to bridge the communication gap and enables direct calling.
- Customisation: It offers customisable pipelines and fields for managing data according to specific needs.
- User-Friendly: Freshsales offers an easy-to-use and intuitive interface.
Features:
Freshsales is prominent for the following special features:
- Lead scoring & lead management
- Email tracking and campaign automation
- Sales sequences
- Analytical reporting
Pricing:
It has a free plan and four paid plans for teams of different sizes:
- Free: Yes, for three users
- Growth: £10 per user/month
- Pro: £43 per user/month
- Enterprise: £66 per user/month
7. SugarCRM
Key Specialities:
- Customisation: SugarCRM is a customisable system that can fit the personalised requirements of businesses.
- Automation: There are automation tools included in this CRM to facilitate and speed up the sales and marketing processes
- Predictive Analytics: Through AI power, this CRM provides predictive insights and values on customer data and trends.
- Flexibility: There are flexible deployment options such as on-premise and cloud-based solutions.
Features:
The essential tools offered by SugarCRM are:
- Sales automation
- Customer support service
- Marketing automation
- Reporting
Pricing:
Following are the pricing plans of SugarCRM
- Essential: £19 per user/month
- Advanced: £85 per user/month
- Primier: £135 per user/month
8. Zoho CRM
Key Specialities:
- Comprehensive: Zoho is an all-in-one platform for sales, marketing, and customer service.
- Affordability: It is an affordable solution for startups and SMEs looking for a full-stack CRM with low costs.
- AI Assistant: The integrated AI assistant helps with task automation, workflow management, and sales insights.
- Customisation: There are customisable dashboards and interfaces to make this CRM adaptable for teams.
Features:
The key features of Zoho CRM can be highlighted as:
- Lead management and
- Workflow automation tools
- Email marketing
- Analytical insights
Pricing:
These four pricing plans are offered by Zoho:
- Standard: £12 per user/month
- Professional: £20 per user/month
- Enterprise: £35 per user/month
- Ultimate: £45 per user/month
9. Zendesk
Key Specialities:
- Customer Service: Zendesk is a great option for SMEs prioritising customer satisfaction over other parameters as it provides exception features for customer support.
- Multi-Channel: It supports multiple communication channels like phone, calling, and emails.
- Integration: Teams can integrate other apps and software in this CRM platform.
- User-Friendly: The interface is simple and easiest to use for beginner teams.
Features:
These are the features of Zendesk which make it a choice for SMEs:
- Efficient Ticketing system
- Customer support
- Knowledge base & Sharing
- Analytical reporting
Pricing:
The pricing plans of Zendesk are:
- Team: £64 per user/month
- Growth: £106 per user/month
- Professional: £138 per user/month
10. Maximizer
Key Specialities:
- All-In-One: It combines CRM, sales, and marketing tools, all in a single platform.
- Customisation: It provides unlimited customisation options.
- Mobile Access: This CRM is accessible for teams on their smartphones ensuring a seamless collaboration experience.
- Analytics: Maximizer gives detailed reports and analytics to assist teams in making decisions.
Features:
Maximizer has the key features such as:
- Contact & lead management
- Sales automation
- Marketing campaigns management
- Customer service
Pricing:
- Base Edition: £60 per user/month
- Sales Leader Edition: £70 per user/month
- Financial Advisor Edition: £70 per user/month
How to Choose the Best Small Business CRM Solution:
Above every feature and provision of these CRM systems, the core functionality lies with customer relationship management, the one that performs the best for your business is the perfect choice for you. Every SME has a unique demand and set of targets which can only be met if the right choice is made through proper testing. Some of the superb capabilities of these advanced software tools that have a magical impact on business growth are automated follow-ups, maintenance of customer histories, and personalised communication with customers. Modern software doesn’t let even a single response from your customers go unnoticed, that’s why there is a rising trend for opting for such remarkable software by entrepreneurs, SMEs, and even large-scale businesses.
Conclusion:
Choosing the right CRM for your SME is a critical decision as it will affect the growth and progress of your business in the long run. The list of top 10 CRMs compares how multiple platforms offer different sets of features in variable pricing plans. Every business is unique, thus they require unique software with their customisations to get the most benefits of a CRM implementation. You can analyse and choose the perfect one for your business or contact our team to help you pick and implement one of these. Our team of experts can smoothen this process for your SME, contact us now!