If you have a business, you’ve probably looked into using a CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, solution to improve and streamline your customer interactions. Zoho CRM is satisfactory for small businesses. However, there are so many other CRMs to choose from that it can get overwhelming, which is why I’ve compiled this list of the best alternatives to Zoho CRM, highlighting their best features.
Mission Suite (Unlimited Users)
Mission Suite offers all the tools you’ll need. From email marketing, sales management, automated email triggers, and inbound marketing, you’ll find everything provided for you with Mission Suite. Gone are the days of managing and paying for multiple platforms. You will find that using a CRM solution couldn’t be easier or more streamlined. Mission Suite’s pricing model is a bit different than other CRMs. Instead of charging per user, Mission Suite bases price on the size of the database needed, making Mission Suite significantly less expensive than other CRM platforms and scalable to any size your business becomes. Their smallest database allows for 150 contacts and unlimited users and starts at just $30 a month. Read more about Mission Suite’s pricing here.
EngageBay (Option to Separate Marketing and Sales)
EngageBay is great Zoho CRM alternative because they give you the option to use their CRM & Sales Bay and Marketing Platform separately, or you can choose the All-in-One Platform for slightly more per month. EngageBay’s prices are affordable, especially considering how many services they offer. Their Growth plan covers all your marketing and automation needs; however, it lacks analytics. Their Pro plan is great for businesses looking for analytical reports and quality customer support. They have a free plan available to check out the interface to try before you buy. EngageBay also has a free migration service, making switching CRM solutions even easier.
Ontraport (Affiliate Partner Program)
Ontraport is great for a business that wants to start an affiliate partner program. It has built-in software to allow for an affiliate partner program and Ecommerce abilities. What makes Ontraport great is that it gives you everything in a centralized, easy-to-use platform. They have blogs, templates, guides, and podcasts to help you improve your business. They also have marketing, sales, and support tools that make it worth the higher price.
Drip (Scalable Pricing)
Drip is amazing for Ecommerce businesses, making it a much better alternative to Zoho CRM for online shops. You can build the automation system you want with prices starting as low as $19 a month. They have hundreds of featured integrations and Ecommerce integrations with Magento, Big Commerce, Shopify, WooCommerce, and Custom Store. They also have their own blog and training which contains valuable information to help further your Ecommerce business. I also really like their scalable pricing. You get to choose how much you need. They have Email and Email+SMS plans, which differ slightly in price, so I’d suggest the Email+SMS plan so you have the option of SMS, but it’s not necessary. They also let you try before you buy, which I love.
Pipedrive (Clean Interface)
Pipedrive is good for those on a bit of a budget. It’s not dirt cheap, but Pipedrive has a good number of features for a decent price. All price plans allow for a 14-day free trial without having to input any credit card information. Their interface is clean and easy-to-use, plus they have their own affiliate partner program. If you find that you love their software, you can become an affiliate partner and make commission from referrals. This affiliate partnership could be a good way to subsidize your subscription cost, making it an affordable alternative to Zoho CRM.
Freshsales (Lead Generation)
Freshsales provides quality systems and tools for a low price. Their system and reports focus on leads, which is super important for any business. Freshsales’ interface is clean and their pricing is simple. Try out their free plan first and upgrade as needed to a more useful plan to fit your needs. Each price tier has its own customization and visualization tools, such as AI-powered Predictive Contact Scoring, the Visual Sales Pipeline, and custom reports and dashboards. Freshsales is great for small businesses, but you could find it to be lacking as your business grows.
ActiveCampaign (Best for B2B)
ActiveCampaign is great for small businesses. Their services and systems are extensive, which makes their prices competitive. However, it’s still not very cheap since you need the Pro plan to do more than the bare minimum, which costs $49 a month. Moreover, they only permit annual billing, which could make upgrading difficult if you found that you needed it. Some companies will prorate the rest of your subscription towards any upgrades, so just double check before you buy. If paying for your CRM program annually is not an issue for you, then you’ll find that ActiveCampaign has what you need.
Keap (Appointment Scheduling)
Keap is another CRM competitor whose pricing stands out amongst the big names. Another area they stand out is in their appointment scheduling software. It allows your leads to schedule appointments directly into your calendar. They have sales sometimes, so if the price is too high for you, just keep an eye out for discounted plans. Their Pro plan has all the automation and analytics you’d need for 500 contacts and 2 users. It’s a strong alternative to Zoho CRM and fairly cheap.
Arctic PinPoint (Best Combination)
Arctic PinPoint is a good choice for quality; however, the price is much steeper compared to other CRMs on this list so far. Their cheapest package, Lite, has all the automation basics for $59 a month. The price jump from Lite to Starter is quite impressive, but the Professional plan seems to be the best value. For just $30 more, you get 3 more users and much higher capabilities for customization. Although the prices are high, you do get a 30-day free trial for each plan. For $249 a month, you’ll get all the features in the Lite and Starter packages, such as lead source analytics, lead scoring, and multi-channel drips, plus dynamic email campaigns, Facebook leads ad integration, custom reports, and progressive profiling, which makes Arctic PinPoint the best for established small businesses looking to expand.
Sendinblue (Simplicity)
Sendinblue is perfect if you need simplicity and you only need web tracking, marketing automation, and a built-in CRM, then their Free and Lite packages are your best bet. Their Premium package starts at $65 and allows for only 3 users (Mission Suite, on the other hand, allows for an unlimited number of users), so it doesn’t quite measure up to other companies’ plans. Nonetheless, if you try their Free plan and find that you absolutely love their interface and customer support, then perhaps the higher price will be well worth it to you.
GetResponse (Best for Webinars)
GetResponse is good for any business that engages with their customers through Ecommerce and/or webinars because of their Autofunnel feature that does all the sales heavy-lifting for you. Their prices are comparatively cheap and scalable to your business’ growth. They also have pricing for medium and large companies with their MAX options. GetResponse allows you to create your own funnel of landing pages, emails, and even payment processing through gateways like Square and Stripe. They also have a free option, which is always nice to help you make your decision.
Groove (Best for Larger Businesses)
Groove provides sales acceleration, management, and intelligence platforms for your business. Their product is easy-to-set up, easy-to-use, and fairly affordable. Their ideal customer is a medium- to large-business, but they are a great option for a smaller business if you foresee significant growth in the near future. Their product is also highly integrated and configurable with nearly every digital tool and social media platform. However, it might not be the most affordable option for small businesses and startups.
Conclusion
Zoho CRM has great software, but its pricing and tools aren’t always a perfect fit for every business. There are better and/or more affordable solutions to choose from. There are also a number of tools that are more expensive, but could be worth the price depending on your business’ needs. If you need great email marketing automation, try EngageBay, Ontraport, Sendinblue, or Keap. If you’re concerned with Ecommerce, try Drip, or GetResponse. Lead generation your biggest issue? Try Freshsales, Pipedrive, or Arctic PinPoint. If you need an all-in-one system, try Mission Suite, Groove, or ActiveCampaign.
If you like this kind of content, don’t forget to leave a comment. We’d love to hear what your experience is with any of the services that you try from this list!