The ship of fools has finally run aground
Promises lit up the night
Like paper doves in flight
Great Day of Freedom, Pink Floyd
So, you think it’s time to get a CRM to manage your sales funnel. Maybe you’re a small business that’s been getting by with spreadsheets and email lists, or a startup that wants Phone Number Database everything but a product that runs on autopilot — either way, the promise of FREE CRM software that does everything for you except run your business sounds too good to pass up.
So this post is a kind of review of CRM, the FREE one and the part that runs your business.
A quick rundown of what's coming next: "There's no such thing as a free lunch."
I'm going to break the argument down into the main concepts we're discussing.
What is CRM really?
What does FREE really mean?
What is CRM
CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management.
And while CRM is now almost synonymous with CRM software, technology is only a small part of relationship management. Building your brand and market success is like creating a work of art. The quality of the brushes and paints matter. They need to help you create your masterpiece, but they can’t do it for you. Strategy, execution, and skill are what you have. A tool can only make it easier.
WhatisCRM_VideoGrab
If you have a bad outage strategy, keep in mind - a good CRM tool will also extend this fact to the world.
Your customer relationship strategy should be built by you based on your business goals. Customer focus can be a real strategy or just a buzzword. Your CRM software can’t help you focus on this, it can help you execute on any choice you make. If you want to dive deeper into this, we have a whole page dedicated to the topic .
What does FREE really mean?
The word FREE is often misunderstood and open to many interpretations. In the software world, the distinction is often made between free and gratis .
free: The term "free as in free" is related to the cost of the software. When any software or application is provided free of charge, it means that the software itself does not require any monetary cost. There may be other costs.
Free: The concept of "free as in free" is much broader and is related to the concepts of freedom and liberty. Those who use the software are not subject to any obligations and have the right to change and distribute without interference from the developers.
Cloud apps often give users the option to access a free version of their software. This is a no-obligation entry option that people can try out to see if the app works for them before committing to a paid version. This software is offered for free. “Free as in beer” - you can’t decide what kind of drink it is, but you can consume it without expecting anything in return.
Open source software, which gives users the freedom to modify and redistribute the source code, is software that is provided free of charge as in the public domain. Often referred to as "Free as in Speech."
Is there really such a thing as FREE CRM?
Yes and no.
Open source is free. You can download it, modify it, and not pay the creators a dime. But chances are, you'll end up paying a significant amount to an implementation specialist to make it work for you. Getting complex software like CRM is not easy. It's not a deliberate strategy to get companies to pay for the service, it's just the nature of the beast. You need to set up the environment correctly, do server configuration, install security patches - the list goes on and on. That's why on-premise solutions are dwindling. Ten years ago, cloud solutions were just becoming mainstream and had a few problems. Today, things have changed.
Today, the cloud ecosystem is mature and robust. In fact, it is increasingly becoming the default option for most private businesses. So, that brings us to the freemium option of CRM software. There are some good free options if you know what you are looking for. Many small businesses tend to overestimate their requirements and end up choosing solutions that have too many bells and whistles.
A common complaint about free editions offered by various vendors is that they limit the capabilities of these editions. The fact is that most free editions are good enough for those just starting out on their CRM journey to warm things up, kick the tires, and see if the application really works for you.
The most important thing to consider when choosing the CRM solution that is best for your business is the maturity of the product. Does the product fit where your business is on the CRM maturity scale? If you are just starting out, choosing an enterprise-grade solution like Salesforce does not make sense. If you do not have the technical expertise in-house, then while open source may seem like a good solution, it can be very difficult to set up and maintain.
Here are five key things to consider when looking for a free CRM solution. (For a full list of 10 things and more ideas, download our eBook The Complete Guide to Choosing a FREE CRM )
Twitter _ The Ultimate Guide to Choosing a FREE CRM
Functionality of the system
When evaluating a CRM for your use, look for support for the core features you need today and perhaps a year from now.
If you're a two-person startup and you need basic sales funnel features like contact management, deal tracking, and email marketing, it doesn't make sense to buy a CRM that gives you hundreds of bells and whistles "for free." Aside from the fact that you won't use any of those features, chances are you'll still have to spend time (and possibly money) figuring out how everything works.
Alternatively, if you're a larger company with distributed sales teams and mature process flows, you'll want a CRM that can support these out-of-the-box solutions as much as possible.
If you need to store some of your customer data in another application, then the CRM is not really serving its purpose.
In addition to assessing the current capabilities you need, check how easy it is to add or enable additional capabilities that you think you will need in a year or so. It takes time to familiarize your team with critical software like CRM. If you find that you outgrow your software capabilities within a few months, your team will always be playing catch-up and it will take much longer to realize the potential of using the CRM.