7 Best CRM Platforms for Small Businesses in 2024

Customer relationship management (CRM) software has evolved from on-premise systems reserved for enterprise companies into sophisticated cloud-based platforms designed for businesses of all sizes.

In fact, research shows that the global cloud CRM market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 12% from 2022-2029 as small and medium businesses continue adopting these solutions.

Driving this growth is the availability of intuitive mobile apps and greater emphasis on sales automation vs manual pipeline management. Studies show that 65% of companies using mobile CRM apps exceed their sales targets.

For small businesses, implementing a CRM platform has become a necessary tool to find new customers, improve retention, and uncover growth opportunities within existing client relationships.

This guide will compare the top CRM software options available in 2024 based on critical factors for small business success. We’ll also provide tips for evaluating your unique needs, getting started, and examples of real-world ROI.

How to Choose the Best CRM for Your Small Business

With so many CRM platforms on the market, it can be challenging to determine what best fits your needs and budget as a small business. Here are key considerations when evaluating options:

User experience – The system should be intuitive and easy to use. If your team needs extensive training, that’s a red flag. Prioritize platforms with simple and clean interfaces.

Mobile capabilities – Your team needs to access contacts, calendars, and pipeline data from anywhere. Mobile apps for iOS and Android are vital. Offline access is also beneficial.

Pipeline visibility – A sales-focused CRM will allow you to visualize your funnel with deal stages mapped out. This provides an invaluable at-a-glance view.

Marketing automation – Built-in workflows, email campaigns, landing pages, and lead scoring help you automate, nurture contacts, and identify hot leads.

Integrations – The CRM should integrate seamlessly with your email, ecommerce platform, accounting system, and other tools via APIs and pre-built connectors.

Scalability – As your business grows, the platform should be able to scale up in terms of features and number of users without issue.

Budget – Of course, cost is critical. Compare options to find the best value aligning with your current needs and growth potential.

To compare top contenders for small businesses, we‘ve highlighted options in different pricing tiers and categories below:

CRM	Starting Price	Best For
HubSpot	Free	Getting started
FunnelKit Automations	$249/year	eCommerce automation
Salesflare	$29/month	Managing sales teams
Pipedrive	$14.90/month	Simple pipeline visibility
Freshsales	$15/month	AI-powered lead management
Drip	$39/month	eCommerce marketing automation
Streak	$15/month	Gmail users

Next, we’ll dive into the details on each platform.

1. HubSpot CRM – Best Free Option

HubSpot is likely the most well-known CRM platform, with over 120,000 customers worldwide. They offer a robust free forever CRM packed with features, making it the #1 choice to get started.

Popular with small businesses, HubSpot CRM provides:

• Contact database – Unlimited contacts and companies so you never pay per user or contact. All interactions automatically tracked.

• Deals pipeline – Visual sales pipeline with custom stages and ability to add tasks, notes, files.

• Email automation – Pre-built templates and workflows to automate campaigns.

• Calendar – Integrated calendar to schedule meetings and view availability.

• 200+ Integrations – Seamless connections with marketing, sales, support, and operations tools.

• Reporting – Charts and graphs to analyze campaigns, pipelines, and contacts.

The free version covers basic CRM needs, while the Sales Hub and Service Hub paid plans add more advanced sales and support capabilities starting at just $50/month.

With its forever free CRM, HubSpot is the best way for early-stage startups and bootstrapped small businesses to get started before upgrading.

2. FunnelKit Automations – Best for eCommerce

FunnelKit Automations combines a robust CRM with powerful marketing automation tailored for eCommerce sites. This makes it uniquely positioned to help online stores increase repeat sales and order values.

For WooCommerce and Shopify stores, FunnelKit delivers:

360-degree customer profiles – Complete data including order history, lifetime value, browsing behavior, tags.

Targeted automations – Abandoned cart, re-engagement, next order coupons, and hundreds more.

Subscription management – Create and manage subscription programs with recurring payments.

Reviews and referrals – Automated review requests and shareable referral promotions.

WooCommerce Native – 100% seamless integration with WooCommerce.

The drag-and-drop workflow builder makes it easy to set up complex automations and marketing funnels with no coding needed.

For small ecommerce businesses, FunnelKit Automations provides the CRM and automation capabilities needed to convert and retain customers better. Plans start at $249/year.

3. Salesflare – Best for Sales Teams

Salesflare is an AI-powered CRM that enhances sales team productivity. Smart automations reduce repetitive tasks so reps can focus on selling.

Key features for sales teams include:

• Lead intelligence – AI scoring and analysis highlights hot prospects based on engagement.

• Email integration – Emails automatically attached to contact profiles.

• Pipeline view – Clear visibility into deal stages with notifications and reminders.

• Team collaboration – Tasks, notes, and centralized communication.

• Mobile access – IOS and Android apps keep teams connected.

• Custom objects – Track all KPIs important to your sales process.

By automatically capturing contact details from emails and analyzing engagement, Salesflare eliminates much of the manual data entry bogging down sales reps.

Pricing starts at $29/month per user when billed annually. For growing small businesses with sales needs, Salesflare is a top choice in its class.

4. Pipedrive – Best Pipeline Visibility

Pipedrive is a sales-focused CRM renowned for its visual pipeline management. For small businesses, this provides clear visibility into deal progress from initial lead to close.

With Pipedrive you can:

• Build sales pipelines – Map out custom stages and deal values.

• Set reminders – Ensure no deal goes cold through activity reminders.

• Email integration – Link emails to deals and contacts.

• Customize reports – Real-time reporting to analyze pipeline performance.

• Mobile access – iPhone and Android apps keep you selling on the go.

• Affordable pricing – Scales from $14.90/month per user.

The highly visual interface makes it easy for sales teams to update deals on the fly and managers to spot bottlenecks in the pipeline. If your top priority is simple yet robust pipeline management, Pipedrive is a great affordable option starting at $14.90/month.

5. Freshsales – Best Lead Management

Freshsales incorporates AI to identify and prioritize your sales team’s hottest leads and accounts. This allows reps to focus energy on accounts likely to convert.

Key features of Freshsales include:

• Lead scoring – AI-powered engine scores leads based on engagement and profile.

• Email tracking – Visual map of email engagement heats up warmer prospects.

• Built-in calling – Click-to-call and call tracking to monitor conversations.

• Pipeline view – Kanban-style pipeline with ability to segment deals.

• Team collaboration – Notes, tasks, and activity tracking across the team.

• 250+ Integrations – Connects with marketing, sales and support apps.

Starting at just $15/month per user, Freshsales combines robust sales features with AI-driven automation that helps prioritize higher quality conversations. The scalable platform easily accommodates teams as they grow.

6. Drip – Best for eCommerce Marketing Automation

Drip specializes in helping eCommerce stores drive repeat sales through targeted email marketing automation.

For customer retention, Drip offers powerful workflows like:

• Shopping cart abandonment series

• Customer win-back campaigns

• Next order incentives

• VIP promotions for top customers

• New subscriber promotions

• Review requests

• Referral rewards

• Loyalty programs

Workflows can be tailored around lifecycle stage, order history, products purchased, and much more.

With its deep eCommerce focus, Drip delivers automation to nurture customers, boost lifetime value, and increase retention. Plans start at $39/month for up to 2,500 contacts.

7. Streak CRM – Best for Gmail Users

Streak was designed specifically for startups and small businesses already relying on Gmail for business email.

As a Chrome extension and mobile app, Streak integrates CRM features directly into Gmail, allowing you to:

• Manage contacts

• Track emails

• Build pipelines

• View schedules

• Collaborate with teams

• Send templates

• Automate follow-ups

Workflows connect your inbox directly with your CRM data. For solopreneurs and very small teams running primarily on Gmail, Streak provides an intuitive CRM solution at a low cost starting at $15/month per user.

The Risk of Not Implementing a CRM

Beyond helping organize customer data in one place, CRM platforms provide automation that can significantly impact sales and retention.

According to Salesforce research, some risks of not implementing CRM include:

• Lost sales – No process for tracking deals means opportunities fall through the cracks. CRM helps you monitor deals closely.

• Poor visibility – With scattered customer data in silos, you lack complete visibility across interactions.

• Slow follow-up – No automation means follow-ups fall by the wayside, leading to stalled deals.

• Low retention – Without workflows targeting common consumer behaviors, customer churn increases.

• Wasted marketing spend – No ability to track campaign ROI to double down on what’s working.

• Manual reporting – Very limited data and time-consuming manual processes to glean insights.

Even for early-stage businesses, basic CRM platforms provide substantial benefits compared to makeshift workflows using spreadsheets.

Real-World Examples of Small Business CRM Success

Industry research points to some stellar ROI for small businesses using CRM platforms:

• Increased sales productivity – Small businesses with CRM see sales productivity increase by an average of 29% according to Nucleus Research.

• Faster sales cycle – 80% were able to shorten their sales cycle by improving visibility through CRM according to SuperOffice.

• Higher customer retention – Small firms saw 83% higher customer retention rates by using CRM automation says Aberdeen Group.

• Bigger deal sizes – Companies report an average deal size increase of 27% attributed to better pipeline visibility in Pipedrive research.

Specific examples include:

• A 10-person home services company credited Salesflare CRM with increasing sales by 35% by giving reps visibility to focus on hot leads.

• An ecommerce store owner saw a 21% bump in average order value over 6 months after implementing customer retention automations with Drip.

• A digital marketing agency leveraged HubSpot CRM reporting to optimize their sales process and improve win rates by 22% in just 3 months.

The right CRM platform aligned with your small business needs can deliver tremendous ROI if utilized to its full potential.

Final Thoughts on Choosing the Best Small Business CRM

The options compared here represent some of the best CRM platforms tailored to the needs of small businesses across different industries.

For early-stage startups, HubSpot CRM provides a robust free plan to implement basic CRM before upgrading.

eCommerce brands should consider FunnelKit Automations or Drip to layer targeted marketing automation on top of customer data.

Service teams dependent on pipeline visibility may opt for Pipedrive or Freshsales.

No matter where you start, we recommend signing up for free trials, importing your contacts, and testing different CRM platforms based on the workflows your team needs most. This hands-on experience is invaluable before committing.

Just remember that implementing any CRM is a process requiring patience to customize fields, build workflows, and train staff on best practices. Start with the basics and scale capabilities over time to maximize your ROI.

With the right platform tailored to your needs, a small business CRM solution can provide the visibility and automation necessary to sustain growth and exceed customer expectations through intentional relationship management.