A good CRM solution will need to provide all sorts of different functions. If your choice just acts as a database for your contacts, that is not going to be good enough; you'll need more than that. You need a CRM that is going to give you the tools to improve customer relations, help you build customer relationships, close deals, and help you with your future sales forecasts. Also look for a program that allows you to add custom fields when you need them since you don't want to feel "stuck" with what the program tells you that you need.
You have to make sure that the CRM solution that you choose is user friendly. Many CRM software programs come off as too complex, too detailed, or just too plain hard to use. Others are just simply not flexible enough for the unique needs of small business owners. The best CRM software programs also have options for handling email as well, so you can do everything at once. Other things that you have to consider when choosing a CRM solution are reporting capabilities and the ease of which you can share information and the way that you can import and export data from the software itself. As always, take a look at the price point to make sure that it fits into your small business's budget.
If you find a great CRM solution that works well for your business, you will be very pleased with the results and will be able to rest a little easier knowing that all of your important customer and client data is stored in one central location where you can quickly and easily manage all aspects of that data.
Here are 5 that may be worth a look:
