Clients are the backbone of your business. They literally keep your lights on.
Therefore, client management software is essential for streamlining operations and enhancing customer relationships. The right tool can boost productivity, improve efficiency, and drive growth.
This post reviews the benefits and key features of client management software. It also explores the eight best client management software tools on the market and offers advice on choosing the right one for your business.
Benefits of using client management software
Client management tools offer numerous benefits.
Improved organization and efficiency
Centralizing client information and communications streamlines workflows. Consolidating all this data makes it easier to access and manage. Combined with AI and automation, it reduces administrative tasks and ensures everyone has up-to-date information.
Enhanced client relationships
Detailed records of client interactions and preferences help businesses offer personalized service and timely follow-ups. This, in turn, fosters stronger client relationships and increased satisfaction.
Time and cost savings
Automating routine tasks such as appointment scheduling, invoicing, and follow-ups saves significant time. It also reduces manual errors and operational costs, allowing staff to focus on more strategic activities.
Increased productivity
Streamlined processes and easy access to client information help teams work more efficiently. They enable teams to complete tasks faster and more accurately. This boosts overall productivity and project turnaround times.
Higher profits
Improved efficiency, better client relationships, and increased productivity lead to higher client retention and more business opportunities. Reduced operational costs and increased billable hours contribute directly to higher profits.
Key features of client management software
Client management solutions offer many features to enhance business operations and customer interactions.
Contact management
This feature allows businesses to store and manage detailed contact information for clients and leads. It centralizes data, making accessing contact details, communication history, and notes easy. This ensures personalized and informed interactions with clients.
Task management
Like Motion's AI daily planner and task management solution, task management tools help you assign, track, and complete tasks efficiently. They ensure on-time completion of all client-related activities.
Lead tracking and management
This feature enables businesses to capture, track, and nurture leads through the sales pipeline. It helps prioritize leads based on their engagement and likelihood to convert. This facilitates a more focused and effective sales strategy.
Campaign management
Campaign management tools allow businesses to plan, execute, and analyze marketing campaigns. They help segment audiences, automate marketing activities, and track campaign performance. These activities optimize marketing efforts and improve ROI.
Customer project management
This feature supports managing client projects from inception to completion. It includes project planning, resource allocation, milestone tracking, and collaboration tools. Customer project management ensures projects are delivered on time and within budget.
Communication tools
Integrated communication tools like email, chat, and phone enable seamless client interaction. They ensure all client communications are logged and accessible, improving coordination and client engagement.
Reporting and analytics
Reporting and analytics provide valuable insights into client interactions, sales performance, and marketing effectiveness. Customizable reports and dashboards help businesses make data-driven decisions to improve strategies and operations.
Automation and AI
Automation streamlines repetitive tasks, saving time and reducing errors. AI tools can enhance customer service, predict customer behavior, and personalize marketing efforts.
Customization features
Customization options include custom fields, workflows, and user interfaces. They allow you to tailor the software to your specific needs, ensuring it aligns with unique business processes and requirements.
Data synchronization and integration
This feature ensures that your client management tool integrates with your other tools and systems. It enables seamless data flow and synchronization across applications, providing a unified view of client information.
8 best client management software
Now, let’s look at the top eight client management tools.
HubSpot CRM: Best for ease of use and affordability
HubSpot CRM is a widely used customer relationship management platform. It's designed to help businesses manage sales, marketing, and customer service activities in a centralized system.
Key features
- Contact management
- Task management
- Lead tracking and management
- Integration with email providers to manage and track email directly from the CRM
- Live chat and AI chatbots
- Reporting and analytics
- Sales pipeline management
- Marketing automation
- Custom workflows, fields, and user interfaces
- Integration with a wide range of third-party apps
Pros
- Easy-to-navigate and intuitive interface
- Robust free plan with essential CRM features
Cons
- Limited advanced features in free plan
- Customization limitations compared to some other platforms
Ratings
Capterra: 4.5 stars with 4,000+ reviews.
Pricing
HubSpot CRM is free to use, but you can unlock premium versions of its features with the HubSpot Customer Platform.
The HubSpot Customer Platform contains six core products, all connecting automatically to HubSpot CRM. Each can be used alone or in partnership with the others.
The Commerce Hub is pay-as-you-go, but each product has free and paid plans. All Starter plans start at $20 per monthly seat, billed annually. Professional and Enterprise plans are also available for each plan; pricing varies by product.
Salesforce: Best for extensive customization and scalability
Salesforce Sales Cloud is a leading CRM platform with extensive features, scalability, and customizability that caters to businesses of all sizes.
It helps businesses manage customer relationships, streamline processes, and enhance productivity across sales, marketing, and customer service teams.
Key features
- Lead, activity, account, and opportunity management
- Forecast and pipeline management
- Workflow and process automation
- Email integration
- Dashboards and reporting
- AppExchange marketplace of third-party apps
- Customization and scalability
Pros
- Highly customizable to fit unique business processes and workflows
- Large ecosystem with numerous third-party integrations and apps available on AppExchange
Cons
- Can be complex and may require significant time and training to fully utilize all features
- Higher cost compared to some other CRM solutions
Ratings
G2: 4.3 out of 5 stars with 19,000+ reviews.
Capterra: 4.4 out of 5 stars with 18,000+ reviews.
Pricing (billed annually)
- Starter Suite: $25 per user per month
- Professional: $80 per user per month
- Enterprise: $165 per user per month
- Unlimited: $330 per user per month
- Einstein 1 Sales: $500 per user per month
Try Sales Cloud free for 30 days; no credit card required.
Zoho CRM: Best for flexibility and a wide range of features
Zoho CRM is a cloud-based platform designed to help businesses simplify the entire sales process and focus on building better customer relationships.
Key features
- Contact and lead management
- Marketing and sales automation
- Custom workflows
- Advanced analytics and reporting
- Customization of modules, fields, and layouts
- Integration with over 800 third-party apps
Pros
- Competitive pricing structure that's accessible for small and medium-sized businesses
- Intuitive interface and user-friendly design, requiring minimal training
Cons
- Some advanced features are only available in higher-tier plans
- Extensive customization options can be overwhelming for new users
Ratings
G2: 4.1 out of 5 stars with 2,000+ reviews.
Capterra: 4.3 out of 5 stars with 6,000+ reviews.
Pricing (billed annually)
- Free plan for up to 3 users
- Standard: $14 per user per month
- Professional: $23 per user per month
- Enterprise: $40 per user per month
- Ultimate: $52 per user per month
A 15-day free trial is available; no credit card required.
Pipedrive: Best for pipeline management and simplicity
Pipedrive is a sales-focused CRM tool designed to help sales teams manage leads and deals effectively. Known for its intuitive interface and pipeline management capabilities, it’s popular among small- to medium-sized businesses.
Key features
- Pipeline management with drag-and-drop interface
- Lead management
- Email and communications management
- Smart Contact Data
- Schedule and track sales activities, such as calls and meetings
- Goal-setting and tracking features
- Detailed sales reports and insights
- Workflow automation for repetitive tasks and sales processes
- Customization of fields, pipelines, and workflows
- Integration with over 400 third-party apps and services, including marketing and productivity tools
Pros
- Easy to use and navigate
- Highly visual and customizable pipeline management features that enhance sales tracking and forecasting
Cons
- Some advanced CRM features are lacking or require higher-tier plans
- While offering customization, it may not be as extensive as some other CRM solutions
Ratings
G2: 4.2 out of 5 stars with nearly 2,000 reviews.
Capterra: 4.5 out of 5 stars with nearly 3,000 reviews.
Pricing (billed annually)
- Essential: $14 per seat per month
- Advanced: $29 per seat per month
- Professional: $49 per seat per month
- Power: $64 per seat per month
- Enterprise: $99 per seat per month
A 14-day free trial is available; no credit card required.
Keap: Best all-in-one CRM and marketing automation solution
Keap is a CRM and marketing automation platform designed to help small businesses manage customer relationships and automate marketing and sales processes. It combines CRM, email marketing, and e-commerce functionalities into one solution.
Key features
- Easy Automations and Advanced Automations builder
- Contact management
- Reporting features
- Over 5,000 app integrations
- Marketing, lifecycle, and sales automation
- Lead capture and management
- Email and text marketing features
- Drag-and-drop sales pipeline management
- Appointment scheduling and management
- Automated referrals, review requests, and follow-ups
Pros
- Excels in automating repetitive tasks, saving valuable time, and increasing efficiency
- Combines CRM, email marketing, and e-commerce features, reducing the need for multiple tools
Cons
- Can be expensive for small businesses or startups, especially at higher tiers
- May require significant time to learn and fully utilize all features, especially for those new to CRM and marketing automation
Ratings
G2: 4.2 out of 5 stars with 1,500+ reviews.
Capterra: 4.1 out of 5 stars with 1,000+ reviews.
Pricing (billed annually)
- Pro: Starting at $249 per month for up to 1,500 contacts and two users
- Max: Starting at $329 per month for up to 2,500 contacts and three users
- Ultimate: Starting at $499 per month for up to 2,500 contacts and three users
Additional users on any plan are $29 each. A 14-day free trial is available; no credit card required.
Zendesk Sell: Best straightforward CRM with strong integration capabilities
Zendesk Sell enhances sales productivity, pipeline visibility, and performance tracking. It provides tools for managing sales activities, tracking leads, and automating repetitive tasks.
Key features
- Centralized platform
- Task player
- Email integration
- Customer engagement tools
- Smart lists and templates
- Email and task sequences
- Power dialer
- Bulk outreach
- Sales triggers
- App Marketplace
- Pipeline visibility and analysis
- Accurate forecasting
- Advanced analytics
- Activity tracking and reporting
- Performance metrics
- Custom dashboards
- Complete customer view
Pros
- Easy-to-use and intuitive interface
- Integrates well with other Zendesk products and various third-party tools
Cons
- Some advanced CRM functionalities are missing compared to other more comprehensive CRM platforms
- Can be relatively expensive for small businesses or startups, especially as team size grows
Ratings
G2: 4.2 out of 5 stars and nearly 500 reviews.
Capterra: 4.3 out of 5 stars with nearly 200 reviews.
Pricing (billed annually)
- Sell Team: $19 per user per month
- Sell Growth: $55 per user per month
- Sell Professional: $115 per user per month
- Sell Enterprise: $169 per user per month
Insightly: Best mix of project management and CRM
Insightly is a CRM and project management platform designed to help businesses streamline their sales, marketing, and project workflows.
Key features
- Sales pipeline and lead management
- Sales lead tracking and opportunity management
- Business workflow and process automation
- Validation rules and advanced permissions
- Products, price books, and quotes
- Project and task management
- Customer relationship management
- Customizable CRM
- Customer email management
- Performance dashboards and reporting
Pros
- A unique combination of CRM and project management tools
- Intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface
Cons
- Some users may find the customization options limited compared to other CRM platforms
- Occasionally, users report performance issues, particularly with larger datasets
Ratings
G2: 4.2 out of 5 stars with nearly 900 reviews.
Capterra: 4 out of 5 stars with over 600 reviews.
Pricing (billed annually)
- Free plan
- Plus: $29 per user per month
- Professional: $49 per user per month
- Enterprise: $99 per user per month
Insightly offers a 14-day free trial.
Freshworks CRM: Best for AI-driven insights
Freshworks CRM helps businesses streamline their sales processes, manage customer relationships, and automate routine tasks. Its intuitive interface and comprehensive feature set support sales, marketing, and customer service teams.
Key features
- Customer service features through Freshdesk and Freshchat
- Marketing personalization across channels through Freshmarketer
- AI-powered insights through Freshsales
- Lead generation and management
- Drag-and-drop Kanban-style interface
- Freddy AI
- Task automation
- Customizable communications
Pros
- User-friendly interface
- Affordable pricing
Cons
- Limited customization
- Advanced features require higher plans
Ratings
G2: 4.5 out of 5 stars with 7,000+ reviews.
Capterra: 4.5 out of 5 stars with 600+ reviews (Freshsales by Freshworks).
Pricing (billed annually)
- Free plan available for three users
- Growth: $9 per user per month
- Pro: $39 per user per month
- Enterprise: $59 per user per month
Freshworks CRM offers a 21-day free trial; no credit card required.
How to choose the right client management software
Choosing the right client management solution involves several key considerations:
Understanding business needs
Identify your business's specific needs and tailor the software to address these requirements, ensuring it supports your primary objectives and workflows.
Compatibility and integration
Ensure the software integrates seamlessly with your existing tools and systems. This compatibility is crucial for streamlined operations and data synchronization, preventing information silos.
Customer support and training options
Evaluate the quality and availability of customer support and training resources. Look for vendors offering comprehensive support through various channels and robust training options, including tutorials, webinars, and documentation.
Reviews, case studies, and recommendations
Research reviews, case studies, and recommendations from other users and industry experts. This feedback provides insights into the software’s reliability, ease of use, and effectiveness in similar business contexts, helping you make an informed decision.
Free trials and demos
Take advantage of free trials and demos to test the software’s functionality and user interface before purchasing. These trials allow you to assess whether the software meets your needs and is user-friendly.
Enhancing business operations with client management software
Client management software is vital for streamlining operations and enhancing client relationships. The right software can boost efficiency, productivity, and profits.
To choose the best fit, consider business needs, integration capabilities, and support options. Take advantage of free trials and reviews to make an informed decision. Start optimizing your client management processes today for improved results and sustainable growth.
Another tool that strengthens client relationships is AI schedule and task management software. To further boost productivity, hit deadlines, impress clients, and balance your workload to prevent burnout, check out Motion's 7-day free trial.
Take the first step toward overall business success by selecting the right software for your tech stack.
