Choosing the Right CRM for Your Business

Welcome back to another episode of the BizMagic Podcast, where tech meets business with a side of sarcasm! Today, we’re diving into a tool that can completely transform how you run your business: a CRM (Customer Relationship Management system).

If you’ve ever lost track of a lead, scrambled to find client details, or felt overwhelmed by admin tasks, a CRM might be your new best friend. In this episode, we cover:

• What a CRM actually is (hint: it’s more than a fancy contact list)
• Why I think most business owners with clients should have one
• How a CRM saves time, boosts professionalism, and tracks growth
• Key factors to consider when choosing the right CRM for your business
• Popular CRMs like 17Hats, Notion, Dubsado, HoneyBook, HubSpot, and more

The right CRM isn’t about picking the fanciest option—it’s about choosing one that works for you. Whether you need automation, invoicing, or simple organization, there’s a CRM that fits. Future You will thank you!

Links & Resources:

• Explore TechMagic to get personalized CRM recommendations: bizmagic.co/tech-magic

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

Transcript

Welcome back to another episode of the BizMagic podcast, your place for all things tech in your online business with solid hits of general biz chat too. My name is Patti Meyer and I am the CEO and founder of BizMagic where my team and I support entrepreneurs who are overwhelmed by the back end tech of their business.

We create, implement, and teach the tweaks that help our clients make a bigger impact with less stress. Today, we're tackling a topic that I think is a total game changer when it comes to running your business more efficiently, and that is a CRM. If you're not familiar with the CRM, I'm going to tell you all about that in the episode today, where by the end of it, my hope is that you'll know exactly what a CRM is.

You'll know why I think it's important for you as a business owner to have one. And how you can go about choosing the right one for your special, unique business. I will say that, as a little spoiler, it's not as overwhelming as it might sound. And once you have a really good CRM in place, it really does change your business and how it flows, especially when it comes to client management and lead generation.

So, let's dive in. So let's start with the basics. CRM stands for customer relationship management. So that's a fancy way of saying that it's a system that helps you keep track of your clients, your leads, your customers, whatever it is, you know, how, however you And so you could think of it like this, it's a database or your digital Rolodex, if your Rolodex was supercharged and had automation and organization and had the ability to send you reminders and all that good stuff.

So it's the hub where all of your client details live from their contact information to their email address and all that good stuff. Their purchase history, to the emails you've sent back and forth, to birthdays, anniversaries, whatever. Whatever information is important for you to know and track about your Customers and clients, that information would live inside of a CRM.

At its core, a CRM is really all about managing your relationship so that no client or task or lead gets lost in the shuffle, falls through the cracks. Right? So, that is really what And why a CRM is so important because it makes sure that your clients and customers really have attention and space held for them and it keeps those leads moving forward so that you don't drop any balls or lose any potential money or leave money sitting on the table.

So the next thing that I want to talk about is why I tend to suggest that people have CRMs in their businesses. If you're running a business and working with clients, the answer to whether or not you need one, is yes. And here's why. It helps you stay organized. You no longer have to have sticky notes everywhere that try to remind you of all the various things that you need to take care of regarding clients, unless that's something you really want.

You don't have to dig through your inbox looking for a message that you thought you saved, or that you sent, or any of that. A CRM keeps everything in one place. Client info, project timelines, contracts. Um, and some of them will have invoices. There's all sorts of different levels of them. So, um, some are more robust than others.

And you can always have more simplistic ones as well that just sort of Keep information organized. The other thing is that it saves time. A lot of CRMs offer automation, so you can automate follow up emails, send deployment reminders, or trigger workflows for onboarding new clients. So, you're spending less time on admin tasks and more time focusing on the stuff that you, like, actually love doing.

It helps improve communication. If you've ever forgotten to follow up with a lead or check in with a client, a CRM can help you stay on top of that so you don't have anybody fall through the cracks, nobody feels neglected. Again, you don't leave money on the table. All of that stuff is really helpful, um, within a CRM.

It also helps track your growth because a lot of CRMs come with reporting tools and they can show you important data, like where your leads come from, how many clients you've booked, when they've booked, so you can organize that information. You may, um, even know how much revenue you've generated from a specific client depending, again, on The CRM that you're using, and this information is pretty much gold when it comes to you making decisions for your business, because the more data you have, the more informed you are and able to make informed decisions, right?

And it helps you look more professional, which is kind of a big thing, right? Especially as a solopreneur, sometimes it can be hard when we're not using all the right tools to look really professional. When you're able to show up organized, timely, people see that, they notice that your clients will feel taken care of, and that can lead to them sharing your information with their friends and colleagues, leaving you good reviews, coming back over and over again, that sort of stuff.

So, as I've kind of been hinting at a bit, or not so much hinting, throughout the episode so far, not all CRMs are created equal, and that is a good thing, because you don't necessarily need the fanciest, most expensive CRM to get started, and you might never need a CRM. The fanciest one in your business. So there are some things that you want to consider when you're looking into choosing a CRM.

You want to think about your own needs. Because again, I'm always big on making sure that you're choosing a platform that makes sense for you and what your needs are. Right? So you want to think about your needs. Think about what you actually need the CRM to do. Are you looking for something to automate client onboarding?

Are you looking to track leads, handle invoices? I recommend that you make a list of the must haves for a CRM before you start shopping around because that really helps you choose the right one when you know the kind of features that you're seeking. So the next one you want to take into consideration is ease of use.

If a CRM feels like you need a degree in computer science to figure it out, it's probably not the right one for you unless you have a degree in computer science or really love tech, right? And so looking for a platform that is intuitive, has an intuitive interface, and has a really great onboarding process is super important.

And to that, I would add. Try finding one depending on your tech. Comfort that has really great help documentation or chat and support and things like that, depending on how much help you typically need, um, when you're working with different technology and don't feel ashamed of that. That's really important, too.

The next thing to think about is scalability. You want to choose a CRM that can grow with your business if you think your business is going to grow. You may be at a point in your business where you're happy with it and you're, and you have the people that you need, you have the business that you need, you don't want to scale and grow.

And so, also look for one that's going to fit that need. You might not need all the bells and whistles right now. But if you think you're going to be scaling your business, whether that means you're going to be creating courses or having more capacity for clients or building a team, you might not need all the bells and whistles right now, but having that option to upgrade later can save you the hassle of switching the platforms down the line.

Although I will say don't be afraid of having to switch platforms at some point if you have to. Yes, it can be costly. Yes, it can be annoying and frustrating and all of that stuff. stuff, but it's okay to meet yourself where you are and not have to, um, stress yourself out by thinking of all the things that you might need at some point.

And finally, of course, you want to consider the price there. Like I said, are. A whole variety of CRMs out there and their price ranges are pretty huge. So you can get a free one like HubSpot or I build my own in Notion. But you can also, I've used free tools like Airtable or I've even used an Excel spreadsheet if you just want to really keep track of your data and are good at creating.

Your own processes and things like that. So you want to start with something that fits your budget and offers you the features you need the most. Because there are super expensive and premium ones like Salesforce. And there's all kinds of ones in between that you might not even think about. Really just focus on what your needs are.

Again, meet yourself where you're at with all of your needs. What the ease of use needs to be. Scalability, price, all of that good stuff. So if you're not quite sure where to start, I'm happy to give you a few suggestions of CRMs. Or not even suggestions, just throw out some names of CRMs that I've worked with.

Um, that a lot of people in small businesses, solopreneurs. I use 17 hats. I don't typically use 17 hats fully for my CRM, even though I could, only because it doesn't work great for my brain specifically, but it does work really well as my business management tool, which, so that's where I send my invoices, my contracts, my questionnaires, that sort of thing.

It does have a ton of information about my clients. clients, but I also have, as I've mentioned, built out a CRM more properly for myself in Notion that works better with my business and, or with my brain. And that's where I go and track months and years that people have been onboarded, the packages that they're using with me, any information, because I also track all my notes in there so they can all kind of connect together.

So, I prefer Notion over 17 hats for CRMs, but 17 hats in general is excellent. Excellent. And I really love it. And you can use it solely as your CRM as well, where it's an all in one that has that CRM functionality, plus invoicing, plus contracts, plus questionnaires, and then kind of competitors to 17Hats or Dubsado and HoneyBook.

Again, you can use a spreadsheet, you can use Airtable, you can use bigger ones, you can use HubSpot, you can use Salesforce, you can use, there's one called Um, DEX, D E X, which is a CRM I found recently that is affordable and pretty simple and usable for Uh, business owners like us. There's so many more that I can't think of right off the top of my head.

Really type in CRM and you'll, you'll see a ton. But again, don't, you might get overwhelmed. So just take it little by little. Start with features that you need and then use those other considerations. And that's kind of everything. So CRM is your go to tool for client relationship management, staying organized, and showing up as the professional that you are.

If you're not already using one, you may want to consider doing it. Trust me, future you will be very grateful for such a thing. And then when you reach the point where you're ready to start exploring CRMs, if you don't already have one, or maybe you're in a position where you're not loving what you're currently using, I suggest kind of do some research.

Again, use some of the suggestions of what to follow and look for. And then do a few trials if you need to. Don't be afraid to do that. Don't be afraid to ask questions in their question chats in the different, uh, platforms. And remember that the goal is simply for you to find something that works best for you and your business, not necessarily what everybody is using.

And that's pretty much it. I hope that you found this super helpful and learned a little bit more about CRMs and how to go about choosing the right ones for you, why you might need one, all of that good stuff. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message at patty at bizmagic. co or find me over at Instagram.

And don't forget, tech is our jam here at BizMagic. And we have a really great offer that I love that is kind of one of our signature offers, which is TechMagic. All about helping you choose the right tools or set things up for you or do audits to see if the tools you are using are correct for you. All of that good stuff.

So feel free to also head over to bizmagic. co and set up a consultation for TechMagic and see if we could help you with Everything that you're doing in your business tech-wise.

Thank you for listening to another episode of the Biz Magic Podcast. Like most small businesses and podcasts, we rely heavily on word of mouth. So if you like what you heard today or in any episode, please share with your friends and colleagues. And rate, subscribe, and comment on your favorite podcast platform.

Till next time, cheers to your magical biz success.