Devstars
Running a graphic design agency can be exciting and fulfilling, but it’s also a challenging business. One of the biggest challenges that design agencies face is managing projects, clients, and deadlines efficiently. Keeping track of everything manually can be time-consuming and prone to errors. That’s where Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools come to the rescue.
At Devstars, we help agencies and their clients integrate with CRMs and provide support to get the most out of these tools.
In this article, we’ll share our thoughts on the best CRM tools for graphic design agencies to help you stay organised, manage your projects, and streamline your workflow. From basic CRM tools to project management software with CRM features, we’ve got you covered. Let’s dive in!
A CRM tool is software that helps businesses manage their relationships with customers and prospects. It allows you to store and manage contact information, track interactions with clients, and automate your sales processes. Graphic design agencies can benefit from a CRM tool by improving their workflow, managing projects and deadlines more efficiently, and providing better customer service.
For graphic designers, client relationship management, task management and sales management are crucial to stay competitive in the industry. With a CRM tool, you can have all these features and even fully customizable graphic design templates all in one place, saving you time and effort. You can also have a better understanding of your clients’ needs and preferences, leading to more personalised and effective communication.
Graphic agencies often have a vast client base, and it can be challenging to keep track of all the communication and projects. With the right CRM software, you can have a centralised database where you can store all your clients’ information, including their contact details, project details, and previous interactions. This way, you can easily access the information when needed and avoid any miscommunications or missed deadlines.
Project management tasks become easier with a CRM system, ensuring that potential clients don’t fall through the cracks and that projects are completed on time. Additionally, a CRM tool can help you track leads and opportunities, build personalized marketing campaigns, and generate reports to evaluate your agency’s performance.
HubSpot CRM is a free, cloud-based CRM tool that offers a range of features to help you manage your contacts, deals, and tasks. With HubSpot, you can track your interactions with clients and prospects, create custom sales pipelines, and automate your sales processes.
One of the best things about HubSpot is its user-friendly interface. You can easily set up your account and start using the tool without any technical knowledge. HubSpot also integrates with other tools such as Gmail, Outlook, and Zapier.
We use HubSpot for our own business and also with a number of clients. It worth noting that whilst the free and Starter plans are very affordable if you want to start using advanced features such as reporting and dynamic automation of forms you will need to jump to much bigger monthly fees (Sales Professional is £390/month for example)
Zoho CRM is another popular CRM tool that offers many features to help you manage your business processes. With Zoho, you can manage your contacts, leads, deals, and tasks, track your sales performance and automate your workflows.
Zoho also offers a free plan with basic CRM features, making it an excellent choice for small businesses and startups. Zoho CRM integrates with other apps and third-party tools such as Google Apps, Office 365, and MailChimp.
Insightly CRM is a cloud-based CRM tool designed for small and medium-sized businesses. With Insightly, you can manage your contacts, leads, projects, and tasks, as well as track your sales pipeline and automate your sales processes.
Insightly also offers a range of integrations with other tools such as Google Drive, Dropbox, and Slack. It also offers a free plan that includes basic CRM features, making it a great choice for startups and small businesses.
Trello is a popular project management tool and the one we use internally and with our clients at Devstars. With Trello, you can create boards to manage your projects, assign tasks to team members, and track progress. You can also use Trello to manage your contacts and leads, set reminders, and automate your workflows.
Trello’s user-friendly interface makes it easy to use, even for those with little technical knowledge. Trello also offers a range of integrations with other tools, such as Slack, Google Drive, and Dropbox.
We found that a purpose built CRM suited our purposes better but worth a look when considering CRMs especially if you already use Trello.
Trello provide a use case for CRM here.
Asana is another popular project management tool that offers CRM features. With Asana, you can create projects, assign tasks, and collaborate with your team. You can also use Asana to manage your contacts and leads, track your sales pipeline, and automate your workflows.
Asana’s user-friendly interface makes it easy to use and offers a range of integrations with other tools such as Google Drive, Slack, and Zapier.
Monday.com is a visual project management tool that offers CRM features. With Monday.com, you can create boards to manage your projects, assign tasks to team members, and track your progress. You can also use Monday.com to manage your contacts and leads, track your sales pipeline, and automate your workflows.
Monday.com’s intuitive interface and customisable templates make it easy to use, and it offers a range of integrations with other tools such as Slack, Trello, and Dropbox.
Salesforce is one of the most popular CRM and project management tools available. With Salesforce, you can manage your contacts, leads, deals, and tasks, track your sales performance and automate your workflows. Salesforce also offers a range of features for marketing and customer service.
Salesforce’s powerful features come with a higher price tag, but it’s a great choice for larger agencies that need a robust CRM and project management tool. Salesforce also offers a range of integrations with other tools such as MailChimp, Dropbox, and Slack.
Wrike is a cloud-based project management tool that offers CRM features. With Wrike, you can manage your projects, tasks, and deadlines, as well as track your sales pipeline and automate your workflows. Wrike also offers a range of features for collaboration and communication.
Wrike’s user-friendly interface and customisable templates make it easy to use, and it offers a range of integrations with other tools such as Slack, Trello, and Google Drive.
Bitrix24 is an all-in-one CRM and project management tool that offers a range of features to help you manage your business processes. With Bitrix24, you can manage your contacts, leads, deals, and tasks, as well as track your sales performance and automate your workflows. Bitrix24 also offers features for communication, collaboration, and HR management.
Bitrix24’s free plan includes basic CRM and project management features, making it a great choice for small businesses and startups. Bitrix24 also offers a range of integrations with other tools such as Gmail, Slack, and Zapier.
CRM Tool | Type | Key Features | Integration | Pricing |
HubSpot CRM | Cloud-based, Free and Paid Plans | Contact and deal management, task tracking, automation | Integrates with Gmail, Outlook, Zapier | Free, Starter, Professional plans |
Zoho CRM | Cloud-based, Free and Paid Plans | Contact and lead management, sales tracking, automation | Integrates with Google Apps, Office 365, MailChimp | Free, Standard, Professional plans |
Insightly CRM | Cloud-based, Free and Paid Plans | Contact and lead management, project and task tracking | Integrates with Google Drive, Dropbox, Slack | Free, Plus, Professional plans |
Trello | Project Management, CRM Features | Project boards, task assignment, contact management | Integrates with Slack, Google Drive, Dropbox | Freemium model with paid plans |
Asana | Project Management, CRM Features | Project creation, task assignment, contact and lead management | Integrates with Google Drive, Slack, Zapier | Free, Premium, Business, Enterprise plans |
Monday.com | Visual Project Management, CRM Features | Project boards, task assignment, contact management | Integrates with Slack, Trello, Dropbox | Subscription-based pricing |
Salesforce | CRM and Project Management | Contact and deal management, task tracking, automation, marketing, customer service | Integrates with MailChimp, Dropbox, Slack | Higher price range for larger agencies |
Wrike | Cloud-based Project Management, CRM Features | Project and task management, sales tracking, automation | Integrates with Slack, Trello, Google Drive | Subscription-based pricing |
Bitrix24 | All-in-One CRM and Project Management | Contact and lead management, task tracking, automation, communication, collaboration | Integrates with Gmail, Slack, Zapier | Free plan, subscription-based pricing |
Managing a graphic design agency can be overwhelming, but you can streamline your workflow and boost your productivity with the right tools.
CRM tools can help you efficiently manage your projects, clients, and deadlines and provide better customer service. Whether you’re looking for a basic CRM tool or an all-in-one CRM and project management tool, many options are available to fit your business needs and budget.
Increasingly your savvy clients will requiring design of forms and emails that are utlised in CRMs so just by having your own you will be in a better positon to understand their needs and requirements.
In conclusion, when choosing a CRM tool, consider factors such as cost, features, integrations, and ease of use. With the right CRM tool in place, you can focus on what you do best – creating amazing designs for your clients. So go ahead and explore these options to find the perfect fit for your graphic design agency—and remember to continually review how well they are working for you!
At DevStars, we specialise in crafting custom websites, apps and CRM tools for businesses. Our team of expert developers can create a custom customer relationship management system that is tailored to your unique business needs, allowing you to effectively manage your projects, clients and sales pipeline.
We understand the importance of having a reliable and efficient system in place to support your graphic design business. That’s why we work closely with our clients to ensure their custom CRM tool meets all their requirements and helps them achieve their business goals.
Don’t settle for a standard CRM tool that may not fully meet your needs. Contact us today to learn more about our custom CRM services and how we can help take your graphic design business to the next level! Let DevStars be your partner in success.
A CRM tool is software that helps businesses manage their relationships with customers and prospects. It allows you to store and manage contact information, track interactions with clients, and automate your sales processes. Graphic design agencies can benefit from a CRM tool by improving their workflow, managing projects and deadlines more efficiently, and providing better customer service.
Yes, CRM tools can help graphic design agencies improve their workflow by providing a centralised platform for managing projects, clients, and deadlines. They can also automate repetitive tasks, track sales performance, and improve communication and collaboration within the team.
Most CRM tools are designed to be user-friendly and intuitive, with a range of features that can be customised to fit your business needs. Some CRM tools may require a learning curve, but many offer tutorials and customer support to help you get started.
When choosing the best CRM tool for your graphic design agency, consider your business needs, budget, and the features offered by each tool. Look for a tool that offers customisable features, integrations with other tools you use, and good customer support. It’s also important to choose a tool that is user-friendly and easy to use.
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