CRM Software Reviews: Zoho vs HubSpot

Be In the Know with CRM Software Reviews

As the effectiveness of inbound marketing has been clearly demonstrated to most businesses over the last few years, what has evolved from this is an appreciation of the next step in that process; namely, customer relationship management (CRM).

HubSpot and Zoho are two of the leaders in the increasingly important world of CRM. And a big part of deciding which of the two is a better match for your CRM needs rests in understanding what features they have in-common, and which ones are unique to each of them.

Company Overviews

HubSpot was founded in 2006. Employees are now over 650. Main office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with branches in Dublin, Ireland and Sydney, Australia. They have over 11,000 customers in 70 countries.

Zoho was founded in 1996. Global workforce approximately 2000 employees. Main offices in Pleasanton, California and Chennai, India. They have over 4 million registered users.

HubSpot

Pro

• offers powerful filter to effectively separate leads into conversion priority
• email integration into CRM dashboard & instant notification of when sent emails are opened or clicked
• allows phone calls direct from CRM dashboard
• enables precise measurement of sales & marketing funnel with Lifecycle tool
• doesn’t require data entry; rather, pulls info for immediate viewing
• presents sequential on-screen history of all contacts, separated into type (e.g., phone, email etc.)
• CRM integrated into your website
• automatically adds company demographic info for each new contact
• automatically delivers relevant social media profile information
• offers seamless integration with inbound marketing CMS ? migrating data easily

Con

• does not have robust SEM features enabling paid search campaign management
• can be somewhat complex in integrating with other CRM software
• blogging platform is not rich in features, lacking wide customization potential & basic functionality

Pricing

• $200 ? basic: 100 included contacts, 3 user limit
• $800 ? professional: 1,000 included contacts, unlimited users
• $2400 ? enterprise: 10,000 included contacts, unlimited users

Zoho

Pro

• offers a hosted system requiring no servers, software, or concerns with backup
• integrated with inventory data enabling tracking of supplies
• completely customizable interface to build tool that reflects your specific need
• enables remote usage from any location
• Sales rep automation by capturing leads from website analytics & assigning accordingly
• tailored leads, contacts, accounts and opportunities that integrate with your particular sales structure

Con

• reports of sluggish performance with large data files
• email does not self-identify, nor automatically migrate to customer files
• works best with small to mid-sized enterprises. Not well suited to big companies
• presentations feature prone to be problematic in terms of smoothness

Pricing

• $12 ? standard: up to 100,000 records
• $20 ? professional: unlimited records
• $35 enterprise: territory management, multiple currencies
• $50 CRM plus: social media marketing, advanced analytics

Summary

HubSpot is relatively new to the CRM landscape, but has really hit-the-ground-running with a product that requires less training to put into use. This allows companies to have their sales reps start using it from day one without having to do a lot of complicated and time consuming customization. That means it’s perfect for enterprises new to CRM, or ones underutilizing an existing application.

Zoho is a little trickier to use for beginners, so may not be ideal for those wanting to be able to just dive in and start using it on day one. It takes a little time to get comfortable. However, once you’re comfortable with it, Zoho has excellent inventory management and customer data access that is very useful for the typical sales force. Looking for more CRM Software Reviews? Download our CRM eBook to compare other leading software providers.

/Marketing Matters Inbound?is an inbound marketing firm specializing in online conversions, content?strategy, PPC campaigns and traditional media placement. Our experience in?B2B digital?marketing?and?traditional media?allows us to deliver results through a strategic media mix. We believe in?aligning and merging marketing and sales/operations for optimal return on your marketing investment.