Why HubSpot is the Best Free CRM: Features and Tips for Small Businesses

Running a small business can be tough. You have a million things to juggle, like managing customers, tracking sales, following up on leads, and ensuring that your marketing efforts are working. It often feels like you need multiple tools to get everything done. This is where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system comes in handy.

A CRM can help you manage all of your customer information in one place. It organises data, streamlines processes, and improves communication. But for small businesses, finding a CRM that fits within the budget can be a challenge. That’s where HubSpot’s Free CRM comes in. It’s packed with useful features and is one of the best free tools available for small businesses.

In this blog, we will discuss why HubSpot is the best free CRM, explore its key features, and share some tips to help you get the most out of it.

Why Do Small Businesses Need CRM?

As a small business owner, you’re likely handling everything from customer interactions to sales and marketing efforts. In the early stages, you might think spreadsheets or simple to-do lists are enough to manage customer relationships. But as your business grows, this becomes more difficult. You’ll have more customers, more sales opportunities, and more tasks to handle, making it easy to lose track.

This is where a CRM can be a game-changer. CRMs allow you to manage customer data, track interactions, and streamline your sales process. Instead of flipping through dozens of spreadsheets, you can store all your customer information in one place, making it easier to stay organised. With a CRM, you can keep track of customer interactions, know where each lead stands in your sales funnel, and ensure that you don’t miss any follow-ups.

For small businesses, using a CRM can make managing customer relationships much easier. It can save time, improve customer communication, and help your business grow.

Why HubSpot is Better Than Its Competitors for Small Businesses

HubSpot is one of the leading names in marketing, sales, and customer service tools. They have built a reputation for providing powerful yet easy-to-use software solutions, and their Free CRM is no exception. HubSpot CRM is designed to be user-friendly and offers all the tools a small business needs to manage customer relationships effectively.

The best part about HubSpot’s CRM is that it’s completely free. Unlike many other free CRM tools that limit functionality or require upgrades for certain features, HubSpot’s Free CRM gives you access to a wide range of tools right out of the box. Whether you’re managing contacts, tracking sales, or running email campaigns, HubSpot CRM has you covered.

There are several free CRM tools on the market, like Zoho, Agile CRM, and Bitrix24. But HubSpot stands out for several reasons:

1. Easy to use

HubSpot’s interface is incredibly simple and intuitive. Even if you’ve never used a CRM before, you’ll find it easy to get started. Other CRMs might offer a wide range of features but can be overwhelming to set up and use. HubSpot strikes the right balance by providing useful tools without making things complicated.

2. All-in-One Solution

While other free CRMs may offer only basic contact management or sales tracking, HubSpot gives you a complete solution. It includes tools for sales, marketing, and customer service. This makes it a great choice for small businesses looking for an all-in-one solution.

3. Scalability

HubSpot’s free plan offers enough functionality to grow your business. As your business grows, you can upgrade to their paid plans, which unlock even more features like advanced reporting, automation, and enhanced marketing tools. 

Key Features of HubSpot Free CRM for Small Businesses

Now that you know why HubSpot CRM stands out from the competition, let’s dive into its key features:

1. Contact Management

Contact management is at the core of any CRM, and HubSpot excels in this area. You can store all your customer information, including names, phone numbers, email addresses, and notes about previous interactions, in one place. You can also segment your contacts into different lists, making it easier to target specific groups with marketing campaigns or sales efforts.

The contact management feature also allows you to see the entire history of each customer. You can view emails, phone calls, meetings, and more—all in one timeline. This makes it easier to understand where each customer stands in their relationship with your business and helps you offer a more personalised experience.

2. Sales Pipeline Management

A good sales pipeline is crucial to keeping your sales process organised. HubSpot CRM offers a sales pipeline tool that allows you to track deals as they move through different stages. You can customise the stages based on your sales process and move deals from one stage to another as you work towards closing them.

The pipeline view makes it easy to see which deals are in progress, which ones need attention, and which deals are about to close. This helps you stay on top of your sales efforts and ensures that no deal falls through the cracks.

3. Email Tracking and Templates

Sending emails to prospects and customers is a big part of running a business. But how do you know if people are opening your emails or clicking on your links? HubSpot’s email tracking feature solves this problem. It lets you see when someone opens your email or clicks on a link inside the email.

Additionally, HubSpot offers email templates. Instead of typing out the same email over and over again, you can create templates for common emails, like follow-ups or thank-you notes. This saves time and ensures that your communication stays consistent.

4. Live Chat

If you have a website, you know how important it is to engage with visitors as soon as they land on your page. HubSpot includes a live chat feature that lets you talk to website visitors in real time. You can answer their questions, guide them through your products, and even capture leads.

5. Task Management

As a business owner, you have a lot on your plate. Keeping track of all your tasks can be overwhelming. HubSpot CRM helps you stay organised by allowing you to create and assign tasks to team members. You can set deadlines, add reminders, and mark tasks as complete when they’re done.

This task management feature helps you stay on top of your to-do list and ensures that nothing gets overlooked.

6. Mobile App for On-the-Go Access

HubSpot understands that small business owners are often on the go. That’s why they offer a mobile app that lets you access your CRM from anywhere. Whether you’re in a meeting, on the road, or working from home, you can check your contacts, update deals, manage tasks, and even make calls directly from the app.

7. Reporting Templates

Understanding how your business is performing is crucial for growth. HubSpot provides basic reporting and analytics tools that let you track your performance. You can see how many leads you’ve generated, how many deals are in your pipeline, and how your sales team is performing.

With this data, you can make informed decisions about where to focus your efforts and improve your sales and marketing strategies.

8. Integration with Other Tools

HubSpot integrates with many popular tools like Gmail, Outlook, Slack, and more. This makes it easy to use HubSpot alongside the tools you already rely on. You can sync your emails, calendar, and other important tools with your CRM to keep everything in one place.

Tips for Small Businesses to Get the Most Out of HubSpot Free CRM

Using HubSpot CRM effectively can help you grow your business. Here are some tips to get the most out of it:

1. Start with Clear Goals

Before diving into HubSpot, take a moment to define your goals. Are you trying to increase sales? Improve customer service? Generate more leads? Having clear goals will help you focus on the features that will have the biggest impact on your business.

2. Customise Your CRM

HubSpot allows you to customise your CRM to fit your business. You can add custom fields, set up your sales pipelines, and create personalised email templates. Taking the time to customise your CRM will make it more effective and ensure it meets your business needs.

3. Take Advantage of Email Templates

Save time by using HubSpot’s email templates for your most common emails. This will not only speed up your communication but also ensure consistency in your messaging.

4. Use the HubSpot Academy for Training

HubSpot offers free online training through HubSpot Academy. You can take courses on how to use CRM, improve your marketing, and grow your sales. These training sessions can help you become more proficient with the tool and get the most out of it.

5. Set Up Automation for Efficiency

HubSpot allows you to set up automation to handle repetitive tasks. For example, you can automate follow-up emails after a meeting or set reminders for tasks. This will save time and help you stay efficient.

6. Monitor Performance with Reports

Make use of HubSpot’s reporting tools to track your performance. You can generate reports to see how your sales and marketing efforts are working and make adjustments accordingly.

7. Stay Organised with Task Management

Keep track of all your tasks with HubSpot’s task management feature. Assign tasks to yourself or your team and set deadlines to make sure everything gets done on time.

Comparison: Free HubSpot CRM vs. Paid HubSpot Plans

HubSpot’s Free CRM is packed with features that make it an excellent choice for small businesses. However, as your business grows, you might find that you need more advanced tools. Here’s a comparison of what’s included in the free plan versus the paid plan.

Free Plan

Includes contact management, sales pipeline, email tracking, live chat, task management, reporting, and integration with other tools. It’s ideal for small businesses just getting started with a CRM.

Paid Plans

Like any other business, HubSpot offers several paid plans to survive that unlock additional features. These include advanced reporting, marketing automation, expanded contact storage, and access to premium customer support. The paid plans are a great option for businesses that are scaling up and need more robust tools.

When to Consider Upgrading to a Paid Plan

For many small businesses, HubSpot’s Free CRM will be enough to manage customer relationships and grow the business. However, there are a few situations when upgrading to a paid plan might make sense:

1. You Need Advanced Reporting

If you want to dive deeper into your data and track specific metrics, HubSpot’s paid plans offer more advanced reporting tools.

2. You Want to Automate Marketing Efforts

As your business grows, automating marketing tasks like sending follow-up emails or managing social media posts can save a lot of time. HubSpot’s paid plans include powerful marketing automation features that can help with this.

3. You Need More Storage

The free plan limits the number of contacts you can store. If your contact list is growing rapidly, upgrading to a paid plan will give you more storage.

4. You Want Premium Support

HubSpot’s free plan includes basic support, but if you want access to premium customer service, including 24/7 support and personalised help, a paid plan is the way to go.

Ultimately, when your business reaches a point where you need more advanced tools, upgrading to a paid plan can provide the extra functionality you need to continue growing.

Conclusion

In today’s competitive market, small businesses need every advantage they can get to succeed. One of the best tools you can use to improve customer relationships, manage sales, and streamline processes is a CRM. And when it comes to free CRMs, HubSpot is hands down the best option for small businesses.

With its user-friendly interface, powerful features, and ability to scale as your business grows, HubSpot’s Free CRM is an invaluable tool for managing customer relationships. Whether you’re tracking sales leads, sending emails, or chatting with website visitors, HubSpot has everything you need to build strong relationships and grow your business.

If you’re not already using a CRM, now is the time to give HubSpot a try. It’s easy to set up, free to use, and packed with features that will help your business thrive.

Ready to see how HubSpot can help your small business? Sign up for HubSpot’s Free CRM today and start taking control of your customer relationships!