How to choose the best CRM for your small business

January 22, 2019 | Josh Noonan

With the right CRM solution and strategy you can improve your processes for building and maintaining business relationships. This will help to enhance your professional image, build sales and most importantly, free up your valuable time.

A CRM is essential to the success of any business that has customers.

Remaining productive all day while building strong business relationships is crucial to advancing the success of any business…particulary small business. Imagine following up on new leads without delay or having an immediate answer to a question from your best customer – even if you are out of the office? It’s hard to stay on top of all those tasks when have a small team. That’s where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution can help.

With the right CRM strategy and solution, you can improve your processes for building and maintaining business relationships. This will enhance your professional image, build sales and free up valuable time for your team.

Benefits of a CRM solution:
  • Easily manage your customers
  • Share important information with colleagues
  • Improve productivity and profits
  • Increase customer retention
  • Monitor your sales team’s activity
  • Better return for your marketing dollar
  • Reporting intelligence

There are hundreds of CRMs on the market, each claiming to be the best. While each one may promote specific features and benefits, it is really important that you are using the right CRM software for your business to ensure a return on your investment.

At Act Today, we have been working with Act! CRM since 1992 and have implemented CRM solutions for thousands of businesses worldwide, from single user sites up to 100+ user corporations. We have seen a lot of CRMs come and go and we have seen customers move on to “bigger and better” only to return to Act! a year later. We understand CRM and how the current technological and business environments interact. 

Our CRM solutions are suitable for:
  • Small to mid-size business. Whether you are an individual, have a small business or part of a large organisation, we can assist you in implementing a CRM solution that suits your business.
  • A range of industries. We provide CRM solutions to clients from varying industries, such as financial services, hospitality, manufacturing, technology, recruitment, medical, professional services, real estate and many more.
  • Varied functional roles. While CRM benefits are generally known for helping to boost the success of sales professionals, anyone with business contacts will benefit from incorporating a CRM solution into their business systems such as your management and marketing teams.
  • Cloud vs On-Premises. With benefits to both models, we can help you deploy the best solution for your business. Find out more

Contact us today to discuss your CRM requirements or download your free e-book.

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How to Choose the Best CRM for Small Business

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A final word from Act Today

If this page made you pause and think about how you manage your client relationships, that’s a good start.

Most businesses don’t struggle because they lack effort. They struggle because their systems don’t quite support the way they actually work. That’s where the right CRM setup can make a real difference.

Everything we share about Act! Advantage comes from working with businesses across Australia and New Zealand who want to retain clients, improve communication, and make better decisions from their data.

If you’d like more practical insights about CRM, client retention, and running a smarter client database, you’re welcome to explore the Act Today resources and articles.

And if you’d like to see how Act! Advantage could work in your business, we’d be glad to walk you through it.

14 Day Free Trial
Explore Act! Advantage at your own pace.
28-Day Guided Trial
Work with an Act Today consultant to set up three key CRM functions for your business.

28-Day Guided Trial

Set Up Properly, Decide with Confidence

The 28-day extended trial is designed for businesses that want to experience Act! Advantage working inside their business, not just explore features.

To access the extended trial, you’ll book an initial session with an Act Today consultant based in Australia or New Zealand. During this session, we’ll help you set up three key CRM functions that matter most to your business, such as client follow-ups, communication workflows, retention tracking, or referral visibility.

At the 14-day mark, you’ll have a second check-in with your consultant to answer questions, refine your setup, and remove any roadblocks. This ensures you’re not left guessing and that the system is actually supporting your work.

By the end of the 28 days, you’ll know exactly how Act! Advantage fits your business and whether it delivers real value.

What you’ll get from the 28-day extended trial:

  • Guided setup by a local Act Today CRM consultant
  • Three high-impact CRM functions configured for your business
  • A mid-trial review to answer questions and fine-tune usage
  • A realistic view of outcomes, not just features
  • Confidence to decide based on real experience
START YOUR EXTENDED TRIAL

14-Day Free Trial

Get Hands-On with Act! Advantage CRM

The 14-day free trial gives you full access to Act! Advantage CRM so you can explore how it works in your own time. This is the standard Act! trial used by businesses across Australia and New Zealand who want to see the platform before making a decision.

During the trial, you can add contacts, explore client records, test communication tools, and see how Act! Advantage handles day-to-day client management. It’s a straightforward way to understand how the system is structured and whether it feels right for how you run your business.

This option suits businesses that are comfortable exploring software independently and already have a clear idea of what they want from a CRM. There’s no obligation, no setup required, and no pressure,  just time to assess fit.

What you’ll get from the 14-day free trial:

  • Full access to Act! Advantage CRM features
  • A clear look at how contacts, activities, and communication are managed
  • The ability to test the system across desktop and mobile
  • A simple, no-commitment way to assess fit
  • Confidence before taking the next step
START YOUR TRIAL

Download the FREE Guide

How to Choose the Best CRM for Your Business