Who are the best Salesforce Competitors?

We take a look at the best Salesforce competitors on the market for organizations that want an alternative.

Last update on November 7

Salesforce took advantage of being one of the first cloud-based CRM services. As a result, it grabbed a stronghold on the market. At the time, the tech was seen as pioneering and a different way for sales departments to use software.

Over the years they have simply taken their place as a multi-billion dollar company, providing big businesses with an all-in-one solution. Such a strategy might work well for the large blue-chip companies, but there are thousands of organizations that can’t afford the Salesforce option.

Most companies that employ Salesforce are looking for a global CRM solution. They want to manage the current customers they have, chase new ones, and even build their IT on Salesforce. However, many businesses are finding that Salesforce isn’t a good fit because the service is too expensive, doesn’t specialize in what they need and can over complicate the sales process.

Fortunately, there are alternatives. Salesforce competitors that offer a service more tailored to the needs of smaller and medium-sized companies. We take a look at those alternatives and whether or not they are a good fit.

But before jumping into this discussion and if you absolutely need to use Salesforce in you company, be aware that you can have an hybrid approach where your sales team (or a part of it) can use a more specialized and cost friendly solution, while the rest of the team continue using Salesforce. You can read more on how to save on your Salesforce licence costs that way in this detailed post.

Salesforce Competitors

The first question any company needs to ask themselves is, “what do I need software for”? For example, if your goal is to provide customer support, a solution like Intercom or Zendesk will likely be the best option.

If lead nurturing and and customer retention is the main aim, Marketo is an efficient marketing automation suite designed to nurture prospects. If sales is on the agenda, including converting new prospects, a lead management tool is the best option.

The Salesforce Alternative

Too often, companies employ CRM to manage their cold leads. While many CRM, including Salesforce, offer lead management solutions, they don’t specialize in the category. The customer mindset is changing—and people desire streamlined services that are specific to their need.

The customer mindset is changing. People desire streamlined services that are specific to their need.

Salespeople want a tool that cuts through the noise and empowers them to do their job more efficiently. There should be no overcomplicated focus on data input; no spending forever entering unnecessary information. The strengths of lead management software lie in reps always knowing their next move.

In other words, having a next step. Salespeople have lots to juggle, so a tool designed to add clarity to the process and offer a clear path to an end goal is required. Salespeople should always be 100 percent clear of the next step.

A Salesforce Competitor that Packs a Punch

Salesforce has many strong points, and hasn’t gained its reputation by fluke. But it’s not the ideal tool for smaller business that can’t commit up to as much as $300 dollars per user.

Salesforce can cost up to $300.

Most Salesforce competitors are also a fraction of the price, often costing around $15 per person, which is a huge difference. They focused solely on sales—if your goal is selling, you want a specialized service that is geared towards raising the productivity of your sales team.

Plug and Play

If you’ve decided that sales is the key task to focus on, lead management software offers a singular service with integrated connectivity. Instead of being tied down to one expensive software with multiple functions but little speciality, there is an option to use only what is needed

The result sees companies able to plug and play different software into the service, only paying for the service they want. Each different software is also defined for its exact service, meaning the outcome is refined to achieve the best possible results.

Maximize the Sales Process

Managers also benefit from lead management software as they have continuous visibility over the sales process. If there are any issues, they can step in and make adjustments where needed. The pipeline is always in full view and reps are clear about the process.

The best way to find out which software is best for your company’s needs and which one acts as the most likely Salesforce competitor, is to try a free trial.

Reps are always clear about the next action.

You don’t need Salesforce or a CRM for managing leads, but you do need a clever way to track your sales process.

noCRM.io is aimed at salespeople and focuses on the next step. Reps are always clear about the next action.

Salesforce competitors Salesforce CRM