Website: Zoho.com
Pricing (single user, as of February 2023):
- Standard: $14/month
- Professional: $23/month
- Enterprise: $40/month
- Ultimate: $52/month
User experiences and comments on Zoho
Name of consultant: Robyn Bolton
Comments: I use it to track opportunities. I customized the stages to match what David A. Fields recommends. When an opportunity surfaces (even if I don’t know anything other than the contact and the general subject), I create a Deal card and put it in the first stage (Opportunity Identified). I then use the Kanban view to move the card through the stages as conversations progress. I have cards for every contact and have customized them to include information like relationship strength and decision-making role, the result of my most recent outreach, “deepest” form of connection in the current year, etc. Each card has a next step scheduled and I can set-up email reminders if I want. I also record call notes in the cards.
For email tracking, because I email people from my work email versus the Zoho system, I bcc Zoho on every outreach email so that it gets logged in the system and I have a Gmail plug-in that allows me to associate in-bound emails with people’s cards (or create new cards). I also have widgets on my Zoho home page that allow me to see how many people I’ve reached out to, received responses from, spoken with, and worked with in the current year and past 30 days. I also use my CRM to schedule social media posts, public blogs/newsletters, manage invoices, and collaborate with my VA.
Applications integrated: Gmail, LinkedIn, Twitter
Name: Rakshit Panchal
Comments: We use it for customer management and employee engagement. Customer management includes email follow-up and regular customer engagement. We use conditional fields to manage multiple datasets of customers simultaneously. Furthermore, there is a good option for filters to find out the data you want instantly.
Name of consultant: Lilian Raji
Comments: I literally demo-ed about 60 CRMs, until I found Zoho to not only be the most cost-effective but a profound game changer to how I manage my agency’s services. I have workflows set up for various scenarios. Once I add someone into the CRM, depending on which module I have them set up in (I use it to manage clients, leads and press contacts), I just have to check off the workflow option, and it will begin an email sequence, all of which are designed to stop once I receive a response. The workflow also keeps track of email opens, link clicks and bounces, updating the contact’s profile accordingly. I sometimes also set up alerts to know when certain people have opened an email.
For the public relations side of my business, where media pitching to secure a coveted article requires a lot of follow up, I have Zoho set up to automate the entire follow up, with new emails for each follow up. It’s reduced a task that takes anywhere from 20 to 30 hours each week — with customizing emails, sending, checking to see if the emails have been opened, sending the next, rinse and repeat — to just the initial set up of the workflow and three custom follow up emails. This can take one or two hours, but once created, it’s done. And as I find new press contacts to outreach to for my client, all I have to do is check a box in their profile, and the sequence begins. And as mentioned above, the workflow is set to stop once I receive a response from them.
I include birth dates if I know them that remind me every year when it comes around. I always include notes on conversations in the contact’s profile. If I find articles that may be useful in my communications with the contact, I convert to PDF and upload to their profiles for my own future reference. New business calls that require additional nurturing have tasks set up that email me on a specific date to complete it.
I would absolutely recommend others use a CRM. It’s made me more organized and has saved me countless hours on processes I used to have to do manually or track with Excel. I manage a consortium of independent PR practitioners that has grown from 8 members to 80 over the past eight years. Everyone wonders how I do it — Zoho is my secret.
Applications integrated: GSuite, Calendly, Stripe, Social media
Name of consultant: Maruice Remmé
Comments: I use parts of the Zoho One suite which proves more economical than subscribing to multiple branded services that are required in other areas of the business. It provides integration and benefits of the complete Zoho suite that is offered at an affordable price point. I use the CRM system to create leads captured from the website form, see all correspondence and exchanged files, deals, schedule a task, and more. Contacts are tagged and labeled for easy recognition. It provides oversight and a structured approach and workflow. Easy access to all communication and email with a contact. Integration with web forms for easy capturing leads and (drip) campaigns.
Applications integrated: WordPress, Zoho One suite of applications (mail, sign, survey, projects, meeting, booking, marketing campaign, office, forms, social, campaigns, marketing automation, flow)
Name: Rodney Warner
Comments: I use Zoho CRM to handle customer queries and business insights. I carefully assess my business needs before opting for a CRM platform. Once this is done, I make customizations according to my business needs. I use Zoho to get more leads and make the sales process easier, which lets me accurately measure how well I’m doing. I use its AI tool to help find potential customers and identify potential growth opportunities. Here are some customizations I have made in my Zoho CRM:
- Conditional Fields
- Validation Rules
- Views and Filters
- Picklist History tracking
