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Top 9 Best CRMs For The Solar Industry
-
Shape Software
In 2024, the solar industry has seen substantial growth, leading to increased competition and complexities in managing customer relationships, installations, and post-sale services. As a response, the market has produced specialized Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools designed precisely for solar businesses. These CRMs are not just generic tools repurposed; they're built to address the unique challenges faced by companies in this sector. In this article, we will be breaking down the top 9 Solar CRMs, their standout features, and their suitability for various business needs. Whether you're a major player in the solar sector or a startup aiming to scale, our analysis will provide you with the clarity needed to choose the best CRM for solar business.
SPOTIO
Effective solution for managing solar field sales teams
$75+/mo
Price increases per plan
- Field friendly mobile apps for reps
- Built-in sales route planning software
- geo-based sales rep tracking
- Automatic data capture
Top Choice
Shape
Premier Solar CRM, Boasting 500+ Cutting-Edge Features.
$119/user/mo
Fixed pricing plan
- built-in project management features
- Built-in phone, email, and text automation
- solar proposal tool
- AI powered
ZOHO
Customizable CRM with comprehensive features
$0-83/mo
Free plan available, premium starts at $12
- Built-in project management tools
- remote-ready features
- AI powered sales forecasting
- 1000+ integrations
What is a solar CRM?
A solar CRM is a customer relationship management system specifically designed for solar businesses. It helps streamline and automate various aspects of solar sales and project management, including lead generation, customer communication, proposal creation, contract management, and more.
What features should you look for in a solar CRM?
- 1. Solar-specific lead scoring and segmentation: A good solar CRM should be able to evaluate and categorize leads based on solar-specific criteria, helping you prioritize potential clients more effectively.
- 2. Project proposals generation: Facilitates or integrate with software that can aid in the creation of detailed project proposals. This includes providing cost estimates, Return on Investment (ROI) calculations, and solar design layouts, which offer clients a comprehensive view of the project.
- 3. Integration with design software: The CRM software should be able to integrate seamlessly with industry-leading solar design and proposal software, ensuring that designs are accurate and meet client requirements.
- 4. APIs for third-party integrations: The availability of APIs is crucial for ensuring the tool can be integrated with other essential tools. Whether it's accounting systems, ERP, or any other third-party software prevalent in the solar industry, smooth integration is key.
- 5. Project management capabilities: The CRM should be equipped with features that help in managing the entire lifecycle of a project, from initial inquiry to installation and post-installation services.
- 6. Customer communication tools: The CRM should have built-in tools for timely and efficient communication with clients through various channels.
- 7. Reporting and analytics: Insights into sales process, lead conversions, and project performances are crucial. The solar CRM should offer robust reporting tools to analyze these metrics, helping businesses to make informed decisions.
- 8. Mobile access and usability: Given that a significant portion of business operations in this sector, especially site evaluations, happen in the field, mobile accessibility ensures that teams can access and update CRM data on-the-go.
- 9. Training and support: With the industry evolving rapidly, having a solar CRM that offers continuous training and responsive support will ensure that teams can make the most out of the tool.
- 10. Data security and compliance: Given the sensitive nature of solar projects and customer data, it's crucial that the CRM adheres to data security standards and industry-specific compliance mandates.
What are the 5 most effective ways to use solar CRM software?
- 1. Lead management and prioritization: When it comes to solar sales, leads can come from various sources, be it online advertising campaigns, direct website inquiries, or local green energy events. By using solar CRM sales tools, companies can effectively capture and manage these leads. For example, after participating in a local green energy expo, you can systematically input the leads into the CRM. These leads can then be segmented based on criteria such as potential project size, geographical location, or budget, allowing sales reps to prioritize outreach and offer tailored solutions.
- 2. Project proposal creation: Converting a potential lead often hinges on presenting a compelling and detailed proposal. Using the CRM's quotation system, sales representatives can efficiently draft and customize project proposals, that resonate with potential clients. Let's say a homeowner expresses interest in a solar setup; the sales rep can swiftly pull up the CRM to craft a proposal. This proposal would detail potential ROI, provide an aesthetic design layout tailored to the property, and give a transparent breakdown of costs, ensuring the homeowner understands the full value proposition.
- 3. Installation scheduling and management: Once a project gets the green light, it's crucial to ensure that the installation process is seamless and efficient. A solar CRM is invaluable here. The solar CRM can map out a clear schedule, assign teams to specific sites, and track the progress in real-time. This ensures that resources, such as manpower and equipment, are optimally allocated, and the project stays on track.
- 4. Post-installation customer service: A solar installation is a significant investment, and clients expect robust after-sales service. CRMs become essential in managing post-installation services like warranty claims, routine maintenance, or troubleshooting. Suppose a client reports an issue with their solar panels. The solar CRM would help log this service request, assign it to a technician, and track its resolution. This systematic approach not only ensures quick problem resolution but also enhances overall customer satisfaction and trust.
- 5. Marketing and retargeting campaigns: The relationship with a client doesn't end post-installation. By harnessing the rich data stored in the CRM, solar companies can targeted marketing and retargeting campaigns. For instance, a company launching a new battery storage solution can identify past clients who might benefit from this. A personalized email campaign can then be initiated through the solar CRM, educating these clients about the benefits of adding battery storage to their existing setups. Such targeted initiatives increase the chances of upselling and foster long-term customer relationships.
Now you understand what a powerful CRM can do, let’s jump into the top 9 best CRM for solar business on the market.
Quick comparison of top 9 CRM for solar industry
| Software | Intro Price | Differentiator |
|---|---|---|
|
Shape |
$119 |
The Best Solar CRM with comprehensive features |
|
SPOTIO |
On Quote |
Advanced features for managing field sales teams |
|
Zoho CRM |
$0+ |
Highly customizable CRM for teams with complex operations |
|
Freshworks |
$0+ |
AI powered sale pipeline management feature to optimize sales strategy |
|
HubSpot |
$0 |
Comprehensive features to provide best in class post sales customer training and support experience |
|
Salesforce Sales Cloud |
$25 |
Robust internal communication and task management features to manage multiple complex deals simultaneously |
|
Pipedrive |
$14.90 |
User-friendly interface with customizable sales stages, ideal for streamlined lead tracking and sales management |
|
Insightly |
$29 |
Ideal for solar businesses needing integrated project management and CRM tools, offering robust data analytics and workflow automation for efficient solar project tracking |
|
ActiveCampaign |
$29 |
Suitable for solar businesses focusing on advanced email marketing and automation |
Our top 9 best solar CRM software in 2024 are:
1. Shape
| Founded: 1999 HQ: Irvine, California, United States | |
|---|---|
|
Key Info |
Price: $119/user/mo
Free plan: No
Support: 24/7 (In-product support + email) |
|
Best For |
Solar companies looking for a comprehensive solar CRM software |
|
Pros |
+ Easy to implement and drive team adoption
+ Phone, email, text, marketing, and lead distribution all-in-one
+ Lead scoring and automatic lead prioritization comes with every system
+ Comprehensive reporting capability |
|
Cons |
- Steep learning curve
- Only email support is available |
|
Integrations |
Outlook, Gmail, Quickbooks, Zapier, Calendly, and many more |
|
Pricing Model |
Sales & Marketing CRM: $119/user/mo
Point of Sale: $47/user/mo
Lead Funnels: $299/mo |
Shape's Solar CRM is a comprehensive automation platform designed to cater to both small and large solar businesses, optimizing their sales, project management, installation, and service operations. This powerful software boasts over 500 features, including a built-in dialer, email, and text automation, positioning it as the best Solar CRM for solar panels and solar devices installers.
Central to Shape's offerings is its integrated proposal tool, which not only generates professional proposals but also allows integration with other preferred proposal tools. This feature enables seamless proposal sending to clients during phone conversations, enhancing efficiency and professionalism. Furthermore, Shape's automation workflows extend the capability to launch email and text drip campaigns, aiming to boost sales.
The user experience is further enriched with Shape's branded solar customer portal. This portal simplifies the entire process for clients, allowing them to complete applications, securely upload documents, and apply for financing in a user-friendly environment. Additionally, it enables businesses to demonstrate potential energy savings directly within the portal, adding value to customer interactions.
Synchronization with Google or Outlook calendars is another key feature, facilitating collaboration among sales, project management, and service teams. Shape's integrated e-signature solution further streamlines operations, enabling more contracts to be signed without the need for additional tools or integrations.
Shape's mobile app stands out for its award-winning design, offering full functionality on any mobile device. This allows teams to work effectively on the go, capture pictures, and use Shape's features remotely. The app's email and texting functionality provides another layer of client engagement, with the capability to nurture clients automatically and send contracts for real-time signing on smartphones.
Lastly, Shape's project management tools are tailored to industry needs. They offer visual project displays, efficient management of estimates, and overall optimization of business operations. This comprehensive suite of features make Shape one of the best Solar CRM.
2. SPOTIO
| Founded: 2014 HQ: Texas, USA | |
|---|---|
|
Key Info |
Price: On Quote
Free plan: No; Trial: No
Support: Pemail, Chat and Phone (Based on Contract terms) |
|
Best For |
Managing Solar Field sales agents |
|
Pros |
+ Easy to capture and track data including GPS data
+ Efficient team management and performance monitoring capabilities
+ Robust leads and sales pipeline management without any leakages |
|
Cons |
- Has some glitches in the Map feature like Pins doesn't show exact address in some cases
- The mobile app can't be used offline and this can be a challenge for Sales Reps on the road
- The lead management filters can be complicated to use |
|
Integrations |
Enerflo, Salesforce, HubSpot and others including Zapier |
|
Pricing Model |
On Quote |
If your company operates with an outside sales team, SPOTIO will be a useful CRM tool for your business. In fact, SPOTIO is a specialized CRM specifically designed for field sales teams in the solar and energy industry.
Optimizing your sales processes for maximum efficiency and revenue generation is crucial to thrive amidst the fierce competition. This is precisely SPOTIO's forte. It is an all-in-one solution designed to enhance the productivity and performance of sales representatives.
From canvassing to lead generation, sales tracking, route planning, and task automation tools, SPOTIO provides everything required to close deals in. These solar CRM features have led several solar energy representatives to adopt SPOTIO to boost sales, enhance productivity, and reduce costs.
SPOTIO’s lead generation capabilities are especially noteworthy. The CRM has a leads feature that can segment potential customers using over 200 different data points. This ensures that your team can focus on qualified leads, saving you time and effort.
For example, individuals with better financial stability scores or those showing interest in sustainable options are likely to be more receptive to solar energy solutions. In this case, the system can help identify and target homes that closely align with this profile, using filters such as income levels, credit scores, eco-friendly preferences, and even previous engagement with energy initiatives.
As you engage with these targeted leads in your sales efforts, you need to stay organized to achieve optimal results. For this, you may want to leverage SPOTIO’s sales tracker to gain real-time insights into how leads are progressing through your sales funnel and make timely adjustments when needed. Additionally, The many team management features allow you to monitor each team member’s progress, identify areas for improvement, and use this information to motivate top performance, ensuring an overall successful sales journey.
While SPOTIO's lead generation capabilities are highly impressive, what really stood out for us when we tested the CRM was its outstanding in-class canvassing functionality. SPOTIO ensures that business owners never miss vital information, even after transferring leads to sales representatives.
Canvassers using SPOTIO can set appointments directly from the field and effortlessly transfer new leads to the closers, complete with detailed notes.
To make this process even more efficient, the CRM supports multi-channel communication. This means you can conveniently engage with these prospects through various means, including email, phone, and messaging. Even if sales representatives leave the company, all activity and lead data history remain securely within the system.
Our favorite thing about SPOTIO? You won't have to handle these tasks manually. This Solar CRM allows you to automate time-consuming activities such as redundant messaging and activity logging. It also provides templates for emails, calls, and texts, enhancing your customer interactions and allowing you to focus more on closing prospects. This automation also comes in handy after you've successfully nurtured your prospects and sent a proposal.
You can create an autoplay to automate your follow-up routine, so you continue to stay top of mind, resulting in more sales.
However, the caveat is SPOTIO does not have the capabilities to create detailed project proposals, but it makes up for this with its robust integrations. This CRM can be integrated with over 2000 third party apps via Zapier, including solar proposal software like Solo. This integration allows you to request and receive a proposal in minutes, even while in the customer's home.
SPOTIO's pricing model is equally customer-centric. Prices are tailored to each client’s needs, ensuring you only pay for CRM features you'll use. Therefore, instead of getting a standard price, a product expert will consult with you to provide accurate rates that perfectly match your unique requirements and budget.
Overall, with a 4.4/5 rating on G2, users generally praise SPOTIO's intuitive interface and robust lead management capabilities. Despite occasional glitches, it's primarily seen as an effective tool for solar teams. In fact, SPOTIO claims to have helped solar companies boost revenue by 23% and productivity by a whopping 46%!
3. Zoho CRM
| Founded: 2005 HQ: Austin, Texas, United States; Chennai India | |
|---|---|
|
Key Info |
Price: Starts at $0
Free plan: Yes; Trial: 14 days
Support: Phone, email & chat
|
|
Best For |
Solar teams looking for a comprehensive customizable CRM solution |
|
Pros |
+ Low cost CRM with a host of services integrated with Zoho suite
+ excellent reporting feature with customization options including UI
+ The free plan is fully functional |
|
Cons |
- Does not natively integrate with software used in the industry
- Learning the software can be hard as it lacks sufficient training material
- No templates or pre-built workflows for the industry |
|
Integrations |
Salesforce, SugarCRM, OneDrive, and many more |
|
Pricing Model |
Standard: $12 per user/month
Professional: $20 per user/month
Enterprise: $35 per user/month
Ultimate: $45 per user/month |
While it isn't specifically a solar CRM, Zoho is extremely comprehensive and feature rich and can be adapted to almost any use case. Features include sales force automation, lead, deal, contact management, workflow automation, and more. Using these features, companies can automate routine sales, marketing, and support activities, secure and nurture quality leads, close more deals, and optimize their entire sales process.
Although Zoho’s lead management and segmentation features are not specifically designed for solar installation companies , you can customize them to fit your needs. For example, you can segment your customers based on common characteristics such as their region, energy usage, budget constraints, or type of property industry. They can be valuable for executing targeted campaigns and identifying cross-sell or upsell opportunities.
Once you have your segmented customer groups, you can prioritize them based on their conversion potential using the lead scoring system. With these segmentation and lead management features, you can personalize your marketing efforts, improve engagement, retention, and return on investment on your marketing campaigns. To further optimize your marketing efforts, the Zoho marketing platform can streamline the entire marketing process, saving you time and resources while also ensuring consistent and effective communication with all your prospects.
However, implementing these strategies is only half of the equation. To completely seal the deal and maximize your outcomes, it is crucial to track your performance and determine the impact of your strategies and know where you stand.
Zoho CRM’s advanced analytics and reporting tools help you measure the performance of your sales activities, track sales trends, and analyze marketing campaigns. This information is valuable to your solar company as it helps to identify areas needing improvement, optimize sales processes, and make data-driven decisions that drive business growth.
As your solar company expands and develops changing needs, your CRM system will need to adapt effectively to these changes. Zoho CRM also shines here with its range of API integrations with several third-party applications commonly used by solar companies. You can leverage these APIs to tailor your CRM system to meet your evolving needs, such as integrating solar proposal software or maintaining data consistency across various platforms.
User reviews have validated Zoho CRM’s scalability as solar companies, such as Revision Energy, have successfully managed their solar installation projects and optimized their workflows using Zoho CRM.
Their satisfied Digital Marketing Manager echoes, “The whole premise with software as a service is that it gets better over time, and we’ve experienced exactly that with Zoho. I see us growing more with Zoho’s help!”
While Zoho CRM software boasts numerous strengths and benefits, it has weaknesses. During our testing, we found the initial learning curve and time needed to get familiar with the platform to be a significant drawback.
But despite this initial learning curve, Zoho CRM remains a comprehensive customer relationship management software for solar companies to manage customer interactions, improve lead conversion rates, boost revenue per salesperson, and enhance overall customer satisfaction. With its highest subscription plan priced under $50, Zoho unquestionably offers excellent value for money.
3. Freshworks
| Founded: 2010 HQ: San Mateo, California, United States | |
|---|---|
|
Key Info |
Price: Starts at $0
Free plan: Yes; Trial: 15 days
Support: Email, phone, chat
|
|
Best For |
Solar sales teams looking to improve their performance through AI |
|
Pros |
+ The system is easy to configure
+ Efficient system with Clean UI
+ A feature-rich platform with the ability to segment views based on territories and permissions |
|
Cons |
- While the CRM offers an extensive range of features, they sometimes fall short in terms of quality and usability.
- No plug and play industry specific templates/customizations
- Limited integrations with other solar software. |
|
Integrations |
Zapier, Segment, Shopify, Typeform and many more |
|
Pricing Model |
Growth: $15/month
Pro: $39/month
Enterprise: $69/month
|
Freshworks is another strong contender for one of the best solar panel installation company CRM. It stands out for its robust AI capabilities and offers other notable features suitable for solar installers, including opportunity management, contact management, lead management, sales automation, inventory management and reporting.
As we mentioned, what stood out for us while testing Freshworks’ capabilities was its robust AI capabilities. The CRM’s lead scoring and segmentation is highly sophisticated as it is handled through its AI-powered sales assistant, Freddy AI.
This AI Assistant scores your contacts based on historical data and assigns them priorities based on positive and negative signals, allowing your team to focus on the warmest leads.
After you've identified your high-priority leads, you can start nurturing them through personalized interactions. Freshworks' marketing and sales hub makes this easier by automating repetitive tasks and workflows, such as sending follow-up emails, scheduling appointments, and more.
This automation not only saves you time and efforts on mundane tasks but also allows you to concentrate your efforts on what truly matters – closing more deals. As your leads progress further down the sales funnel, you can leverage the opportunity management feature to continuously oversee them and not miss out on closing any potential solar project.
This feature gives you a complete view of each opportunity's journey, from the initial contact to the project proposal stage and final closure. With this information, you're able to make data-driven and informed decisions at different stages, ensuring that all the hard work you've put into the sales process pays off.
Although Freshworks does not have certain solar-specific features, it is highly flexible. Its flexible APIs and integrations marketplace allow it to seamlessly integrate with various software you might need, such as a solar proposal or design software, accounting tools, and project management platforms. This enables you to centralize your data and workflows and removes the need for multiple software.
For example, Freshworks can integrate easily with SolarPlusV4 through its Zapier connection. SolarPlus V4 is a solar specific software designed to streamline various aspects of the solar graph and documentation process. It generates handover documentation, helps to save time on compliance-related tasks, and provides an innovative panel layout tool called RoofMap. By integrating Freshworks CRM with SolarPlus V4, both systems can share data and synchronize, ensuring efficient collaboration between your sales and solar project management teams.
Despite Freshworks’ extensive features and flexibility, it is highly generous with its pricing structure. With a free forever plan that allows you to manage your contacts, accounts, and deals and a $15 base plan that offers additional benefits like workflows and AI contact scoring functionality, Freshworks is an affordable choice for small to medium solar businesses that need robust features on a budget.
However, we’d recommend the $39 Pro plan at $39, which not only gives you access to all these features, but also allows multiple sales pipelines, time-based workflows, and more. These additional features allow you to efficiently manage your sales processes, improving your business's productivity and growth potential.
With easy-to-set configurations, workflows, multiple pipeline deals, and API integrations, Freshsales is an easy-to-use, intuitive leading CRM software that helps solar businesses scale. Its 4.5/5 rating on G2 and many positive user reviews validate our claims.
5. HubSpot
| Founded: 2006 HQ: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States | |
|---|---|
|
Key Info |
Price: Starts at $0
Free plan: Available; Trial: 14 Days
Support: Phone, email & chat
|
|
Best For |
Solar firms looking to provide a seamless post sales customer experience |
|
Pros |
+ Can be fully tailored towards the needs of the industry
+ Reduces the pressure on sales operations with automation
+Easy to track customer interactions like email opens |
|
Cons |
- Does not have many integrations with solar lead providers
- Managing and Sharing templates with team members can be problematic
- The system glitches from time to time |
|
Integrations |
Google Calendar, WordPress, Gmail, Mailchimp, and 1000+ other apps |
|
Pricing Model |
Starter: $18 per month
Professional: $1600 per month
Enterprise: $5000 per month |
If your solar company has many salespeople, and you want to organize all customer data and interaction in one place, HubSpot’s CRM could be a good fit.
This CRM provides a centralized customer database that lets you organize customer data and easily manage contact details, communication history, and significant customer interactions, giving your team a unified understanding of your customers.
The platform's user-friendliness really hit the mark for us during our evaluation of HubSpot. HubSpot generates customized reports and dashboards that directly retrieve specific data from the HubSpot CRM, ensuring that your entire solar team has access to vital information at a glance.
These dashboards make it easy to manage multiple sales pipelines and track sales performance. Additionally, if some aspects of your solar operations rely on essential data from external apps, HubSpot’s integration with over 1000 external apps allows you to synchronize data across a wide range of applications and web services.
Providing excellent customer service and support is crucial for building trust and ensuring customer satisfaction, especially during the installation and post-installation process. HubSpot’s Service Hub package will enables you to provide better customer service and support. This hub includes tools like a centralized inbox, automated ticketing, service performance dashboards, and a knowledge base functionality.
For example, with the knowledge base functionality, you can create a repository of articles and guides related to solar installation, maintenance, and troubleshooting on your website. Since solar installations and systems can raise various questions for customers, they can access this self-help resource at any time to find answers independently, reducing their reliance on support inquiries and enhancing their overall customer experience.
HubSpot, like the other software options in this list, offers robust lead management features for capturing and tracking leads at various stages efficiently. To speed up the journey from leads to closures, you can leverage the platform’s automation capabilities by setting up workflows and sequences.
This automation feature will especially come in handy if your solar business is dealing with high lead volumes and require efficient follow-up processes. As you continue to advance your sales efforts, you’ll be able to gauge your performance and optimize your strategies by closely tracking key metrics through the platform’s reporting and analytics tools.
All these powerful features are housed in HubSpot's 4 subscription tiers, each designed to accommodate different business needs. If you are a small to medium-sized solar business, the free and $20 starter plans cover the essential marketing, sales, service, CMS, and operations software that you’ll need to scale your operations.
However, there’s a significant price jump on the professional and enterprise plans (which will likely be needed for the solar industry), with prices going as high as $1600 to $5000+ per month depending on the features you require and the number of leads/customer profiles you want to store. Therefore, these higher-tier plans are better suited for larger businesses and enterprises seeking highly comprehensive and advanced features.
Regardless of the size of your solar business, HubSpot provides a versatile and comprehensive CRM platform that can adapt to your specific needs. Its user-friendly dashboards, marketing automation, and robust lead management features make it a valuable tool for any solar company looking to optimize operations and improve customer satisfaction.
5. Salesforce Sales Cloud
| Founded: 1999 HQ: San Francisco, California, United States | |
|---|---|
|
Key Info |
Price: Starts at $25
Free plan: No; Trial: 30 Days
Support: Phone & Email
|
|
Best For |
large teams looking for reliable CRM to enable team collaboration on deals |
|
Pros |
+ Streamlines sales process through automation
+ Provides real time insights into sales team performance
+ Detailed reports and dashboard that provide real time insights into customers and team performance |
|
Cons |
- Requires developers even for small optimizations
- Onboarding users to the platform can be difficult
- Customer communications features are not robust |
|
Integrations |
isolar and over 3000 other apps |
|
Pricing Model |
Essentials: $25 per month for one user Professional: $75 per month for one user Enterprise: $150 per month for one user Ultimate: $300 per month for one user |
Salesforce Sales Cloud is an incredibly robust, feature-rich CRM ideally suited for larger solar companies. Its ability to integrate marketing, sales, customer support teams into a single platform provides comprehensive solutions that any solar business would find beneficial. Additionally, it provides a 360-degree view of customers' information that ensures that all your customer interactions and sales efforts are personalized and well-targeted.
With features such as specialized lead assignments, follow-ups, email templates, and sales forecasting, you can save much time and shift your team's focus toward closing deals. Plus, you can accomplish these tasks faster using the CRM’s collection of automation tools, which are scalable enough to meet the needs of any solar company, regardless of its size.
Salesforce's specialized lead and opportunity management system lets you capture, track, and manage leads and opportunities throughout your sales lifecycle. It enables you to delegate tasks, prioritize leads, monitor your deals’ progress, and boost sales success.
In addition, the built-in AI lead scoring system provides you added insights from calls and other customer interactions to predict which leads are more likely to convert into customers, helping your solar business allocate resources more effectively and improve conversion rates.
Collaboration and communication among team members are crucial for effective operations, especially if you are a solar company where numerous projects coincide and require timely updates. Salesforce Sales Cloud allows you to share information, assign tasks, and facilitate internal communication within the platform in real-time. These timely updates and notifications within the platform ensure that your entire team stays efficient and responds to clients promptly.
However, despite Salesforce’s extensive features, it might not suit every solar company. Due to its high level of functionality, we discovered during testing that it can be challenging to implement. Setting up the software effectively could demand more time from your IT department and possibly require hiring a Salesforce consultant to manage your CRM.
Considering its relatively expensive cost, going as high as $80 to $350 per month, adding extra expenses for new team members to handle the CRM may not be feasible for small solar businesses.
The platform can be a difficult match for smaller or midsize solar companies that may not require the full spectrum of Salesforce's capabilities. In such cases, getting a more streamlined CRM may be more practical.
But if Salesforce aligns with the requirements of your solar business, we recommend the $80 per month Professional plan for its robust forecasting and analytics capabilities. This advanced tool gives you all the needed insights into your sales performance and helps you track critical metrics effectively.
Overall, Salesforce Sales Cloud’s user reviews align with our evaluation, with the platform mainly getting positive reviews for its extensive features and functionality and a 4.5 rating on G2.
7. Pipedrive
| Founded: 2010 HQ: New York, United States | |
|---|---|
|
Key info |
Price: Starts at $14.90
Free plan: No; Trial: 14 Days
Support: 24/7 Email and Chat
|
|
Best for |
Small to medium-sized businesses requiring a user-friendly, sales-focused CRM with a straightforward interface |
|
Pros |
+ Easy to set up and use, ideal for small teams
+ Comprehensive sales reporting and forecasting tools
+ Strong third-party app integration, with an extensive marketplace for add-ons |
|
Cons |
- Lacks native helpdesk or ticket-based support system
- Limited customization for larger businesses or enterprises
- Additional features and add-ons may incur extra costs |
|
Integrations |
Extensive range including VoIP tools, accounting systems, and marketing automation platforms via its marketplace and Zapier |
|
Pricing Model |
Essential: $9.90 per month (one user)
Advanced: $19.90 per month (one user)
Professional: $39.90 per month (one user)
Power: $49.90 per month (one user)
Enterprise: $59.90 per month (one user) |
Pipedrive CRM stands out as an advantageous tool for solar businesses, especially those in the small to medium-sized range, due to its straightforward and user-friendly interface. This CRM is particularly suitable for solar companies that are looking for a quick and efficient setup, a crucial feature for businesses in an industry that often requires rapid adaptation to changing market demands and project-based workflows.
The customizable nature of Pipedrive's sales processes is a significant asset for solar companies. They can tailor their sales stages and deal types to align with the specific steps of projects, which typically include consultation, design approval, installation, and post-installation service. This customization allows for a more accurate and effective tracking of the sales pipeline, which is essential in the project-driven solar industry.
Moreover, Pipedrive's robust sales reporting and forecasting tools provide valuable insights for solar businesses. These tools help in understanding sales performance and projecting future sales, which is particularly important given the seasonal nature of installation projects. Accurate forecasting assists in resource allocation and planning, ensuring that the business is prepared for peak installation periods.
Additionally, the CRM's marketplace offers a range of integrations, beneficial for automating and streamlining various aspects of business operations. For instance, integrations with VoIP tools can facilitate improved communication with clients, while marketing automation platforms can enhance lead generation and customer engagement efforts. These integrations can help solar businesses to effectively manage and nurture customer relationships, from initial inquiry to post-installation follow-ups.
Pipedrive also offers a mobile app for both Android and iOS, providing access to solar CRM data even when on the move. This is particularly useful for solar companies whose teams are often in the field, allowing them to update and access customer information in real-time, enhancing customer service and response times.
All things considered, Pipedrive's combination of ease of use, customizable sales processes, robust reporting and forecasting, and a wide range of integrations make it a decent solar CRM choice. While it may not offer the extensive customization required by larger or enterprise-level companies, its feature set and pricing model align well with the needs and budgets of smaller to medium-sized solar businesses.
8. Insightly CRM
| Founded: 2009 HQ: San Francisco, California, United States | |
|---|---|
|
Key info |
Price: Starts at $29
Free plan: Yes; Trial: Available
Support: Knowledge Base, Webinars, Live Chat, Email & Phone (higher tiers)
|
|
Best for |
Businesses needing CRM with integrated project management tools |
|
Pros |
+ Comprehensive project management integration
+ 360-degree contact view with social media data
+ Robust lead management and CRM reporting
+ Extensive app integrations with automated workflow capabilities |
|
Cons |
- Mobile app lacks offline access
- User interface may seem outdated to some users
- Customization may require extra effort |
|
Integrations |
Over 1,000 third-party applications through Insightly AppConnect |
|
Pricing Model |
Plus: $29 per user/month
Professional: $49 per user/month
Enterprise: $99 per user/month |
Like Shape, Insightly specifically designed it's CRM for solar companies, and is highly regarded is highly regarded for its robust project management and workflow automation features. These capabilities are particularly beneficial for solar businesses, where managing and tracking solar installation projects is crucial. The platform enables users to effectively manage, track, and update project details, streamlining day-to-day processes without the need for extensive coding. This ease of customization to specific workflows significantly enhances efficiency, saving time and improving operational workflows.
Another key feature of Insightly is its data analytics tools. These tools offer valuable insights into business operations, allowing solar companies to make informed decisions based on accurate, data-driven insights. The integration with various apps also enhances its utility, enabling seamless data and contact management across different platforms.
Insightly's user-friendly interface is another plus, especially for users with low to intermediate coding experience. The platform is designed to be intuitive, making it accessible for users of all skill levels. However, it's worth noting that compared to some other programs, like Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets, Insightly's data visualization tools offer limited customizable features.
Users have also reported limitations in customizing the appearance of dashboard cards, and adding new cards to a dashboard can occasionally interfere with the entire layout. Additionally, the dashboard auto-refresh occurs only every hour, which means the data shown can be up to an hour old rather than live. Though manual refreshing is available, this could be a concern for businesses requiring real-time data updates.
That being said, while Insightly has some limitations in dashboard customization and data refresh frequency, the overall functionality of this solar CRM makes it a strong candidate for businesses looking to streamline their operations and enhance efficiency.
9. ActiveCampaign
| Founded: 2003 HQ: Chicago, Illinois, United States | |
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Key info |
Price: Starts at $29
Free plan: No; Trial: Available
Support: Knowledge Base, Webinars, Live Chat, Email
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Best for |
Small to medium-sized businesses seeking advanced email marketing and automation capabilities |
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Pros |
+ Advanced email marketing with dynamic content and A/B testing
+ Integrated CRM and email marketing
+ Robust automation and lead scoring features
+ Over 900 third-party application integrations |
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Cons |
- Some features may be complex for beginners
- Can become cumbersome for large teams or deal volumes
- Limited sales reporting features compared to top competitors |
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Integrations |
Integrates with over 900 applications, including Salesforce, WordPress, Shopify, PayPal, Stripe, Gmail, Facebook, and WooCommerce |
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Pricing Model |
Lite: $29 per month
Plus: $49 per month
Professional: $149 per month
Enterprise: $259 per month |
ActiveCampaign CRM, with its integration of email marketing, automation, and CRM functionalities, offers several advantages for solar businesses.
The platform's email marketing capability is a standout feature. It's designed to be user-friendly, featuring a drag-and-drop email builder that allows for easy creation of visually appealing and customized emails. For solar businesses, this means the ability to create targeted email campaigns to engage potential customers, showcase new solar installations, or provide updates about solar technology advancements. With over 150 pre-designed templates and the ability to perform A/B testing, solar companies can optimize their email campaigns for better engagement and conversion rates.
The CRM functionality of ActiveCampaign is closely integrated with its email marketing system. This integration is particularly beneficial for solar businesses as it allows automated responses based on contact behaviors and interactions. For instance, if a potential customer shows interest in a particular solar product or service, ActiveCampaign can trigger specific email campaigns or follow-up actions. This feature helps in nurturing leads and moving them through the sales funnel more effectively.
ActiveCampaign's lead scoring feature is valuable for solar businesses in prioritizing leads and assessing the effectiveness of their marketing strategies. By scoring leads based on interactions like website visits or email engagements, solar companies can focus their efforts on the most promising prospects.
Users have praised ActiveCampaign for its strong automation features and customer support. The platform's high degree of customization and integration with a wide range of third-party applications can be particularly useful for solar businesses looking to streamline their operations and enhance their marketing efforts.
However, there are some limitations. The platform's WordPress plugin, for example, could offer more features like statistics for new contacts and list assignments. These aspects might be crucial for solar businesses looking to integrate their website directly with their CRM and marketing efforts.
In summary, ActiveCampaign is a well-rounded solar CRM, especially those looking to enhance their marketing automation and customer relationship management. Its ease of use, combined with powerful email marketing and CRM integration, makes it a suitable choice for solar companies aiming to grow their customer base and improve their marketing efficiency. The affordability of ActiveCampaign also makes it an attractive option for small to medium-sized solar businesses. Nevertheless, larger solar companies with more complex CRM needs might find some features lacking compared to more advanced, higher-priced alternatives.
How to choose solar CRM that's best for your business
Choosing the right CRM for your solar business is a critical decision that can significantly impact your operational efficiency and customer relationships. As you explore solar CRM options for your solar business, consider the specific challenges and objectives unique to the industry. The features discussed in this article, tailored to the solar sector, should serve as a guide in aligning a CRM to your business's distinctive needs. With a well-defined checklist, begin your journey to find the ideal solar CRM software, leveraging the insights from this article. The right CRM can streamline your processes and propel your business towards greater success and customer satisfaction.
In the solar industry, navigating the complexities requires more than just solar expertise; it necessitates the appropriate technological tools. This article has delved into the transformative power of solar CRM systems specifically designed for solar businesses. From efficiently managing various solar projects to ensuring compliance with industry standards and nurturing strong customer relationships, an apt CRM system can be pivotal in enhancing your operational effectiveness and building customer trust.
Our Top Pick - Shape
4.8/5 - from 2,000+ reviews
All-in-one software for marketing, sales, customer service, CRM, and operations. Improve communication and maximize your business.
Please note: All pricing mentioned in this article is based on information available as of 10-01-2024 and sourced from the respective companies' public pricing pages. While we strive for accuracy, we recommend verifying with the specific company for the most up-to-date details.
