Best CRM Software 2024? Notion vs Airtable vs folk vs Copper vs Pipedrive vs HubSpot vs Salesforce

Summary

The video script discusses the importance of using a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system for managing business relationships and communication. It advises against using tools like Notion or Airtable as CRMs due to their lack of automatic email ingestion and inherent design as databases or knowledge bases, rather than CRMs. Instead, the video recommends Folk for individual users or small teams needing a CRM focused on contact management, and Copper or Pipedrive for teams seeking advanced integrations, reporting, and workflow automations. Copper, in particular, is highlighted for its traditional CRM structure and strong integration capabilities with Google Workspace. The video also emphasizes the common mistake of over-reliance on individual tasks within a CRM and suggests organizing tasks into groups under specific stages for better process management and automation opportunities.

Takeaways

• 🚫 Do not use Airtable or Notion as CRMs because they lack the ability to automatically ingest emails, which is a fundamental feature of CRMs.
• 📊 CRMs should serve as the central hub for all business communications, preventing unprofessional overlaps like contacting a lead twice.
• 🛠 Airtable and Notion were not designed to be CRMs; Airtable is a database and Notion is a knowledge base, which is different from CRM functionalities.
• 🔍 Using a CRM that is not built for the purpose can lead to spending unnecessary time configuring it and training the team, which may result in poor adoption.
• 🌟 Folk is recommended for individuals or small teams focused on contact management and relationship building, offering ease of use and powerful CRM features.
• 📝 Copper (or Pipedrive for Microsoft 365 users) is suggested for teams needing advanced CRM functionalities like integrations, reporting, and workflow automations.
• 🔗 Copper's workflow automation and integration capabilities allow for seamless processes from lead generation to sales conversion, enhancing team efficiency.
• 📈 Copper is particularly good for reporting with its advanced reporting features, useful for teams that need to track and analyze their sales processes closely.
• 💡 A common mistake in CRM setup is over-reliance on individual tasks; it's better to group tasks under stages for better process management and automation opportunities.
• ⚙️ For small teams under 300 employees, larger CRM platforms like HubSpot or Salesforce may be too expensive and complex; consider more focused tools like Folk or Copper.
• 📚 The presenter's company has worked with numerous businesses to implement CRMs and has insights from tens of thousands of visitors seeking software advice on their website.

Q & A

What is the primary purpose of a CRM?

A CRM is used to manage business relationships, which can include leads, prospects, vendors, colleagues, and partnerships. It should act as the central hub of communication for a business, ingesting all team communications with various parties in one place.

Why are Airtable and Notion not recommended as CRMs?

Airtable and Notion are not recommended as CRMs because they do not automatically ingest team emails into the CRM, missing out on centralizing communication which is a fundamental feature of CRMs. Additionally, they were not built to be CRMs; Airtable is a database and Notion is a knowledge base.

What is the main difference between using a CRM and building a CRM with tools like Airtable or Notion?

Building a CRM with tools like Airtable or Notion turns a user into a product manager, requiring time and effort to construct a CRM that fits their company's needs. In contrast, using a CRM that is built for the purpose allows users to focus on their core business activities without the overhead of software development.

Why is Folk recommended for individual users or small teams?

Folk is recommended for individual users or small teams because it is designed for contact management and relationship building. It offers a database-like structure for easy data manipulation, pre-built templates for quick setup, and user-friendly features like a Chrome extension for contact addition.

What are some of the AI features that Folk is experimenting with?

Folk is experimenting with AI features to improve user experience within the tool. Users can insert their own prompts and variables to generate drafts for emails or social media messages, which can help kickstart the process of communication.

What is Copper's main advantage over other CRMs for teams looking for integrations, reporting, and workflow automations?

Copper's main advantage is its traditional CRM structure with powerful capabilities for integrations, reporting, and workflow automations. It is particularly suitable for teams that are looking to map their processes out to a CRM and integrate it with other tools like invoicing software, scheduling, and e-signature platforms.

How does Copper help in automating workflows for a team?

Copper offers workflow automations that allow teams to create autotasks. For example, when a lead comes in, a task can be automatically created for a team member, or when an opportunity reaches a certain stage, team members can be assigned a set of tasks.

What is a common mistake made by teams when setting up their CRM?

A common mistake is relying too much on individual tasks to move things forward in the CRM. This often results in a backlog of overdue tasks. Instead, teams should think in terms of groups of tasks associated with specific stages in their CRM for better process management.

Why are HubSpot and Salesforce not recommended for very small teams?

HubSpot and Salesforce are not recommended for very small teams because they can become expensive very quickly. There are more cost-effective CRM options available that still provide the necessary functionalities for small teams.

What is the recommended approach for teams to manage tasks within their CRM?

Teams should manage tasks within their CRM by organizing them under specific stages of their business process rather than as individual tasks. This provides a clear overview of where each opportunity stands in the process and opens up opportunities for automation.

What additional advice is given for teams setting up their CRM?

When setting up a CRM, teams are advised to document all the steps needed to move an opportunity to the next stage under specific stages. This not only helps in providing a clear process overview but also facilitates future automation, such as triggering integrations for tasks like invoice creation.

Outlines

00:00

🚫 Notion and Airtable as CRMs

The video discusses why Notion and Airtable are not suitable as CRMs. It emphasizes that neither tool automatically incorporates team emails into the CRM, which is a fundamental feature for centralized communication. The presenter also points out that these tools were not designed with CRM functionalities in mind, with Notion being a knowledge base and Airtable being a database. The video suggests that building a CRM from these tools can be time-consuming and diverts business owners from their core activities.

05:01

🌟 Recommended CRMs: Folk and Copper

The video recommends Folk as a CRM for individuals or small teams focused on contact management and relationship building. It highlights Folk's ease of setup with pre-built templates, attractive interface, and the convenience of adding contacts through a Chrome extension. For teams seeking a CRM with advanced features like integrations, reporting, and workflow automations, Copper or Pipedrive are suggested. Copper, which is more traditional and integrates well with other tools, is particularly recommended for teams that have well-defined processes and wish to integrate their CRM with invoicing software, scheduling tools, and e-signature solutions.

10:01

📈 Workflow Automations and Reporting in Copper

The presenter explains Copper's workflow automations, which can create tasks or opportunities automatically, and its advanced reporting capabilities. The video illustrates how Copper can serve as the central tool in a workflow that integrates with various other tools, creating a seamless experience for the team and customers. It also advises against using individual tasks to manage CRM processes, instead suggesting the organization of tasks into stages within the CRM for better oversight and potential automation opportunities. The video concludes with a recommendation to use a CRM designed for the job from the start, rather than configuring a non-CRM tool like Notion or Airtable.

Keywords

💡CRM

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is a system for managing a company's interactions with current and potential customers. It is used to manage business relationships, including leads, prospects, vendors, colleagues, and partnerships. In the video, the speaker discusses the importance of using a CRM as a central hub for communication and how it should ingest all team communications in one place to avoid unprofessional overlaps.

💡Airtable

Airtable is a cloud-based software that combines elements of spreadsheets and databases. It is mentioned in the video as a tool that, despite its popularity, does not make for a great CRM because it does not automatically ingest emails into the CRM system, which is a fundamental feature for centralized communication.

💡Notion

Notion is a flexible tool used for note-taking, knowledge management, and organizing information. It is highlighted in the video as unsuitable for CRM purposes because it was not built to manage customer relationships and lacks the automatic email ingestion feature that is crucial for CRMs.

💡Folk

Folk is a CRM tool designed for individuals or small teams focused on contact management and relationship building. The video recommends Folk for its database-like structure, ease of use, pre-built templates, and powerful CRM features. It is particularly praised for its simple contact addition process through a Chrome extension.

💡Copper

Copper is a CRM system that integrates well with Google Workspace and is suitable for teams looking for a powerful tool for integrations, reporting, and workflow automations. The video discusses Copper's traditional CRM structure and its ability to serve as a central tool for various business processes and third-party tool integrations.

💡Pipedrive

Pipedrive is a CRM tool that is very similar to Copper in functionality and is recommended for teams using Microsoft 365. It is mentioned as an alternative to Copper for users who are not on Google Workspace, emphasizing its similarity in features and capabilities.

💡

💡Integrations

Integrations refer to the ability of a CRM system to connect and interact with other software tools. In the context of the video, Copper's integration capabilities are highlighted, showing how it can seamlessly work with invoicing software, scheduling tools, and e-signature platforms to streamline business processes.

💡Workflow Automations

Workflow automations are processes within a CRM system that are automated to streamline work and increase efficiency. Copper's workflow automations are discussed in the video as a way to create autotasks, assign tasks to team members, or autocreate opportunities, which can significantly reduce manual work and improve productivity.

💡Reporting

Reporting in the context of a CRM system involves generating and analyzing data to understand business performance. Copper's advanced reporting capabilities are mentioned as a key feature for teams interested in data-driven decision-making, allowing them to track and report on various aspects of their sales and customer interactions.

💡Affiliate Link

An affiliate link is a unique URL that contains an identifier for the affiliate who is promoting a product or service. In the video, the speaker provides an affiliate link for Folk and Copper, which viewers can use to sign up for these services and receive a discount or additional benefits.

💡Task Management

Task management involves organizing and tracking tasks to improve personal or team productivity. The video advises against relying too much on individual tasks within a CRM and instead suggests grouping tasks under specific stages of a business process for better organization and the potential for automation.

Highlights

The importance of using a CRM to manage business relationships and centralize communication is emphasized.

Notion and Airtable are not recommended as CRMs due to their inability to automatically ingest team emails.

Folk is recommended as a CRM for individual users or small teams focused on contact management.

Folk offers easy setup with pre-built templates and a user-friendly interface for adding contacts.

Copper is suggested for teams seeking CRMs with powerful integrations, reporting, and workflow automations.

Copper's workflow automations can create tasks and opportunities automatically, streamlining team processes.

Pipedrive is a similar alternative to Copper for teams using Microsoft 365.

An example workflow using Copper for a home services company is provided to illustrate CRM integrations.

Teams should avoid relying too much on individual tasks within a CRM and instead focus on groups of tasks.

A CRM should serve as the central hub for all team communications to prevent unprofessional overlaps.

Folk's Chrome extension simplifies contact addition and integrates with Gmail, LinkedIn, and X.

Copper's advanced reporting capabilities make it a strong choice for teams interested in data analysis.

HubSpot and Salesforce are not recommended for very small teams due to their quick escalation in cost.

The video offers a $1,200 Copper crash course for free after the first paid month for those who sign up using the provided affiliate link.

A common mistake in CRM setup is over-reliance on individual tasks; instead, teams should use stages with grouped tasks.

The video concludes with a recommendation to use a CRM built for the purpose rather than configuring a non-CRM tool.

For those looking for project management tools, the video suggests checking out another video that discusses favorite PM tools.

Transcripts

I'll cover the Crums you shouldn't use

like notion or air table and the Crums

you should consider like copper or

[Music]

folk here at aish app we've worked with

hundreds of businesses over the past

decade to help them set up and Implement

their CRM and we also have tens of

thousands of visitors coming to our

website with people looking for software

advice so I promise you we will not lead

you astray we're confident that you're

going to walk away from this video

knowing exactly which CRM you should use

especially if your team size is between

1 to 300 and stay until the end of the

video to hear one of the most common

mistakes that people make when setting

up their CRM all right let's get into it

before we get super deep into it let's

cover what a CRM should be used for and

you're going to see why I'm covering

this in just a moment so a CRM is used

to manage your business relationships

this can be anything from your leads to

your prospects to your vendors to your

colleagues to Partnerships and a CRM

should be the central Hub of

communication for your business meaning

that it should ingest all of your team's

communication with all the different

people that your business is interacting

with in one central place if you have

worked in sales and you've ever

contacted the same person twice and

they've replied back and said someone

from your team just messaged me

yesterday you know how unprofessional

that is and that often is the result of

a team that's not using a CRM or at

least not using it properly so when

you're choosing a CRM you want to make

sure that they're doing all of those

things that I mentioned out of the box

at the very minimum okay so which CRM

should you use now I know I know there's

so much hype around air table and

especially noce but you're going to see

in just a moment why they don't make for

great crms well the first reason why air

table and notion don't make for great

crms is because neither tool will

automatically ingest your team's emails

into the CRM this means that that super

basic feature of a customer relationship

management tool of centralizing your

communication is totally missed when

using air table or notion this also

means that you're missing out on

important information like which hot

lead you should follow up with next

because in a traditional CRM you'll be

able to see how many interactions you

had with someone when the last

interaction was when they last opened

your email are they opening your emails

but all of this data is missed out if

you're using air table or notion okay

and as a side note I have to address

this because I know there's some of you

watching that are going to say hey Andre

you know you can set up an integration

with make or zappier to ingest all of

your emails if you're using notion or

air table as a CRM instead of explaining

the Myriad of reasons why we think this

is a bad idea pause this video to see

our responses to some of these comments

in a previous video reason number two of

why you shouldn't use air table or

notion as a CRM is because they weren't

built to be a CRM Z notion is a

knowledge base not a CRM air table is

first and foremost a database which

means it helps you add more structure to

your data so think of it as a

replacement for a spreadsheet like

Google Sheets or Excel which by the way

if you're using Google Sheets or Excel

as a CRM please don't do that either and

just keep watching this video for our

recommendations of what to use instead

the tools that we'll talk about in a

second we're built to be first and

foremost customer relationship

management tools which means all of

their features actually fit Under the

Umbrella of being great crms their

entire company is dedicated to building

the best tool to help you manage

relationships so with air table or

notion you might get excited because

you're thinking wow these tools are

super flexible so I can actually built

my dream CRM for my company but what

happens in that case is you end up

turning into a product manager you are

now building a CRM instead of actually

just using a CRM that was built now this

is especially problematic if you're a

business owner because my bet is your

time is way better spent actually doing

sales or training your team to do better

sales rather than than building a

software tool especially if your

business has nothing to do with building

customer relationship management tools

okay so now that we've gotten the tools

that we don't recommend you using out of

the way let's talk about the tools we do

recommend PS if you've learned something

so far please like And subscribe it just

supports us and it allows us to make

more content like this okay so let's

talk about folk folk is a fantastic CRM

if you are an individual or a small team

that is really focused on contact

management and building relationships if

you clicked on this video and you are

even remotely considering using notion

or air table as a CRM folk is going to

be our top recommendation for you and

that's because the tool is actually

built similar to a database structure it

actually allows you to bulk update

fields and edit data in line just like

you would in a spreadsheet or a database

so with all of that it's going to feel

the most familiar all while having those

really powerful CRM features built in

setting up folk is is incredibly easy

they have dozens of pre-built templates

that you can use for different processes

that are basically just plug-and-play so

with folk you really have a great

Foundation out of the gate it also has a

beautiful minable interface and great

design which we love one of my favorite

features when it comes to folk is how

easy it is to add contacts I'd say folk

is probably the friendliest CRM when it

comes to adding contacts into the tool

they have a Chrome extension and once

you've installed it there's a button

that appear years whether you're in

Gmail LinkedIn or X that says add to

folk and you literally have it

integrated with all of these tools right

there done for you once you've added the

contact to folk you can use their inrich

feature which helps you more easily find

the right email address or their job

title or their phone number Etc if you

want to bulk email a group of contacts

folk will allow you to do that and you

can also set reminders to follow up with

people one-on-one specifically honestly

for sales teams especially sales teams

that aren't using a CRM at all folk will

feel like a game changer another cool

thing about folk is that they're

experimenting with some AI features to

help improve your experience within the

tool while it still has a way to go it's

far from perfect you can experiment with

it by inserting your own prompts and

different variables where this could

come in handy is if you want to use the

AI feature to generate an email that

you're going to bulk send to a bunch of

people or a social media DM while the

drafts aren't perfect they will will

help you get the ball rolling and at

least get you start thinking perhaps in

the right direction if you are a

solopreneur or a small team that is

really wanting just a structured tool to

help you better manage your contacts and

relationships would highly recommend

folk it's great for fundraising basic

Recruitment and just managing all of

your relationships in one place to give

folk a shot use our affiliate link down

in the description below and if you

decide to upgrade then you can also use

our partner code to get a discount on

your first year so what if you're a team

that's looking for a CRM that goes

beyond contact management something that

will be really powerful when it comes to

Integrations reporting and workflow

automations in this case you might want

to consider copper or pipe Drive we've

been a partner with copper for over

eight years we're actually their first

Integrations partner you're going to

find with copper they're a more

traditional CRM you're going to have

your typical structure of your leads

your people your companies and your

opportunities like for example if you

want a more simple to use alternative to

HubSpot or Salesforce then copper or

pipe Drive are going to be two really

great choices now as a heads up copper

only works with Google workspace and

that is our Preferred Choice because we

love Google workspace but if you are on

Microsoft 365 then definitely check out

pipe Drive they are very similar and in

this video while I'll mainly talk about

copper because it's what we use more so

here just replace copper with pipe drive

because they're very similar in their

functionality we recommend that teams

use copper that are looking to really

map their processes out to a CRM so this

means that you first of all know your

processes or you're on your way to

knowing your processes really well and

you're looking for a powerful CRM that

can really serve as the foundation for

you to integrate other tools with it

like for example your invoicing software

like zero or QuickBooks or your

Voiceover IP like Dad or air call or E

signature tools like panad do or

Ironclad like if you're looking for a

central tool that can integrate well

with all these thirdparty tools then

copper is a really awesome Choice we've

seen a lot of agencies financial

planners home service companies have

great success with copper and I'm going

to take you through an example of an

entire workflow so you can really get a

picture of what I'm talking about when I

talking about Integrations so let's take

a home services company they have a

website and somebody fills out a form on

their website well that form is

integrated in with the CRM copper and

all of their data appears in the lead

section so the team knows to follow up

you may also have automated emails going

out to follow up with them as well from

there they might automatically get sent

a scheduling link where they can book in

a home visit and then your team would go

out assess if they're a qualified lead

and if they are they would get converted

into a person perhaps a company and an

opportunity and from there you're going

to take them through your sales process

and perhaps one of those stages is to

create a proposal if you're using

something like panad do that integrates

in with copper you're going to have a

really easy time automatically pulling

contact details for example straight

from copper into panad do we've seen

team Save hours when using panad do and

copper together perhaps after you send

out the proposal you want some automated

follow-up emails to go out to that lead

to make sure that they are viewing the

proposal and to check in with them to

see if they want a close and in a

perfect world now they close so they've

signed their e signature document and

you want to send them an invoice you can

move move one opportunity to the next

stage that says invoice sent and an

integration can automatically create

that in your accounting software and

send it off to them so hopefully this

gives you a picture of what I'm talking

about from start to finish the CRM being

the foundation of all of this but you

have these other tools integrated in so

it makes a really seamless workflow

experience for your team and also your

customer another main difference between

folk and copper is that copper has

something called workflow automations

and there's dozens uses for them you can

create autotask so when a lead comes in

a task is created for someone on your

team or when an opportunity gets to a

stage your team member gets assigned a

bunch of tasks or you can autocreate an

opportunity Etc there's honestly dozens

of uses and finally if you're interested

in reporting at all copper is going to

be your best bet in this case because

they have some pretty Advanced reporting

capabilities now as long as you know

your way around and know how to set it

up all that being said if you want to

give copper or pipe drive a shot then

use the the link Down Below in our

description and if you decide to go with

copper and you use our affiliate link to

sign up you'll receive our $1,200 copper

crash course for free after your first

paid month the course will cover our

best practices to help you set up your

CRM now if you're a very small team like

under 300 employees using the CRM we

don't recommend HubSpot or Salesforce

because they can get very expensive very

quickly you can check out this article

where we go into a lot more detail on

this and now for your bonus tip of where

most people make a huge mistake when

setting up and using their CRM a lot of

the time we see that teams rely way too

much on individual tasks to move things

forward in the CRM when you assign

yourself a task for every single contact

for example or opportunity what happens

is you typically have a bunch of overdue

tasks and all of them are falling by the

wayside so we encourage teams to think

of their processes more in terms of

groups of tasks rather than individual

tasks so for example in a typical sales

process you would have proposal sent or

invoice sent and Within These stages you

have within your process your business

process documented all the steps that

need to get done in order to move this

opportunity to the next stage so this

takes it from Individual tasks that are

everywhere to groups of tasks that live

under one stage in your CRM and this way

you can also see at a top level an

overview of where everything is in your

process and another hot tip is when you

set up your CRM this way it also leaves

a great opportunity for automation

because for example if you have a stage

called invoice sent and you're doing

that manually we can also use that in

the future perhaps when you scale to

trigger an integration with QuickBooks

online or zero to automatically create

and send that invoice for you come on

that's pretty cool right yeah so as a

summary for this video do not use air

table or notion as your CRM you're going

to spend way too much time configuring

the CRM trying to train your team which

will likely lead to poor or no adoption

leaving you in the same place as you

started let us save you the time and the

hours of going down that path and

instead just use a CRM a tool that was

built for the job from the start they

say if you're going to do something do

it right and that's what you're going to

be doing with either folk or copper

because they're both great

choices all right now that you know

which CRM to use Maybe you're looking

for a project management tool to help

you get your work done more efficiently

as well and if you are make sure that

you check out this video over here where

we go over our favorite PM tools and no

we don't recommend notion or air table

for that either if you found this video

helpful we would very much appreciate a

like And subscribe and if you have more

CRM related questions please drop them

down in the comments thank you for your

time and attention see you in the next

video done