Did you know that 86% of customers are willing to pay more for better service, yet only 1 in 26 dissatisfied customers will actually complain—the rest simply switch to a competitor? That’s according to PwC’s report “Customer Experience is Everything”.
If you are not tracking customer data, you’re missing a chance not only to improve service but to build lasting relationships. At any stage—before, during, or after the sale—paying attention to customer needs can be the foundation for long-term loyalty.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is software that helps businesses manage relationships with customers by automating sales, marketing, support, and other client-facing processes. For service-based businesses—such as cleaning companies, marketing agencies, repair services, or consulting firms—choosing the right CRM is critical. It allows you to organize customer interactions, schedule site visits or projects, track requests, and improve service quality.
However, today’s CRM systems go far beyond their original purpose. Modern CRMs are viewed as multifunctional platforms for the entire team—not just tools for storing contact details or order history. A robust CRM can:
In this way, a CRM becomes a central hub for all key operations—improving not only how you engage with customers but also how your team works internally.
There is a wide range of CRM systems on the market—varying in price, features, complexity, and learning curve. Some are designed for large enterprises with complex structures, while others cater to small businesses that value simplicity and a quick setup.
That’s why choosing a CRM shouldn’t be based solely on name recognition. It is important to consider your team’s specific needs: how easily it can be implemented, how adaptable it is to change, and whether it truly streamlines your daily processes—instead of making them more complicated.
A CRM system supports client interaction at every stage of their journey—from the first point of contact to post-service follow-up. Let’s take a closer look at how CRM helps service businesses:
Choosing a CRM can feel overwhelming with so many features on offer. But instead of chasing quantity, it is smarter to focus on what your team will actually use. Too many bells and whistles can slow down onboarding and confuse your staff.
For service-based companies, it is especially important that a CRM helps manage not just sales—but the delivery of the service itself. Think scheduling visits, coordinating teams, and tracking order status. That’s where modern CRMs really shine.
So, which features should you prioritize?
To sum it up: the right CRM doesn’t just store data—it becomes the central hub for managing your entire service process, from first contact to job completion.
The right CRM isn’t just a handy tool—it is a vital part of running a successful service business. A well-chosen CRM helps you organize client interactions, plan logistics or projects, track requests, manage tasks, and deliver better service overall.
There’s a wide range of CRM options on the market, varying in functionality, price, and complexity—from basic task trackers to powerful platforms with full automation.
To help you navigate the choices, we’ve put together a list of six reliable CRM systems that are well-suited for service-based companies.
Tracy is the simplest platform in this review, with an ultra-low learning curve. If you are looking to get started quickly without spending too much time or effort on training your team, Tracy is a great option.
But it is more than just a place to store contacts or track deals. Tracy also helps organize internal processes. For example, if you run a delivery company, you can assign orders to specific couriers, track their status, and collect customer feedback—all within a single interface. This gives you a complete overview of team activity, from the first client inquiry to order fulfillment.
Best for: teams that need a simple, no-fuss tool without the complexity of large-scale CRMs. The target audience includes micro, small, and medium-sized businesses across various sectors—from sales and customer service to logistics and custom manufacturing.
You can try Tracy for free—it is a great option for small teams of up to 3 people. For larger teams, the following pricing plans are available:
Pipedrive is a CRM system designed specifically for sales teams. It focuses on visualizing the sales pipeline and actively managing deals at every stage. Pipedrive is a great fit for teams looking to improve lead management, forecast revenue, and automate customer communication.
Best for: B2B small and medium-sized businesses with active sales teams where the deal process is divided into stages (such as consulting, IT, agencies, or equipment and service sales). It is especially effective for teams working with a “long sales cycle” model that requires tight control over every deal.
Pipedrive also offers a 14-day free trial so you can test the features before committing.
monday CRM is a customer relationship management tool that is part of the monday.com Work OS platform. It lets you customize your own workflows, making it easy to tailor the system to your team’s specific needs. It is a great fit for companies across various industries looking to manage sales, support, and customer service all within a single platform.
Best for: teams already using Monday for task management who want a unified workspace, as Monday CRM is fully integrated with the Monday.com ecosystem.
HubSpot CRM is designed to simplify customer relationship management. It is well-known for its powerful inbound marketing tools. Many companies choose HubSpot when they want to grow their customer base through content marketing, SEO, email campaigns, and other lead generation methods, as the platform originally started as a tool focused on exactly that. Additionally, the CRM is easy to scale—as your business grows, you can add more modules without needing to switch to a different platform.
Best for: SMBs and teams looking for an all-in-one integrated solution—from managing customer databases to running marketing campaigns. HubSpot is a popular choice for marketing agencies, startups, and service companies focused on active marketing and attracting customers online.
Zoho CRM is part of the Zoho ecosystem and provides centralized access to customer information. The platform supports automation of sales, marketing, and customer service, helping teams work seamlessly together. It integrates with Zoho services as well as third-party apps, making it easy to manage customer interactions and improve internal processes.
However, due to its rich feature set, beginners might find it challenging to get familiar with all of Zoho CRM’s capabilities right away. While the interface is user-friendly, the sheer number of features can make the learning curve steep for newcomers.
Best for: companies looking for a balance between functionality and price. In fact, Zoho is often chosen over Salesforce by businesses that need a powerful CRM but have limited budgets or resources.
Salesforce is a cloud-based platform designed to manage complex customer relationships. Launched back in 1999, it has since evolved into a full ecosystem of business applications and custom solution development. Positioned as a versatile enterprise-level solution, Salesforce is suitable for businesses across various industries and sizes but primarily targets large companies and corporations.
It specializes in comprehensive management of sales, marketing, customer support, and many other processes—essentially serving as an all-in-one business platform.
Best for: large enterprises and mid-sized businesses aiming for rapid growth or managing complex processes. Salesforce is a go-to solution for both B2B and B2C segments and is especially popular in finance, tech companies, manufacturing, telecom, and more. Smaller companies can also use it (there is a Salesforce Essentials package tailored for small businesses), but due to its cost and complexity, smaller firms tend to choose Salesforce less often.
Choosing the right CRM system can feel overwhelming, especially if you are new to these platforms. To make things easier, we have put together a clear plan based on our experience that will help simplify and streamline your CRM selection process.
We hope this checklist helps you find the perfect CRM in 2025:
Even the best CRM can turn out to be impractical if it doesn’t adapt to your company’s unique processes. That’s why you should choose a system that lets you easily create custom fields, pipelines, automation rules, and integrations without needing a developer’s help. This will allow you to scale your business quickly without wasting time and resources switching systems.
In 2025, your customers expect more than just service—they want to feel understood and valued. A CRM system is your key to creating a customer experience that keeps them coming back again and again. The good news is that modern CRMs offer tools for every type of business, from startups to large enterprises.
Don’t put off implementing automation and personalization. Choose a CRM that best fits your specific needs—whether that’s seamless contact management, in-depth analytics, or integration with the tools you rely on. From our experience, the right CRM doesn’t just simplify workflows; it becomes a reliable tool to maintain strong customer relationships and support steady business growth.
A Sales CRM focuses on managing leads, the sales pipeline, and revenue forecasting. A Service CRM, on the other hand, is geared toward customer support, handling inquiries, automating service processes, and managing tickets. The main goal of a Sales CRM is to boost sales, while a Service CRM aims to improve service quality and customer loyalty.
A CRM stores the history of customer interactions, making it easy for the team to reference past orders or conversations. For example, using CRM records, a team member can ask a simple but meaningful question like, “Would you like it the same way as last time?” This shows attentiveness to the customer’s needs and builds trust and loyalty.
A Service CRM collects the history of customer requests, automates responses, and enables quick problem resolution. This means that even if a manager leaves the company, customer information remains accessible and communication continues uninterrupted. This reduces wait times, increases customer satisfaction, and encourages repeat business. Regularly analyzing customer requests also helps anticipate issues and proactively address them.