Every year, Software Advice speaks with thousands of organizations looking for the right customer relationship management (CRM) software. We analyzed these interactions to understand buyers’ most desired applications and most common reasons for seeking new software.

1. Software Advice BuyerView:
CRM Software Report
Insight into today’s small-business software buyer

2. Every year, Software Advice speaks with thousands of organizations looking for
the right customer relationship management (CRM) software. We isolated a
random sample of 385 interactions with small-business buyers representing
companies in Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. We then analyzed the findings in
order to understand:
• What are small-business CRM buyers’ top-requested applications, features and
reasons for buying?
• How have CRM buyers’ requirements evolved since our previous report in 2013?
• How do CRM buyers’ needs differ across different geographies?
Abstract

3. Over half of the buyers in our sample (53 percent) currently use manual methods,
such as spreadsheets or paper, to manage customer relationships.
Prospective Buyers’ Current Methods
Spreadsheets31%
Paper22%
CRM software22%
Email client8%
Email marketing software5%
Proprietary software5%
Industry-specific software3%
Other software4%

4. Even more U.S. buyers are upgrading from manual methods this year, at 47
percent, than were last year (44 percent in 2013).
Year-Over-Year Comparison: U.S. Buyers’ Current Methods
2013
U.S. Buyers
2014
U.S. Buyers
Manual methods44%
CRM software26%
Other software24%
Proprietary
software
5%
Manual methods47%
CRM software25%
Other software24%
Proprietary
software
4%

5. Compared to the U.S., where 47 percent of buyers are using manual methods,
even more are using them in the U.K. (56 percent) and Australia (55 percent).
International Comparison: Buyers’ Current Methods
Percent of sample
CRM softwareManual methods Other software Proprietary software
U.S.
U.K.
AU
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

6. Percent of Sample
Nearly all buyers across all geographies (88 percent) seek sales force automation
(SFA), making it the top-requested CRM application by small businesses.
Top-Requested Applications
Sales force automation
Marketing automation
Customer support
Help desk
Call center
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

7. More U.S. and U.K. buyers seek CSS functionality compared to buyers in Australia:
14 percent and 12 percent, respectively, compared to just 5 percent of AU buyers.
International Comparison: Top-Requested Applications
Sales force automation
Marketing automation
Customer support
Help desk
Call center
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
U.S. buyers U.K. buyers AU buyers

8. Percent of Sample
Among those buyers seeking an application for SFA, interaction tracking is the most
requested module, with 82 percent seeking to log notes and conversations.
Top-Requested CRM Functionality (Sales)
Interaction tracking
Alerts/reminders
Pipeline management
Sales reporting
Workflow automation
Quoting generation
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

9. Percent of Sample
All of the small-business buyers who seek an application for marketing automation
specifically request a module for email marketing.
Top-Requested CRM Functionality (Marketing)
Email marketing
Lead segmentation
Lead nurturing
Lead scoring
Email analytics
Forms/landing pages
Campaign management
Marketing analytics
Web analytics
MRM
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

10. Percent of Sample
Among those buyers requesting a CSS application, most seek features directly
related to addressing customer inquiries via email, phone or live chat.
Top-Requested CRM Functionality (Customer Support)
Ticket management
Ticket routing
CSS reporting
Ticket escalation
Ticket time tracking
Multichannel support
Knowledge management
Self-service
Live chat
IT asset management
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

11. Most small businesses in our sample (62 percent) are looking to purchase a
single, best-of-breed CRM application.
Integration Preferences
Best-of-breed62%
Integrated suite37%
Multiple products1%

12. However, among U.S. buyers, 42 percent are requesting an integrated suite in
2014, up from just 7 percent in 2013.
Year-Over-Year Comparison: Integration Preferences
2013
U.S. Buyers
2014
U.S. Buyers
Best-of-breed91%
Integrated suite7%
Multiple products2%
Best-of-breed57%
Integrated suite42%
Multiple products1%

13. Most buyers seeking a standalone application want SFA; most seeking an
integrated suite want a pairing of applications for SFA and marketing automation.
International Comparison: Top-Requested Application Pairings
0%
15%
30%
45%
60%
U.S. buyers U.K. buyers AU buyers
SFA
SFA & marketing
automation
Customer support
Marketing
automation
Help desk
SFA & customer
support
Percent of Sample

14. Nearly three-fourths of all small-business CRM buyers specifically request
solutions hosted in the cloud.
Deployment Preferences
Web-based71%
Not sure29%

15. More small-business buyers this year are certain they want Web-based products,
with fewer buyers who aren’t sure (50 percent, compared to 26 percent in 2013).
Year-Over-Year Comparison: Deployment Preferences
2013
U.S. Buyers
2014
U.S. Buyers
Web-based48%
On-premise2%
Not sure50%
Web-based74%
On-premise<1%
Not sure26%

16. Percent of Sample
Only 10 percent of small-business CRM buyers seek integration with social media
channels to import contacts and track social interactions.
Top-Requested CRM Integrations
Email client
Calendar
Company website
Industry-specific
Social media
Accounting
Other CRM apps
Project management
Other integrations
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

17. U.S. buyers were over three times more likely to request social media integrations,
at 19 percent, than U.K. and AU buyers, at just 6 and 5 percent, respectively.
International Comparison: Top-Requested CRM Integrations
U.S. buyers U.K. buyers AU buyers
Email client
Calendar
Company website
Industry-specific
Social media
Accounting
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

18. Buyers using software for CRM cite the need for more features as a reason for
buying; buyers using manual methods cite the need to centralize information.
Top Reasons for Evaluating New Software
Researching benefits/options
Centralize information
Automate more tasks
Scale with growth
Need more/better features
Improve data quality
Improve visibility
Improve follow-ups
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%
Buyers using manual methods Buyers using specialized software

19. Fewer buyers in the U.S. want CRM software to help automate tasks, compared to
those in the U.K. and AU.
International Comparison: Reasons for Evaluating Software
U.S. buyers U.K. buyers AU buyers
Researching benefits/options
Need more/better features
Centralize information
Scale with growth
Automate more tasks
Improve data quality
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

20. Most small-business buyers in our sample plan to have only a single named user
(19 percent) or between two and five named users (47 percent) on the system.
Prospective Buyer Size by Number of Users
119%
2-547%
6-1019%
11-2011%
21-503%
51-100<1%
More than 100<1%

21. Over half of the respondents in our sample (56 percent) represent extremely
small businesses with just 10 employees or fewer.
Prospective Buyer Size by Number of Employees
111%
2-530%
6-1015%
11-2013%
21-5015%
51-1007%
101-5008%
501-1,0001%
More than 1,0011%

22. Percent of Sample
Most of the buyers in our sample represent businesses in consulting, real estate,
manufacturing, software and information technology (IT) and retail.
Prospective Buyers by Industry
Consulting
Real estate
Manufacturing
Software/IT
Retail
Advertising
Media
Construction
Insurance
Other
0% 4% 8% 12% 16% 20%

23. Real estate companies comprise just 1 percent of U.K. buyers in our sample,
compared to 23 percent of U.S. buyers and 13 percent of Australian buyers.
International Comparison: Prospective Buyers by Industry
U.S. buyers U.K. buyers AU buyers
Consulting
Real estate
Manufacturing
Software/IT
Retail
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%

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25. Software Advice™ is a trusted resource for software buyers. The company's
website, www.softwareadvice.com, provides detailed reviews, comparisons and
research to help organizations choose the right software. Meanwhile, the company’s
team of software analysts provide free telephone consultations to help each
software buyer identify systems that best fit their needs. In the process, Software
Advice connects software buyers and sellers, generating high-quality opportunities
for software vendors.
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