Roofing CRM: Which is Best for Your Business?
We're breaking down which roofing CRM is best for your business and why! Read on to get our recommendations. Learn more today!
Roofing CRMs are a hot topic for the roofing industry — and for good reason. CRM’s — Customer Relationship Management – is software meant to help you build strong customer relationships. It should make life easier for you, your sales team, and everyone in between. But knowing what a CRM is is just one part of the challenge. For the majority of roofing companies out there, the big question is: which one do you use?
What is a CRM?
A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is a software tool that helps businesses manage and improve their interactions with both potential and existing customers. At its core, a CRM serves as a central hub for storing customer information, tracking sales opportunities, managing communications, and automating routine tasks. For roofing businesses, this can mean keeping track of leads, scheduling follow-ups, organizing project details, and ensuring no opportunity slips through the cracks.
Why choosing the right CRM matters
Software is not one-size-fits-all. Roofing is such a unique industry and each business has its own challenges, goals, and roadblocks. So, the same CRM that works for your friend's roofing company won't necessarily work for yours.
A CRM is a business tool but it's not just used by business owners; Your roofing contractors, admin staff, and everyone else on your team can and should be using it too. You need to pick the right roofing CRM software for you to make sure that:
- What you choose solves your actual problems.
- You don’t have to replace your software all the time.
- Your software fits into your business organically.
You shouldn’t be trying to force how you do business into a software. Your CRM should fit how you work!
How to tell if your current CRM is working for you
If you already have a CRM system but aren’t sure if it’s meeting your needs, consider these signs that it might be time for an upgrade:
- Low adoption rates: If your team isn’t using it, the system might be too complicated or not suited to your business.
- Lack of organization: If leads and customer information are still slipping through the cracks, the CRM may not be robust enough.
- Inefficiency: If your CRM isn’t saving you time, it may not be automating key tasks effectively.
- Limited scalability: If your CRM can’t grow with your business, it’s likely holding you back.
10 considerations when choosing a CRM
There are a LOT of software options out there — many of which we’re going to go through here — and it can almost make choosing seem impossible. With the right questions and considerations, though, it doesn't need to be. Here are some things to consider when looking at options.
- Does this software offer everything you need to help solve your pain points now?
- Will the software fit with your needs in 5 years, as you grow?
- What type of support and training does the company provide their customers?
- How many people will be using the software?
- Is it an all-in-one tool or do you need to integrate and for other tools into it?
- Is it easy to use?
- Can you use it on mobile / tablet while working?
- Are they adding new features and updating the software?
- Does the company take feedback and recommendations?
- Is the tool build with roofers in mind?
CRMs are essential in helping businesses keep track of their customers’ needs and synchronize their business. You can use CRM to create and manage your customers and their information (name, email, number, invoice, etc), set reminders, and ensure you communicate with them efficiently. CRMs allow all of your customers’ information to be stored in one simple place.
If you're a roofer looking for a CRM program to help you run roofing services, look no further. Our team of experts has sifted through the dozens of available CRMs and selected the best, easy-to-use, and simple systems for you to get your business up and running.
How to choose a CRM system for your roofing business
But with so many options out there, choosing the right CRM can feel overwhelming. Here's some things to look for when choosing a crm to help you pick the right one for your business.
First, you need to understand your business needs
Before diving into the CRM market, take a step back to assess your business needs. Not all CRMs are created equal, and understanding your specific challenges will help you find the right fit. Ask yourself:
- What pain points do you need the CRM to solve? (e.g., managing leads, tracking sales, scheduling jobs)
- What are your must-have features? (e.g., contact management, sales tracking, reporting)
- How many users will need access to the CRM, and what roles will they play?
- Do you need specific integrations, like with email, estimating tools, or accounting software?
Understanding your needs will help you narrow down your options and avoid overspending on features you don’t need.
Then, evaluate key CRM features
A CRM should do more than just store contact information. Look for features that align with your roofing business's day-to-day operations:
- Contact Management: Store and organize customer data, including contact information, job history, and communication records.
- Lead Tracking: Capture and manage leads from the first inquiry to closing the deal.
- Sales Automation: Automate repetitive tasks like follow-up emails and reminders, giving your team more time to focus on sales.
- Proposal and Estimating Tools: Some CRMs, like Roofr, offer built-in estimating and proposal tools to streamline sales processes.
- Scheduling and Job Management: Keep track of job schedules, assign tasks to your team, and monitor project progress.
- Reporting and Analytics: Generate reports to gain insights into sales performance, marketing effectiveness, and business growth.
- Integration Capabilities: Ensure the CRM works seamlessly with the tools you already use, like email marketing platforms, estimating tools, and accounting software.
Don't forget to consider user experience
A CRM system is only valuable if your team members actually uses it. Choose a system with a user-friendly interface that’s easy to navigate. During your evaluation, consider:
- How intuitive is the software? Can your team learn it quickly?
- What kind of training and support does the CRM provider offer?
- Are there tutorials, webinars, or customer support to help onboard your team?
Assess scalability
Your roofing business might be small now, but it won’t stay that way forever. Choose a CRM that can grow with you. Look for systems that offer flexible pricing models and additional features that you can add as needed, without requiring a complete system change.
Break down the budget
While cost shouldn’t be the only deciding factor, it’s important to choose a CRM that fits your budget. CRM pricing models vary, including subscription-based plans, one-time fees, and add-ons for extra features. When comparing costs, consider:
- What’s included in the base price?
- Are there additional costs for integrations, training, or support?
- Does the CRM offer a free trial or demo to test out features before committing?
The best CRM for roofing companies
Roofr CRM
Roofr CRM is a one-of-a-kind cloud-based software that is build specifically for roofers. Roofr CRM works with their Instant Estimator, Measurement, and Proposal tools so all your business tool are in one place. The Roofr CRM is unique in that they are actively building and adding on new features. Customer feedback, feature requests, and insights are continually taken into consideration while the CRM is updated.
Prices for the Roofr CRM are tiered, so you can get the subscription that fits your business needs, and grow as you need to.
Pros of Roofr CRM
- Build specifically for roofers.
- Includes Roofr’s already loved features including satellite roof measurements, Proposals and the Instant Estimator.
- Unlimited access to Customer Success and Implementation teams so you can get the most of your software.
- Unlimited seats so your entire team can use it.
- Can help you improve your customer service.
- Flexible for you to build and track your sales pipeline.
Cons of Roofr CRM
- Will give you so much time back you’ll need to find new hobbies.
- Being actively built, so all the features you want may not be available right away.
Book a call with our team to see the Roofr CRM in action.
HubSpot
HubSpot is a cloud-based CRM for small businesses. It offers live contact syncing, social media planning, email marketing, meeting schedulers, and analytics (among many other features). HubSpot also has lead generation features to help you build your customer base.
A majority of online users prefer HubSpot because of its user interface. You can collect potential clients' names and other contact information. It’s extremely user-friendly, and offers support to help you grow your business and understand its many features.
COST: $0 - $1,200 / month
Pros of HubSpot CRM
- All-in-one tool that does everything from website building and emails to contract tracking
- Built in reporting so you can monitor your business performance.
- Can build your website in the tool, too.
- Connections to social media and other marketing features.
- Great for businesses of all sizes and budgets.
Cons of HubSpot CRM
- Not build for roofers.
- Their CRM is one cost, and additional costs are added if you want to use their marketing features, email platform, website builder, or other tools.
Salesforce
Salesforce CRM is a platform customized to suit most business uses and specializes for large companies. You can use Salesforce to get more information concerning prospects, leads, and customers from a contact center. You can also collect customer data such as names, email addresses, and phone numbers.
Salesforce is also suitable for multi-channel marketing. It provides superior intelligence of customer requirements from every customer touchpoint across channels like social media, mobile, or email.
This tool also has a separate mobile application with which you can manage your contacts' lead form submissions in real-time.
Pros of Salesforce CRM
- Data entry and field tracking.
- Built in custom reports and personalized metrics for each user.
- Great flexibility on customization as per business needs.
Cons of Salesforce CRM
- Build for large companies, with a price point that matches.
- Not as intuitive to learn as there are a lot of pieces to it.
- Not compatible with a web browser or operating systems other than Salesforce domain.
Zoho
Zoho CRM is a customer relationship management software designed to help businesses manage their customer interactions and streamline their sales processes. Their tools include customer data record and tracking, automation of marketing emails, and lead tracking. Zoho also has a built-in survey tool if you like to survey your customers.
Pros of Zoho CRM
- Team collaboration tools.
- Customer communication and call tracking.
- Pipeline visualization and reporting.
Cons of Zoho CRM
- Cost is per user per month and can add up for large teams
- Some of their more appealing features are only available in the highest paid tier.
Jobber
Jobber CRM is software designed to help sales or marketing staff manage leads, campaigns, prospects, and deals. Jobber is built with roofers in mind, and includes estimating and job scheduling in with the CRM tool.
Pros of Jobber CRM
- Is built with roofers in mind.
- Does have online resources and training guides to help you learn the tool.
- Built in customer communication tools like email and texting.
Cons of Jobber CRM
- A small range of integrations and companies may need to pay for third party tools still for specific features.
- Need to use mobile apps for later stage notifications and action alerts.
- Each tier has a limit of users and may not be suited for larger teams.
Choose the Best CRM for Your Roofing Business
Roofers are intelligent businessmen, and when it comes to roofing, you need the best CRM system that your budget can buy. It will allow you to keep track of your many leads and customers. You’ll also be able to synchronize your roofing business in one space, unlocking its potential.
We hope this guide has helped you uncover what you're looking for. Whether it’s your first CRM product or your tenth. No matter your expertise level, we think you'll find something that fits your needs.