Choosing the Right Real Estate CRM: Strategies for Finding Your Perfect Fit

It can be an incredibly frustrating experience trying to find the right customer relationship management platform for your real estate business. If you’re like many other real estate professionals, you too might go through more several in the search for the one tool that ticks all your boxes. If you’ve found yourself in this same situation, don’t worry - there are some good strategies you can employ for choosing the right CRM tool for your specific needs. Here’s what you should know. 

Go In With a Clear Plan In Mind

If you’re in the market for a CRM, it’s not enough to simply try out a few platforms without a plan in place beforehand. Without going into the selection process with a clear plan in mind, you’re likely to waste time, effort, and possibly even money because the CRM tool you chose at random turned out to be a poor fit. In this case, you need to develop a plan of action that will help you streamline the process. 

You can do this easily by determining in advance what sorts of features and capabilities you are looking for in a CRM tool. One of the best ways to begin this process is to select a platform that’s specifically designed to work in the real estate sector. Doing so means that the CRM tool is much more likely to have the sorts of capabilities you’re in need of. 

Beyond Just Market Similarity

At the same time, however, the real estate sector is so diverse that you can easily have two real estate-centric CRMs with completely different capabilities. This means that simply being in the same sector is no guarantee that the CRM you’re considering will be the best option for you. Market similarity is important, but there’s so much more at play than just that. 

In this case, it’s advisable to look for CRMs that are compatible with the tools and services you’re already using. Many CRMs offer integration features with things like lead generation tools. With developing client leads one of the most critical aspects of being a successful real estate professional, the CRM that is compatible with your current lead generation tools is going to be a much better choice for you than one that would require extra steps to make it so.

Other Features to Consider

There’s more to a good CRM than just lead generation integration, though this is crucial for obvious reasons. Other features to consider when it comes to choosing a CRM tool include whether it has solid automation capabilities. Being able to set up routine marketing campaigns and correspondence with leads and clients and then automate those campaigns is a major time saver, as well as an excellent way to build relationships with those leads and clients. 

Customer support is another factor to consider. No CRM is perfect, and some are more user-friendly than others. If you have questions about how your CRM works, or if you’re trying to get it to do something but you’re having difficulties in making it work the way it’s supposed to, knowing you can turn to the CRM’s customer support resources is a major advantage. Whether it’s live chat, email support, or a robust series of user guides, the more support a CRM has available to users, the better.

A Word About Team Size

CRMs are fantastic tools for saving the time and effort of the people using them, there’s no doubt about that. However, the perfect CRM for one user isn’t necessarily the best choice for someone else. This is less relevant if you’re just an independent real estate agent making your way in the world, but what if you’re in charge of an agency with more than one real estate professional? At this point, you’ll need to take steps to ensure your choice of CRM is a good fit for everyone who will be using it.

This extends past just choosing an option that offers multiple users. Other factors, such as user interface, price per user, and how intuitive the platform is to use, play a major role in the selection process as well. Other important things to keep in mind include whether the CRM will be an appropriate choice for all the specialties of your team members. With division of labor, you can have some of your team focusing on sales while others work on building active relationships, so it’s integral to your success to choose a CRM that can provide you with these capabilities.

The Last Word on the Process of Choosing a CRM Tool

Choosing a real estate CRM tool is never necessarily going to be an easy task. There’s no “best” choice out there that’s universal, as everyone is different and has different needs for their real estate business activities. Even if you go through some extensive research to narrow down your options, it’s unlikely that your first or even your second choice is going to be a perfect fit for you.

CRM companies know this. In fact, it’s why the majority of these companies offer either a free version of their CRM or a free trial period. This way you can begin to familiarize yourself with the platform, get a feel for it, and decide if whether it’s going to be a good choice for your needs. So get out there, pick a few real estate CRMs as good candidates, and take each one for a test drive before making your decision.