Founded in 2004, SugarCRM is CRM (customer relationship management) software with a 1.18% market share and 6,652 medium and large-sized companies relying on it across 120 countries, according to US News.
The tool offers features that help enterprises perform marketing initiatives, engage consumers, increase sales and build custom business applications. These custom applications can power sales teams, run client support agencies and administer customer information databases.
But what is SugarCRM, exactly? And what does it do to support organizations?
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What is SugarCRM?
An open-source, drag-and-drop CRM software, SugarCRM, enables collaboration between teams, marketing campaign execution, sales automation, and client support.
One of the strengths of this platform is that it is open-source. This means that its source code is available to any user, customer and developer.
Since the product’s source code is available to all users and developers, its workflow is customizable when you have the skills and means, letting you take control over the application and its data. This also gives you the freedom to transfer SugarCRM to any other location and incorporate it into other applications.
Benefits: What is SugarCRM Used for?
Many IT solutions companies recommend SugarCRM for its robust feature set that's designed to improve customer relationships and operational efficiency. The latest version of SugarCRM comes with all the basics for support automation, sales and marketing, and user and ACL (access control list) management, plus studio developer tools and customization mobile builder.
SugarCRM offers numerous benefits that help businesses streamline their operations and improve customer engagement. With features like news and updates notifications, automated workflows, and built-in analytics, businesses can save time and boost conversion rates by executing prompt actions at the right time. SugarCRM also provides a more comprehensive view of customer information on a personalized dashboard and productivity features for better repeat business transactions, client care and retention
Other benefits offered by the platform are:
- Client retention management in one hub
- Time-saving as there is no need to switch between applications
- More efficient lead nurturing and scoring tools for improved quality of marketing prospects
- Creating better end-to-end customer engagement strategies
- Integrating several data sources for greater productivity and real-time coordination
- Gaining more vivid insights into client needs based on helpdesk data, call center or online social community
- Running it on the cloud or on-site
- Automating complex business procedures
- Rapid development and delivery of business solutions
Make the most out of these benefits and hire the professional services of top-notch SugarCRM consultancy agencies.
SugarCRM Plans for Business
Here are the five SugarCRM plans you can select from depending on your enterprise’s needs and company size:
1. Sugar Professional
This plan is perfect for small businesses with 10 to 20 staff members.
It is a cloud-based system that is conveniently upgradeable. It offers integrations, customer data management, and sales automation.
The software’s Professional version is its commercial edition that can:
- Group users together based on their roles and team
- Let you run multiple varying reports and charts
- Provide a web-based mobile version consisting of mobile client applications
- Utilize plug-ins for Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook
2. Sugar Enterprise
This edition of the platform is excellent for larger businesses as it offers extensive flexibility in terms of control over their CRM for on-premise deployment. It has more robust customization capabilities to keep you compliant with policies that apply to your niche or industry.
This also includes SugarBPM—a tool enabling you to design automation according to your specific business requirements.
3. Sugar Serve
Sugar Serve comes with the feature, SugarLive. This functionality can connect you with Amazon Connect for an omnichannel approach to collaborating and communicating with customers.
It also has self-service portals—similar to an FAQs page but more elaborate, which help clients search for answers to their queries in a speedy manner minus the need to contact customer support.
4. Sugar Sell
This plan helps you organize client data and utilizes AI features, such as SugarPredict, to evaluate these insights and in turn help your teams navigate through your next strategies to increase revenue.
It is capable of integration with many other applications to assist you to manage transactions, sales, and leads seamlessly, and hence, improve brand loyalty and business relations.
5. Sugar Market
It is a SugarCRM plan with a drag-and-drop campaign builder functionality plus advanced analytics. These allow you to collect and assemble leads and gather information on customer interactions.
Through these features, you can rest assured that qualified leads are dealt with quickly and correctly for a higher conversion rate.
SugarCRM Login and Purchasing Guide
Once you decide that SugarCRM is the right CRM tool for your company, you can proceed to create an account online.
You may first “Request a Demo” to get a better sense of the software and begin your one-week free trial.
Simply follow these easy steps:
- Go to the SugarCRM website.
- Carefully read, explore and compare the five individual plans offered to choose the best fit for your company's needs. You will find these under the Pricing tab on the site.
- After picking a plan, it is time to make the purchase and start bolstering your business.
To log in and access your case portal and dashboard, you should:
- Click on the Login button, which is on the top right of the SugarCRM page.
- Use the email address or username and passcode associated with your purchase. This will open the Case Portal homepage where you can see creation and viewing records, among other details.
SugarCRM Integrations
Both third-party and native integrations are available on SugarCRM. These include basic productivity tools, like Google Apps and Microsoft Outlook.
These are the three most valuable third-party integrations you can use alongside SugarCRM:
1. Acuity Scheduling
This synchronizes new, scheduled, postponed, and canceled client appointments with Sugar Meetings. It also enables transparency and visibility of your team members’ work schedules.
Through these capabilities, you eliminate the chances of losing or mishandling scheduling details that may occur when you use manual booking tools or external calendars.
2. QuickBooks
Integration with QuickBooks automates online order fulfillment processes by syncing data between the two systems.
This can significantly decrease the odds of duplicating details and the time allocated for data entry. Thus, your sales and finance teams can better focus on essential core business operations.
3. SalesLoft
Salesloft and SugarCRM integration can help you orchestrate the sales engagement processes and all the other customer communication touchpoints. This will conveniently sync your roster of leads on the systems involved.
Moreover, it can also provide you with a more holistic understanding of buyer behaviors and patterns as well as growth trends. This way, you can achieve more sales and more fruitful outcomes for your marketing programs.
Bottom Line: What is SugarCRM?
SugarCRM continues to evolve and compete in the global business arena owing to its large user base. It fits startups and businesses with a team of at least 10 employees and dynamic customer demands.
Determine if it is your best bet at CRM depending on your forecasted expansion rate.
If you are looking to explore alternative solutions and other CRM options that will be most suitable for you, you can survey these CRM consulting firms to get the most competent advice and recommendations. Alternatively, you can reach out to one of the best enterprise software development companies on the market.
