According to Deloitte, there are five important aspects to consider in manufacturing industry playbooks for the next few years. One of them is investing in advanced technologies, such as manufacturing CRM software.
Companies implementing sales CRM software are predicted to be more resilient in facing industry challenges. This is logical since a CRM for manufacturing empowers you to forecast business growth and overcome potential challenges.
In this blog, we’ll compare the features, pros and cons, reviews, and pricing of the best CRMs for manufacturing, helping you choose the most suitable CRM software for your business.
Why CRM Software Is Essential for Manufacturing Contractors
Manufacturing is a capital-intensive business that cannot easily pivot to meet the fast-changing customer demands. Generally, here are some roadblocks in the manufacturing industry:
- High overhead costs
- Communication breakdowns (internally and externally, e.g., suppliers and distributors)
- Lack of clear quality standards
- Managing bulk and multiple orders simultaneously
- Supply chain issues, such as sourcing bottlenecks, global logistics backlogs, and costs pressure
Considering all these challenges, adopting an all-in-one solution like manufacturing CRM software becomes crucial to mitigate the risks, as it can help you to:
- Have a consistent workforce and supply chain management
- Conduct efficient assessments of plant-demand capacity
- Generate accurate sales analytics, forecasts, and reporting
- Maintain seamless communication with clients and suppliers
- Automate contract preparation and repetitive data-entry tasks
- Centralize team collaboration and data sharing
- Automate sales enablement
- Accurately track order progress
Now that you know why manufacturing companies need CRM software, let’s find out the best manufacturing CRMs in the market.
1. Pipeline CRM: Best Manufacturing CRM for Sales-focused Contractors
A smooth supply chain and effective production are two key characteristics of a successful manufacturing company. However, achieving them isn’t easy, as manufacturing is a multi-dimensional operation prone to delays and miscommunication.
Pipeline’s manufacturing CRM can help eliminate these problems. With automated workflows and excellent lead management features, Pipeline CRM improves operational efficiency.
For instance, the multiple sales pipeline solution allows you to manage different orders based on various factors such as products, production time, and volumes. And since Pipeline CRM employs automated next-step suggestions and automatic recurring deals in its lead management (and in other solutions), you can easily focus on one sales pipeline at a time while still monitoring all orders in the background.
Related: Discover 5 scenarios when to adopt multiple sales pipelines to your business.
Moreover, Pipeline CRM keeps all the team members on the same page. The SuperShare lets you easily share documents with internal and external partners, manage team tasks, and get instant updates on deal status changes. Pipeline is all you need to build a data-driven production plan.
Features
- Customizable deal stage names and data fields (up to 25 custom fields)
- Automated email drip campaigns with tracking
- AI email writing assistance
- Powerful reporting to track sales performance and identify bottlenecks
- Extensive integrations with sales and marketing tools (e.g., Asana, Paycove, QuickBooks, and Zapier)
Pros
- A centralized dashboard for handling multiple orders efficiently
- Streamlined lead management, ensuring orders meet quality standards and deadlines
- Vast customization options for creating an on-brand experience
- Advanced analytics for operational enhancements
- Improved data quality with conditional field feature
- Automatic task allocations for productive workflow
- Short learning curve and quick setup (Pipeline CRM is ready in 48 hours)
Reviews
- 4.4/5 star rating on G2 (922 reviews)
- 4.3/5 star rating on Capterra (619 reviews)
- 10/10 score on TrustRadius (15 reviews and ratings)
- 4.2 star rating on Gartner (40 reviews)
Pricing
- Start plan: $25 per user per month
- Develop plan: $33 per user per month
- Grow plan: $49 per user per month
You can view the latest Pipeline CRM features here.
2. Salesforce: Best CRM for Large-scale Manufacturers
Next up on our list is Salesforce, one of the most popular custom CRM software in the market. The platform offers a Manufacturing Cloud solution that leverages data and analytics to generate operational insights.
This manufacturing CRM allows you to add details to your CRM sales pipelines, such as pricing, volumes, and order realization data. Salesforce also provides sales forecasting that can help you better plan your manufacturing processes (e.g., scheduling, arranging transportation, and calculating deadlines.) Moreover, you get actionable AI insights and guided quoting to accelerate cost estimations.
Features
- Customizable sales agreements
- Demand and opportunity forecasts
- Generate estimates for products and services
- Service automation for customer support complaints and product issues
Pros
- The Communities feature enables seamless collaboration between contractors (manufacturers) and partner vendors
- A centralized hub allows everyone involved to collaborate and negotiate easily
- AI insights for greater precision in operations
Cons
- No calling feature within the CRM software
- The frequent updates can sometimes lead to compatibility issues with other applications
- High learning curve
- Lack of customization
Reviews
- 4.3/5 star rating on G2 (18,248 reviews)
- 4.4/5 star rating on Capterra (17,824 reviews)
- 8.1/10 on TrustRadius (3152 reviews and ratings)
- 4.2 star rating on Gartner (644 ratings)
Pricing
- Sales: $250 per month
- Service: $250 per month
- Sales and Service: $275 per month
3. SugarCRM: Best CRM for Small to Medium-sized Manufacturers
If you struggle to connect sales to customer service, SugarCRM may be a manufacturing CRM worth considering.
With SugarCRM, you can get a complete picture of each customer’s journey. So, every time a customer inquires, your customer service team can respond promptly based on the shared customer order information.
Additionally, this manufacturing CRM also offers a smart integration that enables you to connect voice and chat communications into the CRM system. This will free your salespeople from manually inputting the meeting minutes and help them keep track of lead progress easily.
Features
- Records of customer journey
- Omnichannel communication (voice and chat integrations)
- AI-powered predictions
- Comprehensive configuration and APIs
- Cloud infrastructure for remote partnerships
Pros
- Automation in data capture and maintenance
- Built-in quotes generation
- Extensive integration options (e.g., with G Suite and Office 365 apps)
Cons
- Poor sales forecasting and trend projections
- Outdated and often slow user interface
Reviews
- 3.8/5 star rating on G2 (693 reviews)
- 3.8./5 star rating on Capterra (403 reviews)
- 7.3/10 score on TrustRadius (244 reviews and ratings)
- 4.2 star rating on Gartner (243 reviews)
Pricing
- Starting at $49 per user/month
4. Freshworks: Best CRM to Simplify Intricate Sales Cycles
Freshworks is a CRM for manufacturing contractors recently reinforced with AI.
This custom CRM software offers various sales solutions, including customer service, marketing campaigns, and data analysis. Freshsales unifies all sales-related data in one place, allowing your team to quickly solve customer inquiries, create targeted email campaigns, and generate reports.
You can capitalize on this data to monitor order status, streamline supply chain management, and spot any other roadblocks that may delay order completions.
Features
- Sales pipelines that can be grouped based on regions, projects, and products
- Automated and personalized campaigns
- Partner nurturing for distributors and dealers
- Easy-to-build chatbots
- Exclusive AI system
- Abandoned cart reminders and automated follow-ups
Pros
- User-friendly and intuitive interface
- Easily turning data into visuals for clarity
- On-demand pricing model (only pay for used features)
Cons
- Lack of accuracy in the reporting system
- The sales management process is relatively weaker than other CRM software
Reviews
- 4.5/5 star rating on G2 (7,320 reviews)
Pricing
- Available on contact
5. Optessa: Best CRM for Scheduling Manufacturing Projects
If you need help with scheduling manufacturing projects, Optessa is the solution for you. This manufacturing sales CRM helps you streamline project and workforce scheduling processes, improve task distribution, and ensure timely delivery.
Optessa adapts quickly to your existing system, simplifies supply chain management, and accommodates unplanned changes. For example, you can manage the procurement process and transportation costs to optimize the supply chain network. It also enables you to match manufacturing plants with the product demand to avoid over- or underproduction scenarios.
Features
- Assembly line sequence with manual and automatic operations
- Schedule molding lines to enhance production capacity
- Workforce management with automatic scheduling feature
Pros
- User-friendly navigation system
- Attribute-based sequencing maximizes production with minimal cost
- Effective scheduling ensures timely completion without overloading your team
Cons
- Lack of sales-focused features
Reviews
- 3.5/5 star rating on G2 (1 review)
- 4.5/5 star rating on Capterra (4 reviews)
- 4.5 star rating on Gartner (15 ratings)
Pricing
- Available on contact
Increase Operation Efficiency with CRM for Manufacturing
From sales to supply chain and production, manufacturing is a complex process that demands meticulous attention and close tracking. Each step is crucial, and any disruption can trigger a chain reaction of delays, compromising product quality, and disappointing customers. To avoid these from happening, adopt a manufacturing CRM like Pipeline CRM.
As custom CRM software, you can tailor the system to fit your manufacturing process. You can deploy multiple sales pipelines, add custom fields to contacts, set up automation, and more. With Pipeline’s manufacturing CRM, you guarantee that every intricate manufacturing component is met, resulting in effective operations.
See how we helped a UK-based manufacturing company boost sales by 30% and conversion rate by 20%.
And when you’re ready to try Pipeline CRM, get in touch with our experts for a free demo.
