Which CRM do you recommend??

[Eric Kordenbrock]

Hey BP Members!

What is the deal with all of these different CRM options? I'm currently using REsimpli but was interested in hearing what everyone else is using and if anyone has any recommendations on what they think the best CRM is. I appreciate everyone's help!

Eric Kordenbrock
Keydetproperties.com

[Jenni Utz]

We use two different CRM systems for the property management side we use LeadSimple-it is a PM driven CRM system. Then with our other portfolio, we have used InfusionSoft.

[Braden Smith]

This may sound cliche, but the best CRM is the one you actually use consistently. There are hundreds of choices out there. You just have to find one that works for you and that you will actually use daily. 

[Eric Kordenbrock]

Thank you both for your input! I appreciate your help!

[Bryce DeCora]

I'm a software developer and use Podio because I can morph it into whatever I want.  With that being said, I'm developing my own CRM because Podio feels clunky.  CRMs made for high degrees of customization and integrations often feel "heavy".

[Steve Morris]

Well, am a comm broker in OR.  I've used RealHound, ClientLook and APTO (Salesforce front-end).  Now I"m back to 4 XLS.

Seems like you spend an inordinate amount of time putting in info and then learning how to get it to do stuff you want like who do I need to call today and why.  My father, the mechanic, said you get paid to fix cars, not to polish tools.

Add in, once you put your info in, it's almost impossible to get it out into a new system.

[Mark Shaver]

@Steve Morris wrote: "I've used RealHound, ClientLook and APTO (Salesforce front-end). <skip> Once you put your info in, it's almost impossible to get it out into a new system."

Steve, thank you for sharing your experience with CRM software. All these CRMs are REI specific CRMs:

• RealHound, Commercial Real Estate Software
• ClientLook, CRM for commercial real estate brokers, investors, owners
• APTO (Salesforce front-end) is a full-blown commercial real estate brokerage app.

Industry-specific CRM there is low competition and they usually do not allow data export.

But among general CRM software, there is a lot of competition. They almost all provide the opportunity to export data.

See the section "RE/REI-specific vs general vs enterprise" in the article "Top 50 CRM Software for Real Estate Investment".

You wrote: "Seems like you spend an inordinate amount of time putting in info and then learning how to get it to do stuff you want like who do I need to call today and why. My father, the mechanic, said you get paid to fix cars, not to polish tools."

Your father is a wise man. But putting information in CRM is not polishing, it's an important step in using CRM. There is even a profession, "data scraping and cleaning", usually programmers do it.

For example, it's impossible to manually compile "Top 50 CRM for REI". I have developed 2 programs. One program processed over 3410 messages from real estate investors. The other program cleared the scraped data and made the "Top 50 CRM for REI".

You wrote: "Now I"m back to 4 XLS."

It's typical. Using CRM breaks the usual ways of doing business. The percentage of unsuccessful CRM implementations are, on average, 30% to 60%, even with the participation of a system Integrator. The failure rate is even higher for self-implementations of CRM.

Beginner investors make many mistakes when choosing CRM. One of the frequent mistakes is that an investor is looking for a universal CRM that meets all the needs of the investor. The article "CRM choice for beginner RE investors" describes how to avoid this error.

Steve, you made 3 attempts to use CRM. I admire your perseverance. I hope that one day you will make another attempt and it will be successful.

[Karl Schmidt]

@Bryce DeCora if u were to use a off the shelf CRM what one would you suggest. Thanks

[Ryan Garrison]

For my Agent side, I use Kv Core, and it seems to do a good job. There is lots of room for further customization, but lots of upsells as well.   

For my investor side, I use REI Blackbook because of all the included functionality...you do not have to duct tape together 12 apps with zapier.

[Bryce DeCora]

I haven't used REI Blackbook myself, but sounds good enough to me @Ryan Garrison

[Rami Dababneh]

Originally posted by @Ryan Garrison:

For my Agent side, I use Kv Core, and it seems to do a good job. There is lots of room for further customization, but lots of upsells as well.   

For my investor side, I use REI Blackbook because of all the included functionality...you do not have to duct tape together 12 apps with zapier.

@Ryan , What is your experience after using REI Blackbook for more than a year ?

[Ryan Garrison]

@Rami Dababneh

Great company.

Automations are second to none.

The UI could use a face-lift, but the automations keep me around. It's an excellent value.

[Paul DoCampo]

I've been in about a dozen different CRMs. I can speak for automation and drips as that's what I help investors with, but my favorites are Investor Fuse and Rei Blackbook.