The world of an interior designer is filled with shapes, colors, and aesthetics. Each new job presents a fresh opportunity to create something beautiful and functional; a space that reflects the uniqueness of the client while also creating a perfect balance between form and function.
Without an effective Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, that process can quickly become overwhelming and unruly. That’s why it’s important to have an interior design CRM that helps streamline the workflow, increase customer satisfaction, and make sure no one falls through the cracks.
Are you on the hunt for a new interior design CRM? Read on to find out more about the best options and how they can help you take your business to the next level.
A customer relationship management platform is all about managing customer interactions and tracking data. It provides a centralized hub for all of your client information, making it easy to access and update throughout the design process.
An interior design CRM should help you organize projects, manage tasks, track budgets, schedule appointments, store images and documents related to each project, as well as give you insight into customer behavior so that you can better serve them in the future.
It's not technically mandatory to have one – and before the SaaS boom, we certainly got by without them. But with the right CRM, you can save yourself hours of work each week and make sure no deadlines slip through the cracks. To invest in a quality CRM is to invest in the future of your business.
Great question. When looking for the perfect interior design CRM, what you’re really looking for is a system that offers the following features:
As an interior designer, you'll know how integral appointment scheduling is to your job. Clients have busy lives (as do you!) and there are a lot of moving parts to keep track of.
A great interior design CRM should have the ability to easily and quickly schedule appointments, as well as send reminders via email or text message so that everyone is on the same page. This feature alone can save you hours upon hours each week.
Signing a contract with a client isn't always a simple A to B process. Sometimes, you'll interact back and forth with potential customers, having conversations over the phone or via email. It's essential to track those interactions so that you can remember where things stand when it comes time to make a decision.
CRMs should have the ability to store notes and record conversations so you can easily reference them in the future.
From intake forms to surveys and everything in between, interior designers need to be able to fill out and send forms quickly and easily. Look for a CRM that not only facilitates the exchange and storage of forms, but also provides you with customizable templates that you can use to quickly create documents on-the-fly.
It's risky to conduct business by verbal contracts alone; you need to protect yourself and clients alike by signing a legally-binding contract. The best interior design CRMs will offer features that allow you to create, store and send contracts quickly and easily.
Clients need to know exactly what value they're getting in exchange for their money – and proposals are an excellent way to present that information in an easy-to-digest manner. Look for a CRM with proposal templates so you can impress potential customers with your professionalism and attention to detail.
Finally, you want a CRM that will make the billing and payment process a total breeze. Your clients are your livelihood, after all, and you need to make sure that invoices are sent out on time and you can accept payments online quickly. Look for a CRM that offers various payment methods so you can make it as convenient as possible for your clients.
In this guide, our team will be reviewing the 5 best 2023 CRM tools for interior designers with pros and cons so that you can make the right call for an interior design business. Let's take a look.
Source: Bonsai
Our own CRM solution, Bonsai, is built to be the all-in-one business solution for self-employed businesses. It's got tools for workflow, finance, and client management. We've even got a client portal you can customize to give your clients a more personalized experience.
Learn how to take your interior design business to the next level with Bonsai.
Source: Pipedrive
Pipedrive is an excellent sales-focused CRM. A cloud-based sales tool, it's equipped to help with email outreach, lead generation, web traffic analysis, and more. There's a definite emphasis on sales – but there are also plenty of features for nurturing and managing your existing client relationships.
Source: Hubspot
If you run an interior design firm, your business might need a scaled-up solution to handle the challenge of managing dozens or hundreds of clients. Hubspot is one such solution; it's an all-in-one CRM and marketing automation tool that can help you create campaigns, track analytics, manage leads, automate workflow processes, invoice clients, and much more.
Source: Zendesk
The Zendesk team calls themselves 'champions of customer service', and that's what they're known for. They've designed a CRM that enables you to give your clients the ultimate customer service experience – with features like automation, chatbots, and personalized support. They have even started using conversational AI so that your clients feel as though their problems are truly being heard and addressed.
Source: Zoho
Looking for a comprehensive solution that gets the job done? Zoho advertises 'maximum productivity with minimum use', which is great for interior designers who don't have much time to configure and adjust their CRM.
It's got powerful sales and marketing automation tools, as well as customer support features – but the pricing is kept low to make it accessible for small businesses.
We might look biased in saying this, but Bonsai is truly the best of the best when it comes to interior design CRM. It's got a comprehensive suite of features that are designed to help you manage your business and clients, and it's incredibly easy to set up. Plus, it's affordable – so you won't have to break the bank just to use a top-notch CRM tool.
Don't bother investing money into a tool that doesn't cover all of your bases. Handle workflow, accounting, client management, and more with Bonsai, the all-in-one CRM for interior design businesses.
Like we said earlier in the piece, the best interior design CRM will have a certain set of features: scheduling, lead tracking, form creation, contracts and proposals, and invoicing. We've got all of those bases covered and more in our own CRM, Bonsai.
From client portals to expense tracking and invoicing, we've got the tools you need to make your interior design business run more smoothly – no matter how small or large it is. We've also got a densely populated library of customizable form templates and contract templates that you can use to make your business look more professional.
So what are you waiting for? Give Bonsai a try today, and start growing your interior design business the easy way.
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