Best CRM for search

by a searcher from University College London, University of London

8 months ago

Hi all,

Any advice which CRM software might be the most useful to run a search?

Thanks

2 likes
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5 comments

searcher from University College London, University of London

Thanks everyone for your input

7 months ago | like reply | 0 likes

searcher from University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School

This is a great question that I am guilty of having spent way too much time overthinking. For me, most CRMs require a lot of manual input of data and I have searched for something that just captures the information I need to access in order to support relationship building, prospecting, and deal making. So far, I have not found a perfect CRM... I have tried Hubspot, Zoho, Bitrix24, self-built CRM in Notion, self-built CRM in Obsidian, Nutshell (I liked this, but still not perfect), ClickUp, and a few others. A few that peaked my interest beyond nutshell were SalesFlare, Affinity.co,

While I don't mind living in my CRM, I'd rather be setting up calls and having conversations than entering data or monitoring contacts profiles for updates, announcements, and changes. The only way to get the customization and automations I had searched for is to stack several tools together (data enrichment, CRM, business card scanner, LinkedIn/Social media based CRM that monitors for changes, Multi-channel Chat Inbox, etc) and use APIs.

With that all said, many PE and VC friends swear by Affinity.co and although it is on the more expensive side, the time savings and native built in data enrichment may be something to consider as it provides more value than buying separate data enrichment platforms to integrate with an API. I know I certainly am considering it.

Another CRM in the stack that you may want to consider on the lower cost side, purely for relationship maintenance and only on Apple devices, is Clay.earth.

If I can offer any advice... this is a rabbit hole that you can get lost in with analysis paralysis. I would suggest picking something that feels comfortable, in your price range, and just getting to work holding calls. In fact many of the successful searchers I have spoken with just used a spreadsheet in google sheets or excel.

Hope that helps and best of luck in your search.

7 months ago | like reply | 1 like

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