Capsule CRM Review 2024: Pricing, Pros & Cons
Growing your businesses requires something more sophisticated to keep you on track—something like Capsule CRM, perhaps?
In this Capsule CRM review, we see if this is the tool that small to medium-sized businesses need to solve their customer contact and management challenges.
Capsule comes with a generous set of features like sales pipeline and analytics. It also offers a free plan that should be enough for sole proprietors or small sales teams.
We’ll analyze the platform's pricing plans, its best features, and the main pros and cons. Stay tuned until the end, when we give a final verdict on whether this tool is a worthwhile investment.
Capsule CRM review 2024: Is Capsule CRM any good?
Capsule was designed with simplicity in mind. Even the most technophobic user will find this software user-friendly. You can learn how everything works just by playing with the system for an hour or so.
The intuitive user interface has six main modules: the dashboard, people and organizations, calendars and tasks, the sales pipeline, cases, and reports.
There's a universal search box front and center that helps you locate anything in mere seconds. You can quickly add a new person, organization, case, or opportunity from anywhere in the system. It’s definitely adept at keeping track of team members, opportunities, partnerships, and funding opportunities in one central place.
Capsule was built to help startups, small businesses, and midsize enterprises manage customer relationships, convert more leads, and save time with standardized sales processes. It's a great CRM for startups as you can get started for free and upgrade to a paid plan that gives you access to a wider range of useful features as you grow.
Small businesses have a lot to gain from using a tool like Capsule. The system will organize your data, make you feel in control of your sales growth, and help you build deeper relationships with customers, partners, and vendors. Midsize businesses can use Capsule to keep their sales team organized, win more opportunities, and close more deals.
On that note, you might want to have a look at our CRM comparison article and see what competing apps have to offer.
The team behind Capsule understands that every business is different with unique workflows and data that needs to be tracked. That's why the system was built to be highly customizable. You can quickly tailor your sales pipeline to match each step of your process and adapt it as you grow.
There's the option to add custom fields, activity types, and task categories. Heck, you can even add your own branding and choose a custom color scheme.
Although the system favors minimalism, Capsule CRM does come with a generous set of features that meets the needs of small to midsize businesses (SMB) to improve organization and increase their sales. Said features include powerful contact management, tasks and calendar, sales pipeline, and sales analytics.
All in all, Capsule is a reliable and clutter-free CRM solution that's affordably priced to meet the needs of SMBs.
Capsule CRM pricing plans
First of all, how much does Capsule CRM cost? Let’s take at Capsule CRM prices:
Plan | Monthly Pricing | Annual Pricing | Site |
Free | Free | Free | |
Professional | $18 /user/month | $18 /user/month | |
Teams | $36 /user/month | $36 /user/month | |
Enterprise | $54 /user/month | $54 /user/month |
Are there any Capsule CRM coupon codes or promo discount vouchers?
Capsule CRM coupon codes and promo discounts are often available online. Make sure you search the web to obtain these from third parties. Discounts tend to range from 20% to 30% off.
What is Capsule CRM?
Capsule CRM is a SaaS customer relationship management solution by UK-based Zestia Ltd. It removes the difficulty of managing your growing list of contacts in spreadsheets. Like other CRMs, Capsule offers a system that stores all of your data in one central place.
We have an article where you can brush up on CRM meaning writ large, if that helps.
Capsule is designed for ease of use, while still being powerful enough to help you grow your business. It has all the CRM features you’d expect, like contact management, tasks and calendar, and sales analytics.
Import your address book, manage your to-do lists and calendars, generate reports, and track activity between you, your colleagues, and leads.
With a few clicks, you can see opportunities you're winning or losing, who your top salesperson is, which team is performing the best, and more.
The system provides a range of customization features like custom fields and adjustable pipelines to make it work for any type of business. It even has mobile apps for Android and iOS users who want to work on the go.
You can also integrate this CRM with other tools to extend its uses. These include Google G Suite, QuickBooks, MailChimp, and Zapier for advanced sales automation.
Capsule CRM free vs paid: what’s the difference?
Capsule offers a free plan that comes with all the basic features solopreneurs or small teams would need to manage their sales pipeline. There are three paid plans, ranging from $18 per user per month to $54 per month.
However, the freemium version is limited to only two users, which can only satisfy the needs of a sole proprietor or a team of just a few salespeople. Users of the free version can only store up to 250 contacts.
Another downside of the free plan is that it doesn't integrate with Accounting Platforms, unlike many other CRM for small business and large alike, something which is critical for many sales teams.
The cheapest paid plan (Professional) costs $18 per user per month and unlocks some additional features that are unavailable with the free plan. Users of the Professional plan can store up to 50,000 contacts per plan. The total storage amount per person is 10GB / user, unlike the free plan that provides only 50MB / account.
The Teams plan gives you even more storage space (20GB / user) and an even greater number of contacts (100,000).
In terms of email templates, the free plan doesn't offer any. Email templates are available only with the paid plans, and the number of email templates available increases as you subscribe to a higher-priced plan.
The free plan also lacks premium Add-ons like Xero, Freshbooks, Mailchimp, and Wufoo. You can’t mark fields as “important,” set custom activity types, or create multiple sales pipelines. Advanced sales reporting is also not included.
You’ll need the Enterprise plan to unlock features like premium onboarding, dedicated account management, and priority support.
Overall, the free plan is a good option for small businesses without a hefty budget that want to get started in the world of CRM. All paid plans come with a 30-day trial period, which is a great opportunity to test-drive the features of the software and see if it's a good fit for your business.
Capsule CRM features list
The main features of Capsule CRM are:
Contact management
Sales pipeline
Emails and activity
Sales analytics
Tasks and calendar
Integrations
1. Contact management
Capsule's contact management software lets you do much more than just save contacts. You can add details like phone numbers and addresses and information such as notes, emails, files, and tasks. In short, a contact profile can store a complete record of all interactions you have with a person or organization.
You can add a contact manually, via a CSV or vCard import, or through an integration with other systems.
A person's record can be standalone, or it can be linked with an organization. Similarly, an organization can be a standalone entity or have one or multiple people linked to it.
Another great feature is the option to customize your contact profiles by adding custom fields and tailor Capsule to your business needs. You can use custom fields to add specific information like industry sector, company size, date of birth, etc. There are different custom field types, including text fields, date fields, and list fields.
One of the most useful functions of the Capsule CRM is the option to store your email communication into the system. You can do that quickly and easily by integrating the software with a tool like Gmail or Microsoft Outlook.
Additionally, you can use the Capsule Mail Drop Box function to create new contacts from emails and save sent and received messages in your account. This functionality works the same in Windows and on Macs.
There's also an option to organize all contacts by adding tags. Tags help separate your clients from your leads, for example. You can even add multiple tags to a contact and create tags based on business sectors, product areas, locations, etc.
2. Sales pipeline
The sales pipeline is where you can visualize, manage, and track your sales deals. The good news is that the pipeline is highly customizable, letting you create custom Milestones that match your specific sales process to close more deals.
You can view your sales pipeline in three different ways: kanban, list, and dashboard. The kanban view lets you see your pipeline more visually, and you can easily drag and drop opportunities from one milestone to another as your deal progresses.
If you drag a card towards the bottom of the page, you can move it into a "Won" or "Lost" folder, depending on how the deal went.
If an opportunity has been "stuck" in a milestone without any activity, the system will mark it as "Stale." This is a great feature for getting a heads up on which opportunities need attention.
In the list view, you can filter opportunities by status, milestone, tag, owner, team, value, and more. You can also sort these lists by name, date added, probability, etc.
The dashboard view gives you a quick summary of your sales pipeline. You can see four different visuals, including pipeline forecast, pipeline by tag, pipeline by milestone, and conversion rate.
Teams and Enterprise users have access to a recently added feature called “Multiple Sales Pipelines.” In a nutshell, the feature lets users have multiple sales pipelines, benefiting businesses with different products or services.
Another great functionality is the option to quickly duplicate an existing Pipeline instead of recreating the same process manually.
3. Emails and activity
Capsule CRM integrates flawlessly with Gmail and Microsoft Outlook so that users can easily manage their emails and store email conversations into the system.
With these add-ons, you can easily add new Contacts, Tasks, Cases, and Opportunities into the CRM without even leaving your inbox.
For example, if you receive an email from a new sales opportunity, you can instantly create a new Opportunity right from within Gmail or Outlook. This saves you a great deal of time.
Emails can also be used to create tasks for your contacts. For instance, if a client sends you an email, confirming a time for a call, you can add that task to your calendar with just a few clicks.
If you don't use Gmail or Outlook, you can use the Capsule Drop Box function to perform the same tasks.
4. Sales analytics
Capsule CRM has improved its sales analytics, and it now has a dedicated reporting section where you can obtain key sales data.
The bad news is that the free plan lacks any reporting features. The Professional plan limits you to the Sales Pipeline Dashboard and Activity Reporting, which lets you see basic data like how many calls your staff is having, tasks they are completing, etc.
The Teams and Enterprise plans unlock more generous reporting options. These include Reporting By Team, which gives insights into your team’s past and present performance. Advanced Sales Reporting gives access to 10+ reports on won/lost opportunities, pipeline growth, average time to won, and more. Custom Reports Via Google Data Studio allows you to design your own reports based on contact, sales opportunity and case data from Capsule.
One powerful reporting feature is the Leaking Pipeline, which tells you exactly where in the process you're losing sales. Another report that can help identify problems in your sales process is the Average Time to Won report, which shows you how long a won sales opportunity has spent at each stage in your sales pipeline.
5. Tasks and calendar
The Tasks and Calendar feature provides a complete overview of everything your business is working on at any given time. You can link tasks to contacts, opportunities, and cases, or you can create a task for yourself as a reminder. You can even categorize your tasks as a meeting, a phone call, an email, a milestone, etc.
All tasks can have a description, due date, time, and owner, and you can view and edit tasks details at any time. Once you create and save a Task, it will be visible in the Calendar view, and if it's linked to a contact, it will be displayed in the Task panel on that record.
Another great functionality is the option to create a repeating task. Tasks can be set to repeat by a specific number of weeks, months, or years, which helps keep track of repetitive tasks, follow-ups, or birthdays.
In the Calendar view, you can view tasks by month or week. You can even drag and drop a task from one day to another. And if you enable the Email Task Reminder option, you'll receive an email every morning containing an overview of all of your tasks for the day.
Finally, the Tracks function lets you automate your Tasks. Tracks are a series of predefined tasks you can set up to standardize your sales process. For example, a simple Track might start with a task to contact a lead via email.
Three days later, you'll be reminded to follow up with a phone call, and one week later, you could have a task reminding you to organize a meeting to talk about your offer in more detail.
6. Integrations
Out of the box, Capsule CRM provides integrations with 50+ apps. These include Mailchimp, Wufoo, Xero, Freshbooks, Zendek, Toggl, and Quickbooks.
For example, the Mailchimp integration lets you add contacts from Capsule to Mailchimp and use their emails for email campaigns. The QuickBooks integration gives you a quick overview of all of your clients' invoices and estimates.
Additionally, you can connect Capsule CRM with 1,500+ other apps via Zapier. The system also provides a RESTful API that you can use to integrate a third-party application with Capsule.
Capsule CRM pros and cons
Here are the advantages and disadvantages of Capsule CRM:
Capsule CRM advantages
With Capsule CRM, you can have a more accurate view of all of your leads, conversion rates of those leads, and sources of new business. You can see how each lead progresses from one stage to the next and where exactly in the process you're losing the most leads.
The system notifies you when a lead goes stale, reminding you to take appropriate action. Additionally, you can track how many opportunities you're winning or losing, who your top salesperson is, which team is performing the best, and more.
Another perk of working in Capsule is the reliability and efficiency of the system. Capsule has a 99.99% uptime rate, so chances are you won’t have any reason to request assistance from the technical support staff.
Integrations work smoothly, enabling you to connect the system with all the apps your team uses on a daily basis. Connecting to social media like LinkedIn or Google apps is easy.
Onboarding is great. There are two types of walkthroughs: one for B2C and another one for B2B.
Additionally, you can access the getting started section by clicking your name on the top right corner, where you'll find lots of helpful resources when you need them. You can learn more about each feature by simply clicking on the hotspot symbols.
Capsule’s networking capabilities are another plus. With the easy-to-use mobile apps for iPhone and Android users, you can even add these contacts directly into the system from the spot. Once you add your contacts into the system, you can set up reminders to reach out to keep the relationship fresh.
This CRM tool comes equipped with all the features a business needs to improve its conversion rates. Its sales pipeline is easily customizable to suit your sales process. Thanks to reports, you can see where in the process you're seeing drop-off and use that information to improve your sales process.
Capsule CRM disadvantages
Some users may be put off by the weaker security features of this CRM system. For instance, there's the option to set a user as an administrator, which will give them the ability to configure the system, invite other users, export data, etc. But that's pretty much it.
Except for these basic administrator functions, everyone has the same permissions when it comes to viewing contacts, opportunities, cases, and other information.
Another downside of the Capsule CRM is the lack of built-in marketing automation tools, which some businesses require. To fix this problem, you can integrate Capsule with a tool like Mailchimp or use the Zapier integration which lets you connect the CRM with 1,500+ apps.
If you don't mind integrating Capsule with marketing tools, then this shouldn't be a major downside. However, if you prefer a system that has a built-in marketing automation functionality like Hubspot, then you might be better off with another software.
Limited features might put off some. The CRM software comes with all the basic features SMBs need to manage their contacts and sales. This might be a disadvantage for larger enterprises managing more complex operations.
Capsule CRM complaints & praise (info from real Capsule CRM customer reviews)
Praise for Capsule CRM
Platform is cost-effective and easy to implement if your needs are basic, like tracking new contacts
Follow-up reminders work really well.
Has built-in APIs for integration with email marketing tools and other apps, as well as custom fields.
It’s easy to create processes (or “tracks”) for routine tasks.
The app’s UX is simple and has personality, distinguishing it from the crowded field of competitor apps.
Good fit for solo entrepreneurs and consultants who need to stay on top of relationships with customers on-the-go to exceed expectations.
Complaints about Capsule CRM
Range of features the CRM offers might be too limited for some users.
Can’t categorize a contact under multiple organizations.
Could use a better search and reporting function (Sales pipeline reporting is singled out for criticism).
The app could use more features and more innovative approaches to them.
Many Capsule CRM reviews note how integration with Mailchimp is clunky and limited
Review of Capsule support
Many users applaud Capsule's customer support, saying the app offers knowledgeable and friendly support. They also like the extensive help center that contains a range of learning resources like blogs and video tutorials that teach you how everything in the system works.
In addition to the help center, customers like how they can get in touch with the Capsule support team via email for high-complexity problems that require the help of a live agent.
One notable complaint is the availability of the customer support team, which is limited to UK business hours. Other users would like to see a real-time chat option as a faster way to reach a live agent.
Is Capsule CRM worth it? Our conclusion
We've come to the end of this extensive review. But the main question still remains:
Is Capsule CRM worth it?
That would depend on factors such as the size of your business, your budget, and preferences.
Capsule brands itself as a cost-effective and easy-to-use CRM that prides itself on its simplicity. It's not a feature-heavy tool but comes equipped with all the basic tools you would need to track relationships and manage your sales pipeline.
It even lets you integrate the system with other tools your team uses so that you have all of your customer data in one central place, work more efficiently, and ensure nothing falls through the cracks.
The reporting features are also generous for any business that wants to track won and lost opportunities by person or team, identify bottlenecks, and notice performance issues before things get out of hand.
Overall, this is an ideal tool for any small to medium-sized businesses that need a super-simple, straightforward platform accessible via the cloud that is also competitively priced.
If you're a sales team of just a few individuals and need a simple CRM to help you organize contacts, then definitely go with Capsule.
However, if you need more advanced functionalities, like built-in marketing automation or accounting tools, you’re probably better off looking elsewhere.
If you have difficulty deciding, don't forget you can test out each one of the paid plans for 30 days for free. Try one of the plans to get a good feel for Capsule and decide whether it will be the right fit for your business.