Our review of Starter, Salesforce’s all-in-one package for $25 a month

Salesforce has introduced a $25 per user per month offer in 2023, granting access to a remarkable range of CRM, marketing, and customer service features. Known as the “Starter Suite,” this new plan is specifically designed for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Salesforce all-in-one at such an affordable price. Naturally, we had to dig deeper…

Let’s explore what Salesforce Starter truly offers: its included features, customer feedback, benefits, and, of course, the limitations—at this price point, there are bound to be a few.

Salesforce Starter: Overview and General Impression

Until recently, Salesforce was mostly accessible to companies with substantial budgets, like larger SMBs, mid-sized enterprises, and big corporations. But that changed in 2023 when Salesforce launched the Starter Suite to cater to the booming SMB market. Taking a cue from HubSpot’s similar offer (HubSpot Starter), Salesforce has ventured into accessible CRM solutions for smaller companies.

(If you’re curious about the comparison between Salesforce and HubSpot, we’ve covered the topic in detail: Salesforce vs HubSpot).

Salesforce Starter is a streamlined version of the world’s most popular CRM. For $25 per user each month, it provides access to essential tools for sales, marketing, and customer service management. In short, it offers everything you need to manage customer relationships from A to Z without overspending.

Now, of course, there are limitations. Let’s be clear: at this price, you won’t have access to all the advanced features of the Enterprise plans. But for most small businesses, it’s more than sufficient to get started.

The main advantage of the Starter plan is that it opens the door to the Salesforce ecosystem. You gain the power and reliability of the world’s top CRM platform, with an easy path to upgrade as your needs grow. Think of it like buying a basic car model, with the option to upgrade to a more robust version as your business expands!

In short, if you’re searching for a comprehensive, scalable, and affordable CRM for your SMB, Salesforce Starter is well worth a look. It may not be the ultimate solution for everyone, but it’s an excellent introduction to the Salesforce environment.

Key Features of Salesforce Starter

Salesforce Starter is more than just a CRM—it’s an all-in-one suite. It brings together essential sales, marketing, and customer service functionalities into one integrated tool.

Salesforce Starter’s Sales/CRM Features

On the sales front, Salesforce Starter provides the foundational features of a standard CRM. It doesn’t aim to overwhelm with advanced or highly complex tools; instead, it focuses on delivering essential features to help you structure your sales approach. It’s a great step up for SMBs looking to move beyond Excel spreadsheets, though businesses with intricate sales processes might outgrow it quickly.

Let’s break down what Salesforce Starter includes:

• Account and Contact Management. Centralize all prospect and customer data in one place. You can create detailed profiles, track interaction history, and customize fields to suit your unique needs.

• Lead and Opportunity Tracking. Salesforce Starter includes an intuitive module to manage your sales pipeline. Track each stage of the sales cycle, from lead qualification to closing, with customizable views and automated alerts.
• Email Integration. Easily sync your emails with Gmail or Outlook. This integration automatically links emails to the corresponding accounts and contacts in Salesforce, giving you a comprehensive view of all interactions with each customer.
• Dashboards and Reports. Gain access to reporting tools with customizable dashboards. Salesforce Starter lets you build tailored reports and offers a selection of ready-made templates.

• Mobile Access. Salesforce Starter includes a mobile app that enables your sales team to access CRM data on the go. Users can update opportunities, view customer profiles, and add notes directly from their smartphones.
• Sales Process Automation. Starter provides basic automation tools to streamline your sales processes. For instance, you can set up rules for lead assignment, automatic notifications, and triggered actions for specific stages in the sales cycle.

Salesforce Starter Marketing Features

On the marketing front, Salesforce Starter is effective, although it lacks the advanced capabilities of high-end marketing automation tools like Salesforce Marketing Cloud. That said, it’s a strong starting point for SMBs looking to structure their marketing efforts.

Marketing features include:

• Email Marketing. You can create and send email campaigns with ease. Customization and segmentation options are available, although they’re not as advanced as those in dedicated tools. Starter also provides access to some Einstein AI functionalities, such as intelligent optimization for the best campaign send times.

• Email Templates. Starter includes a selection of pre-designed templates, allowing you to quickly launch professional campaigns with reasonable customization options.
• List Management. Contact segmentation is available to help you target your campaigns effectively. The segmentation criteria meet the typical needs of SMBs.
• Performance Monitoring. Key metrics such as open and click-through rates are accessible, enabling you to optimize your campaigns over time.
• Automation. Set up autoresponders and email sequences to keep prospects engaged. These options offer a great first step into marketing automation.

Salesforce Starter Customer Service Features

In terms of customer service, Salesforce Starter offers a basic yet functional package. While it may not be transformative, it allows you to structure your support processes and improve efficiency.

Here’s what Salesforce Starter provides for customer service:

• Ticket Management. An intuitive system for creating, assigning, and tracking customer requests—a solid foundation for organizing support.
• Knowledge Base. Create and share helpful articles with your customers, reducing your support team’s workload by offering self-service solutions.
• Email-to-Case. Emails are automatically converted into tickets, ensuring consistent tracking of requests. There are customization options for workflows, though they are somewhat limited.
• Dashboards. Starter includes reporting functions that let you monitor the performance of your customer service team.
• Sales Integration. Combine sales and support data for a comprehensive 360° customer view.

Salesforce Starter Highlights and Benefits for SMBs

Despite its limitations, Salesforce Starter offers several advantages that make it appealing to SMBs:

1. Attractive Price: At $25 per user per month, Starter makes Salesforce accessible to small and medium-sized businesses. For SMBs with limited budgets, this is an affordable entry point into the Salesforce ecosystem.
2. All-in-One Suite: Sales, marketing, and customer service are all integrated within a single platform.
3. Ease of Use: The interface is intuitive, and guided onboarding makes it easy to get started quickly.
4. Scalability: Start small with Starter and easily upgrade to more comprehensive Salesforce versions as your business grows.
5. Platform Reliability: Even in the Starter version, you benefit from Salesforce’s robust infrastructure, which ensures data security and high availability.
6. Regular Updates: Salesforce continually improves its products. Even with Starter, you’ll have access to the latest features (within the limits of the Starter package, of course).
7. Rich Ecosystem: While not all integrations are available with Starter, you still have access to a wide array of Salesforce apps and resources.

In summary, Salesforce Starter is an intriguing option for SMBs looking to organize their customer relations without breaking the bank.

Limitations of Salesforce Starter to Keep in Mind

Salesforce Starter may look appealing, but it also has its drawbacks. It’s worth understanding these limitations before diving in.

The first limitation, and a significant one, is the lack of advanced features. Complex workflows, advanced lead attribution rules, and state-of-the-art AI tools are all absent. With Starter, you get the basics. While that’s enough for many, power users might feel restricted.

Customization is also limited to the essentials. You can create a few custom fields, but don’t expect to completely tailor the interface to your specific processes. If your business requires highly customized solutions, Starter may quickly become restrictive.

Integration with other tools is another area to consider. While Salesforce has a robust ecosystem, not all integrations are available with Starter. You may need to rely on multiple tools for certain tasks, which can add complexity.

Starter also imposes limits on the amount of data you can store. This won’t be a concern for most small businesses, but if you have an extensive contact database or generate large volumes of data, these limitations could become an issue.

Finally, there’s the risk of dependency to consider. Starter provides an affordable entry into the Salesforce ecosystem, but once you’re integrated, switching to another solution can be challenging and costly. This is the well-known “lock-in” effect, which is worth keeping in mind.

In short, Salesforce Starter has its limitations. It’s not a perfect solution for everyone, but it’s up to you to decide if these constraints are manageable for your business or if they could hinder your growth in the medium term. When in doubt, weighing the pros and cons carefully before committing is always a smart approach.

Customer Reviews of Salesforce Starter

Feedback from Salesforce Starter users is generally positive, with an average rating of 4.4 / 5 on Capterra (201 reviews).

Here’s a summary of the main pros and cons reported by users:

• Ease of Use: “Very easy to use and configure”; “The user interface is intuitive and easy to navigate”; “Salesforce Starter is an excellent platform for small businesses looking to organize their sales and customer service.”
• Value for Money: “Excellent value for money for small businesses”; “This is a good option for startups that need a basic CRM at an affordable price.”
• Solid Basic Functionality: “It offers all the basic functionality a small business needs”; “The reporting tools are excellent and easy to use.”
• Functional Limitations: “Lacks some of the advanced features available in more expensive versions of Salesforce”; “Customization options are limited compared to the full Salesforce edition.”
• Customer Support: “Customer support could be improved”; “Sometimes difficult to get help quickly for specific problems.”
• Scalability: “Excellent starting point, but fast-growing companies may quickly need to upgrade to a more complete version”; “Good for starting out, but can become limiting as the company grows.”

Conclusion

Salesforce Starter is essentially the “CRM for beginners” version of Salesforce. It’s an offering that democratizes access to the market-leading platform, with both strengths and weaknesses. For SMBs seeking to structure customer relations without stretching their budget, it’s a compelling option, but it’s important to keep in mind the limitations that may hinder growth over the long term. As with most technology decisions, the choice ultimately depends on balancing your needs, ambitions, and budget.