"The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency."
-Bill Gates
Universities are transforming today in their day to day business after the advent of customer relationship management applications; some of the best CRM for the education sector has orchestrated the industry incessantly.
An amplified number of education institutes today have enrolled themselves for these applications and started to use them for a smoother process of attracting, retaining and serving the students. The educational institutes today treat students more like customers to ensure providing them with an edge in this highly competitive scenario. And if properly leveraged, these CRM applications can be treated as tools to develop personal relationships, generate stronger perspectives and bonds between the students and the alumni.
From nurturing relationships to streamlining, recruiting and optimizing the sector for staff and students, the best CRM applications have introduced a sincere level of change for all. And if you are curious to comprehend the need for these CRM applications for schools and universities and how would they be of any assistance, you can always go through the below guide that'll provide you an insight into the details.
The CEO Magazine, in this guide, will enlighten you on everything nook and corner of the detail you require on the best CRM for the education sector and why. We'll compare the market experts and leaders for you and help you make a list that highlights the core areas, functionalities, ease of use, etc. of some of the best CRM software for schools and universities like;
Salesforce
Salesforce is singlehandedly one of the best CRM application. This cloud-based CRM application features all you would need to grow, maintain, and establish relationships in the education sector. The homepage takes care of all the messages, dashboards, feeds, social interactions, and other information that you need in a neatly laid out manner of the software interface. You can without difficulty put together your higher education setup with other products from the Salesforce variety for enhanced collaborations across all the necessary departments.
Good: The customer service is excellent and the support staffs are highly efficient. The application is indeed user-friendly and the CRM software is of an intuitive nature.
Bad: the price may not be suitable for all the schools and may cross the budget bubble.
FullFabric
A technology and education solution company that dedicatedly offers services high on the feature, three CRM packages namely origin, core, and connector – customized to meet industry needs. Origins – is dedicated to attracting more students and streamline the process of enrolment with a tailored platform. Core – is entirely into building a relationship through communication and marketing strategies with students of all backgrounds. And finally connector – takes care of managing the bond between the alums, donors, and the students.
Good: This CRM software has an easy to use interface; it is London based and hence assists and understands the needs of the universities in the UK as well.
Bad: The only drawback that this application has is that the reporting tools lack the necessar6y depth they should support.
Maximizer CRM
One of the best CRM applications, this software is affordable, easy to use, and an all in one solution to all your CRM problems with availability for both on-premises and cloud-based deployment. Negating the fact that this application is not specially made for the education industry, it offers solutions and comes with a variety of services like managing contacts, streamlining workflow processes, and optimizing marketing communications through email and social media. There also is an option for trial available, so one can always see if the tool works appropriately for their needs or not, try and buy isn't that bad after all.
Good: the email integration process is brilliant and the interface it offers is also attractive in comparison to other horses in the race.
Bad: what lacks in this interface is the fact that it is prone to lagging and sometimes it freezes, but since there is a try and buy, one can give it a shot.
Radius by Campus Management
The sole aim that this company serves is to offer the best CRM software for schools and universities. Sales is not their priority and neither is finance, they are only dedicated to developing best CRM software for higher education sector with all the suitable tools needed for multichannel marketing, contact management, reporting, and analytics, etc. there is a neat two-way feature for web chat provided by Radius that helps in dealing with queries sent across by students in an efficient and swift manner.
Good: This acts as one of the best CRM applications for small businesses and just the right option for teams that work remotely.
Bad: It can be a task to get the set-up of this CRM application which may be the only hurdle for a user to face.
Hubspot
This is one of the best CRM software for schools and educational institutes who are interested in a clean, simple and quick way of advent into the CRM world. The major fact that supports this software and makes it one of the best CRM applications is the fact that it's free, yes, and not just that it also gives access to an unlimited amount of accounts to operate the software. Hubspot offers zero-cost access to teachers, officials, and students and more without hampering the functionality. It offers intuitive contact management features and integrations to the brim that would easily help your educational hub thrive for free, hence there is nothing to lose.
Good: Being one of the best CRM applications it stores contacts and company information up to a million. It offers G Suite, Gmail, and outlook for email integration while being completely free, forever.
Bad: The application, if searched online has a few poor customer ratings on approvals.
Maestro SIS
"We are a no hype company that keeps its promises and goes above and beyond to earn customer satisfaction." That's what Maestro CEO Sue Diesker says.
And no, you just cannot fight that claim, this application, runs the fastest in the race for best CRM for the education industry for more than a decade now. It has conveniently, thanks to its services successfully arranged a long list of committed customers all around the world. Such cultivation of customers has generated the value of money that it offers with a massive range of features that covers all tailored parameters to meet all your specific needs.
Maestro SIS has over 14 years of experience of CRM in the education sector, and during that time they've cultivated a loyal following of universities the world over. Why? Because Maestro CRM offers great value for money, a full range of features, and over 300 customizable parameters — so it can be tailored to meet your specific needs.
Good: The customer support of this CRM is quite enthusiastic; the interface is straightforward and helps the students in making the data management process simple.
Bad: This application, while it offers value for money, does come at a fancy price which makes it hard for the smaller institutes to buy it due the restraints.
Conclusion
Even in educational institutes and universities, the competition is pretty high like any other sector, so the need for some of the best CRM applications is a given deal. Once there is an appropriate CRM system in place, one can gain quite a decent edge over the other competitors in the market. Particularly in the education sector, the use of CRM has proven to be a blessing in disguise; it has enhanced the structure, made communication easy, enforced better student engagement perspectives and attracted an amplified number of potential prospects. Hence, if you are looking to choose something suitable that is tailor-made for your needs, do your research well.
Find yourself the best CRM software for school or otherwise and let it integrate each social media platform and take care of your needs to put information together in one place. This will not just automate your admin processes, but also at the same time effectively manage the student cycle from application to graduation, personalize all your interactions with students through email, enable collaborations between the students and administration, and customize the workflow resulting in improved efficiency.
Of course, the fight for the best CRM for the education sector is pretty lethal and it only would be an understatement to say it's not getting fierce. But with a growing number of providers and better services with economical options, it doesn't seem difficult to zero down on a suitable one.
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