Small to midsize businesses are continuously looking for cost-effective methods to streamline operations, enhance customer engagement, and stimulate growth. CRM technology is generally considered essential in this pursuit, but determining the best value solution with over 400 CRM options on the market can be difficult.
While most CRM platforms offer good contact management features, Act! Advantage goes far beyond that. It delivers a comprehensive suite of productivity tools, including appointment scheduling, quoting, surveys, web forms, eMarketing, mobile access, and even URL shortening—all in one integrated solution. Comparing the cost of these features to third-party alternatives reveals that Act! Advantage offers significantly more value than its individual components.
Let's test this statement by imagining the CRM component for Act! to be free. That's right, the contact database, the calendar & task list, the sales pipeline, and the advanced reporting are all completely free of charge. Even in that scenario, Act!'s additional features would still far outweigh the cost of the subscription as a whole. Here’s why:
| Feature | 3rd Party Product (lowest paid tier) | 3rd-Party Cost (Monthly) | Integrates with Act! |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online Appointment Scheduling | Calendly Standard | $10.00 | ❌ |
| Quoting Tools | QuoteWerks Starter | $13.75 | ❌ |
| Survey Platforms | SurveyMonkey Advantage | $45.00 | ❌ |
| Web Forms | Wufoo Starter | $16.25 | ❌ |
| eMarketing (Email Campaigns) | MailChimp Essentials | $17.94 | ❌ |
| URL Shorteners (Branded) | Bitly Core | $10.00 | ❌ |
| Email List Verification (250 contact scans) | Zero Bounce.net | $2.50 | ❌ |
| Mobile CRM Access | Handheld Contact | $7.00 | O |
| TOTAL | $122.44 | ||
| Act! Advantage | Standard Tier (with all of these features) | $30.00 | O |
Even when comparing only the lowest paid tiers of each program, often with inferior features to Act! Advantage, these 3rd party tools can easily add up to over $120 per month (4x the cost of Act! Advantage), and that’s before considering the time and cost of integrating them with your CRM. And while we don't expect every business or industry to need all these features, it's hard to find even half that don't exceed the Standard tier of Act! Advantage.
Whatever your feature requirements, Act! Advantage comes at a significantly lower cost than cobbling together a few third-party tools, and it eliminates the hassles associated with integration.
The Integration Dilemma
Speaking of CRM integration, the absence of this vital component means businesses are left juggling multiple logins, inconsistent data, the tedium of exporting & importing data, separate subscriptions, and disconnected workflows. This results in lost productivity, increased errors, and a fragmented customer experience. Act! Advantage eliminates these headaches by offering a seamlessly integrated ecosystem, with every component working together out of the box—no need for expensive middleware, custom development, or IT support.
The Bottom Line
Act! Advantage provides a smarter and more cost-effective solution for businesses seeking to enhance their marketing, sales, and productivity by integrating time-tested tools such as calendar links, e-marketing, surveys, web forms, and quoting tools into a single platform. Act! Advantage is about having the right tools, working together, in one place to save you both time and money.
