For several years, I have been tempted to equip my market research agency with CRM-type software to track our prospects. At the end of 2023, I launched Streak CRM. The idea was to use the free version to measure the success of various outbound marketing strategies and, at the same time, manage our inbound leads. After 3 months of use, here’s my objective feedback on Streak CRM.
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My Streak CRM review in 30 seconds
My test of Streak CRM was motivated by the fact that it’s free. Let’s clarify from the outset that all this no longer applies, as Streak’s CRM functionalities will be removed from the free version. From now on, the minimum charge will be $49/month/user.
Streak CRM is amazingly easy to learn, well-integrated with Gmail, and highly visual. You can always keep an eye on your lead pipeline. If you have prospect lists to process, importing is very intuitive, and Streak also enriches prospect records with additional information (LinkedIn profile, for example).
Aside from the fact that a free version is no longer available, I also find Streak CRM to have certain shortcomings. On the one hand, if you’re conducting a mass mailing, the endless lists of prospects make individual follow-up difficult. On the other hand, this follow-up is complicated because you systematically must log out of Streak to reply to emails if you want to retain the previous history.
The end of the free period prompted me to look for an alternative to Streak CRM, which I’ll tell you about in another post.
Positive points
Ultra-simple to install and use
I’m not going to lie; the main advantage of Streak CRM is that it installs in 2 clicks in your Gmail mailbox (but only there!). Just download the add-on, and off you go.
Simplifying the import of contacts
My initial motivation was to process many prospects. I invite you to read about my adventure of buying a B2B lead list.
I easily imported an Excel file into the first stage of the sales pipeline. The only problem I encountered was that some metadata (URL of the prospect’s LinkedIn profile) needed to be 100% imported, which meant I had to re-encode some information by hand.
Perfectly integrated with Gmail … and beautiful
We underestimate the added value of aesthetics on the desire to use an object or a service. If it’s ugly, you don’t want to use it. That applies to software, too, and Streak CRM does an excellent job of it. The integration with Gmail is perfect, and the pipeline visualization is attractive.
Pipeline adaptable to your needs
By “playing” with Streak CRM and multiplying sales approaches, I realized the sales pipeline I’d imagined wasn’t ideal. To adapt it, no problem. Add, rename, or remove a step, and you’re done.
Pipeline according to your acquisition channels
You can create several pipelines depending on your sales approach. For example, you can have a channel for outbound and one specifically for inbound. It’s practical and can be conducted in just 2 minutes.
Free direct mail in Streak CRM
The last positive point I’d like to mention is how simplified it is to send an email to several people simultaneously (direct mail). The free version gave access to direct mailings to a maximum of 50 people. As far as I was concerned, I was too “scared” of the consequences of mass mailing on my reputation and that of IntoTheMinds. So, I never used it. It’s a technique that should be used cautiously, especially since Google announced new rules on mass emailing.
Negative points
  No more free version of Streak CRM
An email was sent on March 21, 2024 (below), announcing the withdrawal of CRM functionalities from the free plan. However, a grace period of 3 months was granted. This will allow me to evaluate another solution in parallel, as I refuse to pay for access only to simple tracking functionalities.
Not available on Firefox
I’m a Firefox fan and have used Mozilla to organize my digital life for over 10 years. Streak CRM not being available on Firefox meant I had to juggle with Chrome, which was a pain point. If you’re attached to a particular ecosystem like me, it’s worth considering any incompatibilities.
Streak CRM complicates replying with email
It’s impossible to reply to an email from Streak without losing the conversation history. In other words, if you go through Streak to follow up on a prospect, for example, previous exchanges will not appear in your email. This is a huge drawback that diminishes the added value of this product.
You must go back to your Inbox, search for the email you want to reply to and conduct it from there. This is a huge waste of time.
No external integrations in the basic version
Streak CRM proposes a series of interesting little add-ons to automate certain tasks. The free version includes only a few, but the possibilities are endless, especially with Zapier. You can also create your integrations from an existing API. The problem is that these advanced features are only available to users who have subscribed to the $69/month package.
Plenty (too much) information
Finally, there was far too much information to manage in the interface. If you’re conducting inbound marketing and sending dozens or even hundreds of emails, you’ll soon have hundreds of lines in each stage of your pipeline. This becomes exceedingly difficult if you would like to take specific actions on certain contacts.
I don’t know if there’s a solution to this problem (other than to stop looking at the details and look at the “Big Picture”).
Conclusions
After being informed that the free version would disappear, I chose not to continue testing Streak CRM. Continuing to use Streak CRM meant paying €49/month for the basic version and €69/month for access to integrations with third-party applications. As there are 2 of us in the company, the budget directly amounted to over €1,000/year. For this price, I decided to assess a second solution, a little more complex, and give myself time to think.
Posted in Entrepreneurship.
