The second we got to beta test Hubspot’s new CRM + SideKick, we knew it was going to be a hit. It’s simple, clean, and user-friendly, and logically, it integrates seamlessly with the marketing platform.
Most impressive is how SideKick produces a near-native integration with Google Apps. It also provides amazing sales intelligence consisting of real time desktop alerts and prospect data via head’s up display when visiting a prospect’s website.
Really, the only thing we needed to know was – how much? We’ve been eagerly awaiting word on pricing and, alas, it is here.
Freemium Pricing Model
Both the Hubspot CRM and SideKick come with a freemium pricing model – meaning that they are available for free (sort of…) with paid features available as an upgrade. The free version is reasonably well equipped and will even give you a taste of the advanced features with a “limited” allocation that was not disclosed at the time of publishing. The Hubspot CRM is also scheduled for mainstream release to non-Hubspot customers in 2015.
Keep in mind that contacts added to the CRM count against your Hubspot license, so it’s not exactly free. Not a big deal if you’re not bulk uploading leads, but it can certainly add up if you are.
Hubspot CRM Pricing for Premium Features
The Hubspot CRM runs $50/user/month for full access to its premium features, including click-to-add contacts from email to CRM, email templates and sales document storage, outbound VOIP calling with a smart dialer and call recording, and access to Hubspot’s prospects database. It’s a great value for a power user, but not 100% necessary to get good use out of the system.
SideKick Pricing
SideKick is also available now and can be configured as a standalone add-on to email, with SalesForce, and/or with Hubspot CRM. The free version will get you 200 SideKick alerts per month and you can jump to the unlimited plan for $10/user/month.
Final Thoughts
Hubspot users are going to love the simplicity and utility of the Hubspot CRM – especailly if they’re not scaled to take on a clunky behemoth like SalesForce. The $50 license cost is a little higher than we expected, but it’s reasonable enough.
An important consideration is how a company uses its CRM and if the indirect incremental license costs are a factor or not. This is partially dependent on license type, which carries a cost of $1,200, $600, or $120 per 1000 contacts per year based on Basic, Pro, and Enterprise plans. This is obviously more cost effective to scale for bigger plans and would even be more palatable if it was possible to archive or exclude non-qualified leads in order to retain the record, but not affect the subscription cost.
Hubspot is still in the process of rolling out features and refining their pricing and packaging, so all of the specifics are yet to be determined and may be subject to change. Stay tuned!
