Comparing the Best CRMs 2018: ABLE vs. Nutshell

How ABLE Measures Up

In each installment of our “How ABLE Measures Up” series, we compare ABLE to another CRM tool on the market. We evaluate each CRM by system, features, and pricing structure in order to give you a good idea of how it measures up against ABLE, our CRM for accountants.

A quick comparison between ABLE and Nutshell appears below, followed by an in-depth, categorical analysis. We hope this will be helpful to you as you seek to find the CRM that is the best fit for your accounting firm!

 

About Nutshell

Nutshell is a CRM for small business sales teams. Industries with products to sell, such as wholesalers, manufacturers, and software companies, are the target user base. Its features include contact tracking, sales process management, team collaboration, and reporting. As Nutshell’s ideal user is a sales professional, its design encourages users to spend the majority of their time using the platform.

About ABLE

ABLE is a business development solution for CPA firms that simplifies contact and pipeline management. Because CPAs have a limited amount of time to dedicate to tracking business development activities, users can quickly add information regarding contacts and deals, assess the status of their relationships to determine necessary actions, and build their personal brands.

 

Conclusions of the CRM Comparison

Nutshell is an excellent consideration for businesses with a dedicated sales team. The system design supports teams selling products in a variety of industries.

ABLE’s functionality centers on the theme of ‘doing smart well.’ Its primary focus is developing the top client, referral source, and prospect relationships that grow a CPA firm. Every feature addition and enhancement builds on that theme. Its modules reflect the development practices of successful firms and position users for growth. When it comes to accounting CRMs, ABLE is the ideal fit for CPA firms.

 

In-Depth Nutshell CRM Comparison

Read on to learn more about how ABLE and Nutshell measure up to one another when it comes to systems, features, and pricing structures.

 

System Comparison

ABLE Nutshell System Comparison

 

Feature Comparison

To compare feature sets of the two platforms, we focused on four major components of successful business development: relationship management, internal collaboration, accountability tools, and content delivery.

 

Client Relationship Management

The core functionality of Nutshell is aiding in the closing of transactional sales. The goal of the platform is for sales representatives to close more deals. After a sale is complete, there is minimal nurturing. Based on the type of customer Nutshell serves, this CRM works best for facilitating transactions, not building relationships.

ABLE focuses on facilitating rapport between users and their most important contacts. By nurturing these relationships, ABLE users secure additional ongoing engagements. ABLE’s CRoPs Tiles system ensures the continuous support of its users’ most important clients, referrals, and prospects. CRoPs Tiles guide users in effectively managing their relationships.

 

Internal Collaboration

Both systems offer strong tools for team synergy and collaboration. Users can see their teammates’ notes and comments on contact records, as well as tag and notify each other where necessary.

 

Accountability

Transparency in the two systems differs based on the user’s role.

With Nutshell, users with “Sales Manager” permissions can track team performance. Members of a specific team can view sales status.

With ABLE, everyone in the firm is aware of all pending tasks and deals, as well as who is responsible for them. This establishes a culture of responsibility, which drives action and growth. Additionally, users can assess client loyalty with the Net Promotor® Survey, benchmarking their progress, promoting high scores on future proposals, and uncovering any dissatisfaction before the relationship is lost. ABLE’s annual subscription includes this functionality. Marketing teams can leverage high NPS scores  as a promotion in future proposals, and customer dissatisfaction can be discovered early on to avoid losing relationships.

 

Content Delivery

The systems approach content delivery differently, largely due to the core intentions of the software (transactional versus ongoing engagements).

Nutshell relies on integrations with outside services to accommodate email delivery. While it is possible to send plain-text emails directly from the platform, users must integrate their email client with the software.

ABLE’s Thought Leadership enables users to send clients the right piece of content at the right time. Articles are added to ABLE’s Content Library weekly, and users can share their own content or articles if they wish. Professionally curated articles and summaries are categorized and tagged for easy access. Users need not integrate in order to leverage Thought Leadership.

 

Pricing

ABLE Nutshell Price Comparison

While two of the Nutshell packages cost less than ABLE, Nutshell does not appear to offer implementation and training outside of its video library. ABLE users receive personal onboarding. In addition, ABLE offers regular live training refreshers and a growing video tutorial library.

 

ABLE not only beats out Nutshell as the best CRM for accountants, it also measures up well against other available tools. View our full CRM comparison to find out more.

Are you wondering if ABLE is the right CRM for your accounting firm? Schedule a demo today! Our team will show you how ABLE can make a difference in YOUR business.