You're tracking leads on sticky notes and in your head. You forgot to follow up with that promising customer last week. You need a system, but Salesforce costs more than your rent. Here's how to set up a real CRM for free.
| Tool | What It Does | Cost | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| HubSpot CRM | Free CRM — tracks contacts, deals, and follow-up tasks | Free | Sign up → |
What to do: Go to HubSpot CRM and create a free account. The free tier is genuinely free forever — not a trial. It includes contacts, deals, tasks, email tracking, and basic reporting.
Why you’re doing it: HubSpot replaces your sticky notes, spreadsheets, and memory with a system that actually works.
What to expect: Signup takes 10 minutes. You’ll set up your company profile and import your first contacts.
Common mistakes: Getting overwhelmed by features. Ignore everything except Contacts and Deals to start.
What to do: Export contacts from wherever they currently live — your phone, a spreadsheet, Gmail. Import them into HubSpot. At minimum, include name, email, phone, and how they found you.
Why you’re doing it: Your CRM is only useful if your contacts are in it. Even 50 contacts is a great start.
What to expect: HubSpot handles CSV imports and can connect directly to Gmail and Outlook to auto-import contacts.
What to do: In HubSpot, go to Sales → Deals. Set up your pipeline stages. For most service businesses: Lead → Contacted → Quote Sent → Won/Lost. Customize the names to match your actual sales process.
Why you’re doing it: The pipeline shows you exactly where every potential customer stands. No more wondering “did I follow up with that person?”
What to expect: 10 minutes to configure. Drag and drop deals between stages as they progress.
What to do: For every new lead, create a follow-up task with a due date. “Call back in 2 days.” “Send proposal by Friday.” HubSpot reminds you when tasks are due.
Why you’re doing it: Follow-up is where most businesses lose deals. A system that reminds you means you never drop the ball.
What to expect: Creating a task takes 10 seconds. HubSpot shows your task list every time you log in.
What to do: Start each workday by opening HubSpot and checking two things: your task list (what follow-ups are due today) and your pipeline (where does each deal stand). This takes 5 minutes.
Why you’re doing it: A CRM only works if you use it. Five minutes every morning prevents deals from falling through the cracks.
This workflow is Beta — Based on Best Available Knowledge. HubSpot’s free CRM is well-documented and widely used by small businesses. Alternatives include Zoho CRM (more features on free tier), Streak (CRM built into Gmail), and Folk (newer, simpler interface).