Buyer guide
An advisory practice CRM has three jobs that a sales CRM does not: getting every client through their annual review, keeping a record a regulator would accept, and tracking where referrals come from. This guide covers all three and compares the tools on current pricing.
Most of an advisory firm obligation is recurring rather than new. Every client needs their annual or semi-annual review, and missing one is both a service failure and, depending on your regulator and your agreement, a compliance problem.
A sales pipeline cannot express this. What is needed is a recurring commitment per client with a due date, a completed date, and a record of what was discussed, visible across the firm rather than in one advisor calendar.
The test to run on any CRM you are considering: how quickly can it tell you which clients are overdue a review. If the answer involves a spreadsheet export, keep looking.
Advice conversations need a durable record: what was recommended, what the client decided, what was disclosed, and when. That record needs to survive the advisor leaving and be retrievable years later, which is a different requirement from a CRM note field.
Check three specific things: whether the audit trail shows who changed what and when, whether records can be retained beyond a deletion, and what the vendor says about data location. Those are contract questions rather than feature questions, and they belong in the evaluation early.
This page is not legal advice, and the requirements differ by jurisdiction and by what you are authorised to do. Confirm your own obligations before choosing.
Most advisory practices grow through introductions from existing clients, accountants, and solicitors. The referral source is therefore the single most valuable field in the CRM, and it is usually either blank or set to "word of mouth", which tells you nothing.
Recorded properly, as a link to the person who made the introduction, it answers the only marketing question the practice has: which relationships actually generate clients. The answer is usually a handful of names, and they are rarely the ones people assume.
Per client, visible across the firm, answerable in one view. Not a calendar entry in one advisor diary.
Who changed what and when, retained. A notes field is not a record.
Not a dropdown saying word of mouth. The link is what makes the question answerable.
Clients come in families and businesses. A flat contact list loses the connections that drive advice.
Every row on the same billing basis, at the same seat count, from each vendor own professional-band plan. Use the CRM cost calculator to price them at your own seat count.
| Best for | Free | Pro / seat | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Less Annoying CRM Everything included | One flat price, nothing to upgrade to | $15 | $15 | $120 | |
Complete $49.17 base, 2 seats included | Relationship-led advisory practices | $24.17 | $24.17 | $194 | |
Nimble Nimble Business | Contact context | $24.90 | $24.90 | $199 | |
Capsule Growth | Small practice, simple needs | $14 | $28 | $224 | |
Salesmate Pro | Calls and sequences included | $18.40 | $31.20 | $250 | |
Zendesk Sell Sell Growth | Structured activity tracking | $19 | $55 | $440 | |
HubSpot Professional | Marketing alongside the practice | $7 | $90 | $720 | |
Insightly Professional All-in-one bundle, flat monthly | Client work as projects | Flat | Flat plan |
8 users, USD, list price, pricing checked 31 August 2026. A vendor with no published price for that plan shows “Not published” rather than a price from a cheaper plan.
General CRMs that adapt well to an advisory practice. Vertical-specific platforms exist and are covered below the table.
A deliberately plain CRM at a single per-user price, with no tiers and no upsell path.
Fits: a one or two advisor practice that wants a shared client record and a review reminder, and nothing else.
The drawback: no automation and basic reporting, so the review calendar is a saved filter someone maintains.
Our product. Automatic capture from email and meetings, relationship strength across the client book, recurring task bundles for review cycles, and roles and permissions for confidentiality.
Fits: independent practices that want the review calendar and the referral map in the same place as the client history.
The drawback: not a vertical platform. No portfolio data, no financial planning tools, and no built-in regulatory reporting.
A relationship CRM with social and web enrichment on contact records.
Fits: advisors who want richer context on the people around a client.
The drawback: light on process, and nothing designed for recurring reviews.
A straightforward CRM with contacts, pipelines, projects, and clear tiers.
Fits: a one or two advisor practice that wants tidy records and a review reminder.
The drawback: thin automation and audit capability. Compliance evidence would sit elsewhere.
A sales CRM with native phone, texting, and sequences at a mid-market price.
Fits: practices doing structured outreach to prospective clients.
The drawback: built for selling rather than for servicing an existing book.
A sales CRM with strong activity logging and reporting, from the Zendesk stable.
Fits: practices that want disciplined records of every client interaction.
The drawback: sales-shaped. Review cycles and household structure are things you build.
One record across marketing, sales, and service, with strong workflow automation and the largest app ecosystem.
Fits: growing practices running seminars, newsletters, and content at volume.
The drawback: the seat minimum on Sales Hub Professional, and compliance features are yours to configure.
A CRM with project management attached, so onboarding and reviews can run as repeatable projects.
Fits: practices with a defined onboarding process they want the CRM to enforce.
The drawback: each half is lighter than a specialist tool, and modules are priced separately.
Vertical platforms for advisory firms exist and they bring portfolio data, planning tools, and regulatory reporting that no general CRM has. If your daily work needs positions and performance next to the client, that decision is largely made for you.
The case for a general CRM is that most of what an advisory practice actually does day to day is relationship work: reviews, referrals, introductions, and keeping in touch with a book of clients who are not doing anything this quarter. That is what general CRMs are good at and it is where the vertical platforms often feel heavy.
A common landing point is both, with the planning platform as the system of record for portfolios and the CRM as the system of record for people. If you go that way, decide which one owns the client name and contact details before you start, not after.
Less Annoying CRM, Lumenbase, Nimble, Capsule, Salesmate, Zendesk Sell, HubSpot, Insightly, and other names are trademarks of their respective owners. Lumenbase is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by them. Prices describe the vendors as of 31 August 2026; products, pricing, and features change and vary by plan, so verify on each vendor's pricing page before deciding.
We use cookies to improve your experience. Cookie Policy
Essential
Required for the website to function. Cannot be disabled.
Analytics
Helps us understand how visitors use the site so we can improve it.
Marketing
Used for advertising and measuring campaign effectiveness.
