17 Crm Business Success Stories [2024]
A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software keeps track of prospects, clients and their contacts and also helps you monitor your sales pipeline as well as to create reports for business intelligence.
The CRM market is a $50B and growing industry.
Here are some real life success stories of starting a CRM business:
1. EspoCRM ($360K/year)
Oleksii Avramenko, one of the founders of EspoCRM, noticed a gap in the market for a universal and affordable CRM solution for small and mid-size businesses. With previous experience in the CRM industry, Avramenko and his team created EspoCRM, which has since seen significant success with an average of over 16,000 downloads per year and earning up to $30k a month. Through their innovative approach and dedication to customer satisfaction, EspoCRM has become a go-to CRM application for businesses looking to improve efficiency and performance.
How much they make: $360K/year
How much did it cost to start: $10K
Current team size: 1
EspoCRM, an open-source CRM application for small and mid-size businesses, has seen an average of over 16,000 downloads per year and makes up to $30k per month, offering efficient tools to systematize customer data, improve sales cycles, and automate routine administrative tasks.
2. GreenRope ($1.92M/year)
metrics for our business are our customer satisfaction and retention rates, which remain consistently high. We currently have over 1,000 customers in over 20 countries, ranging from startups to universities and municipalities. Moving forward, we plan to continue evolving and improving our platform to meet the changing needs of businesses and provide even greater value to our customers.
How much they make: $1.92M/year
Current team size: 15
GreenRope, a self-funded CRM and marketing automation platform with over 1,000 customers in 20 countries, was built organically and focused on creating a positive, customer-centric culture without outside investment, with an all-in-one interface solving challenges in managing sales, marketing, customer service, and operations.
So... can you actually make money with a CRM business?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
3. Efficy ($25.2M/year)
Cédric Pierrard, founder of Efficy, came up with the idea for his European CRM company after realizing the limitations of the software he was working with at his previous company. He and his colleague, Robert Houdart, decided to create a highly customizable, easily upgradable, and 100% SaaS-based CRM solution. After launching with existing customers and offering a special migration offer, Efficy has grown to nearly 200 employees and achieved a turnover of €22.4M in 2019. Their ambitious goal is to be 5 times bigger and represent 5% of the European CRM market in the next 5 years.
How much they make: $25.2M/year
Current team size: 200
Efficy, a European CRM software publisher founded 15 years ago by Cédric Pierrard, has seen €24M in revenue in 2019 and seeks to be 5 times bigger within five years, representing 5% of the European CRM market, having experienced success through organic growth and external mergers while maintaining a strong focus on core business.
4. Followup CRM ($720K/year)
Erick Vargas, along with Best Roofing CEO Gregg Wallick, came up with the idea for Followup CRM while re-engineering the sales department of Best Roofing. They realized that there was no CRM solution tailored to the unique needs of the construction industry, so they created Followup CRM to help construction companies modernize their sales process and win high-margin bids. With $50,000 in monthly recurring revenue and a focus on customer value, Followup CRM is steadily growing.
How much they make: $720K/year
Current team size: 0
Followup CRM is a cloud-based application designed by construction professionals to help modernize the industry and is generating $50k in monthly recurring revenue by helping construction companies organize sales and convert more leads into jobs.
So... can you actually make money with a CRM business?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
5. Workbooks CRM ($600K/year)
John Cheney, CEO of cloud-based CRM platform Workbooks, recognized the issues faced by mid-sized businesses with limited IT budgets and in-house IT teams. Seeing a gap in the market, he developed Workbooks to provide a cost-effective solution that offers a comprehensive range of functionalities typically found in more expensive platforms like Salesforce or Microsoft Dynamics. With an initial investment of £2 million and ongoing support from Angel Investors totaling £8 million, Workbooks has grown to serve over 1,400 customers across 30 countries.
How much they make: $600K/year
How much did it cost to start: $1M
Current team size: 55
Workbooks CEO, John Cheney, shares how he identified a gap in the market for affordable CRM solutions for mid-sized businesses and, after raising over £8m in seed capital, expanded globally, serving over 1,400 customers across 30 countries.
6. noCRM.io ($2.64M/year)
Sunny Paris, co-founder of noCRM.io, came up with the idea to create a lead management software after realizing the limitations of traditional CRM software during his time with Yoolink. Despite the competitive CRM market, Sunny saw an opportunity to bring something new and more efficient to salespeople. The company has since grown to $2.4M in annual recurring revenue and has a customer base of over 11,000 salespeople worldwide.
How much they make: $2.64M/year
How much did it cost to start: $80K
Current team size: 19
This case study is about noCRM.io, a French SaaS company with over 11,000 salespeople using their software worldwide, that provides a lead management software for salespeople, and has managed to build its business up to $2.4M in annual recurring revenue and $200K in average monthly revenue.
So... can you actually make money with a CRM business?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
7. Studio Ninja ($1.8M/year)
Chris Garbacz, a professional wedding photographer, came up with the idea for Studio Ninja after experiencing various challenges in his photography business, including forgetting his camera bag on a wedding day. He realized the need for a user-friendly and comprehensive solution to manage his leads, clients, contracts, and invoices, leading him to create Studio Ninja, the world's most user-friendly photography business management app. With 7,000 active subscribers and monthly recurring revenue of $150,000, Studio Ninja has become a successful tool for photographers worldwide.
How much they make: $1.8M/year
How much did it cost to start: $75K
Current team size: 13
Studio Ninja is a photography business management app that has achieved 6 years of success, with 7,000 active paying subscribers and monthly recurring revenue of $150,000, thanks to co-founder Chris Garbacz's experiences and failures as a wedding photographer and serial entrepreneur.
8. Qwaiting ($792K/year)
Rohit Garg, co-founder of QWaiting, came up with the idea for his business after experiencing long waits and frustrations at restaurants. Recognizing the common problem of excessive customer wait times, Garg developed QWaiting to help businesses manage queues and improve customer experiences. With a team of over 50 members and an average monthly revenue of $66k, QWaiting has gained traction in industries such as banks, hospitals, retail stores, airports, and public sector enterprises.
How much they make: $792K/year
Current team size: 50
Singapore-based Qwaiting's cloud-based queue management software helps businesses manage customer queues, reduce wait times, increase productivity and improve visitor experience. With average monthly revenue of $66k, Qwaiting has attracted 500+ clients and specialises in data analytics reporting, customer feedback support and centralised management.
9. TeleCRM ($60K/year)
Rahul, the co-founder of Flamon Cloudtech, came up with the idea for TeleCRM while struggling to manage salespeople for his previous SaaS product. Frustrated with the limitations of existing CRM systems, he envisioned a CRM that would simplify data entry and analysis for sales executives. After validating the idea with 800 business owners and spending over 2.5 years developing the product, TeleCRM launched successfully and attracted its first paying customers.
How much they make: $60K/year
How much did it cost to start: $200K
Current team size: 16
Flamon cloudtech's co-founder Rahul shares the story of building and launching TeleCRM, a game-changing Tele-Sales CRM product in beta phase, which is already being used by 20 companies with a monthly recurring revenue of $4500/month and is aiming to capture around 40-50% of the CRM market space in the long term.
10. OneHash, Inc. ($144K/year)
Rohit Gadia, co-founder of OneHash Inc, came up with the idea for their business, OneHash CRM and OneChat, based on the concept of FaaS (FOSS as a Service), which provides the benefits of SaaS at the affordability of FOSS. The company started with a two-person team and a modest investment of $2 million from their savings, and despite initial obstacles, OneHash now has over 410,000 signups and aims to have 10 million users within the next 10 years.
How much they make: $144K/year
How much did it cost to start: $10K
Current team size: 7
OneHash Inc. is a startup that offers affordable FOSS+ SaaS CRM and customer assistance services, with powerful reporting features as well as scalability and extendibility, and currently has over 410,000 signups from all seven continents.
11. Promys ($4.5M/year)
In starting their business, the founder realized the need for a workflow system to offset the complexity of a growing company. Unable to find a suitable solution in the market, they had their development team build the first version and eventually spun it out as a focused business. Throughout the process, they emphasized the importance of getting an early version of the product to customers to gather feedback and make necessary adjustments.
How much they make: $4.5M/year
Current team size:
This case study follows a serial entrepreneur's journey in the Information Technology industry, where he founded successful companies such as UNIS LUMIN and Promys, and offers advice to aspiring founders, emphasizing the importance of adjusting to changing markets and learning from early customers' input.
12. Marketing Savage ($10M/year)
How much they make: $10M/year
Current team size:
Founder of Marketing Savage, John Highley, has built a business with 10,000 clients globally in creating tailored websites and sales funnels, with an added bonus of setting up CRMs to control the sales process. Additionally, Highley runs five other successful businesses while also becoming an internationally renowned author after publishing his best-selling book in 2021.
13. Minor Workshop ($1.44M/year)
How much they make: $1.44M/year
How much did it cost to start: $500
Current team size: 1
This case study article showcases the success story of Paul, who built a profitable consulting business focused on Asana and Pipedrive, generating around $90,000 in monthly sales from consulting and subscription fees, with a margin of 80% and a customer base ranging from solo operators to big enterprise clients.
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings