Is ConvertKit A CRM? If Not Then How Can It Be Used As A CRM?

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Want to use ConvertKit but don’t know if it can be used as a CRM or not? Then you are in the right place. So…

Is ConvertKit a CRM? No, ConvertKit is not a CRM. It is an Email Marketing platform that will help you to store leads and then convert those leads into customers using emails. You can use ConvertKit as a mini-CRM only if you are okay to use just email marketing to nurture your leads and customers. At its heart, ConvertKit is an Email Marketing platform, not a CRM.

Okay! So how can you use ConvertKit as a CRM even if it is an Email Marketing platform? We will go over this and a few more things in this article. So keep reading.

How Email Marketing Platform Differs From A CRM?

Let’s first understand the difference between an Email Marketing platform and CRM.

To put it in simple words, email marketing is just one aspect of a CRM platform.

A CRM platform will help you to manage the entire customer lifecycle. It will help you to keep your sales team on track, close deals, see where a particular lead or customer is in his lifecycle, qualify leads, and a whole lot more.

You can do all of this in a CRM system using emails, SMS, sales tracking, etc.

So, for example, in a CRM system, you can set up lead scoring to qualify leads. Your sales team can then reach out to only those leads using emails, SMS, calls, etc. because these leads are hot right now and are most likely to make a purchase.

This not only improves the efficiency of your sales team, but it also increases your chances of closing a deal.

All of this is not possible using an Email Marketing platform like ConvertKit.

Email Marketing platforms are generally only good for nurturing your leads to a point where they can convert into customers using email marketing.

It cannot qualify your leads for you so that you can manually reach out to your leads for closing deals.

Furthermore, Email Marketing platforms are generally good for mass email marketing, while a CRM is more about personalizing the experience of each lead and customer.

So, an Email Marketing platform cannot be effectively used as a CRM.

Having said that, you will need to figure out what you want out of your Email Marketing or CRM system.

If you just want to nurture your leads to convert them into customers, then an Email Marketing platform, like ConvertKit, can be used.

However, if you want anything more complex than this, then you will need a full-blown CRM. ConvertKit might not cut it for you.

Related Further Reading:

How Can You Use ConvertKit As A CRM?

ConvertKit can be a great tool if you want to nurture your leads and try to convert them into customers.

You can then keep using ConvertKit to sell more things to your customers.

For example, say you collect email addresses of people visiting your website, or through paid advertising, or even offline. You can store all those email addresses in ConvertKit. You can then market to these leads through emails and try to sell your products and services. You can send personalized emails depending on specific actions your leads take.

ConvertKit has a powerful Automation builder that you can use to send certain emails depending on the actions your leads take.

You can read more about ConvertKit Automations over here.

Using Automations, you can send relevant emails to your leads that match where they are in their lifecycle.

ConvertKit also has a concept of Tags that you can use to qualify leads.

For example, you can apply a tag called “New Lead” when someone signs up for your email marketing campaigns. Then when that lead opens 5 emails from you or clicks on a certain link in the email, you can apply a tag called “Hot Lead.” You can then follow up with these hot leads separately and try to convert them into customers.

You can read more about tags over here.

In this way, you can use ConvertKit as a CRM.

However, do keep in mind that ConvertKit is an Email Marketing platform at its heart.

So, many CRM specific features, like Deals, Pipelines, Lead Scoring, etc. are not available in ConvertKit.

You will have to get very creative in using Automations and Tags to use ConvertKit as a CRM.

Okay! So…

What Is ConvertKit Used For The Most?

ConvertKit is mostly used for only email marketing. That is nurturing leads and converting them into customers.

And the power of ConvertKit lies in its Automations and Tags that can be used to send relevant emails to leads.

If you want to do email marketing, then ConvertKit is very good at it.

In fact, in my experience, ConvertKit is far better than many other Email Marketing platforms out there.

It is dead simple to use and has a lot of powerful features that can help you convert leads to customers.

But go any further than email marketing, and ConvertKit falls flat.

It is not a true CRM, and that shows.

So if you want to do email marketing or want a pretty simple CRM type of a system, then you can look at ConvertKit.

Else, it is better to avoid it.

To Conclude…

ConvertKit is not a CRM. It is an Email Marketing platform.

However, you can use it as a CRM to an extent if all you want to do is email marketing and convert leads to customers.

But if you want a real CRM system, then ConvertKit won’t help.

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