CRM platform
Close - the practical guide.
Close is a CRM built specifically for high-velocity inside sales teams. Calling, SMS, email and multi-step sequences are first-class features rather than add-ons, and reps work from a single inbox-style view that surfaces the next action. If your team lives on the phone and you want a CRM that reduces clicks per conversation rather than adding them, Close is hard to beat.
What Close does
Built-in Power Dialer and Predictive Dialer let reps work through call lists without manual dialling, with calls automatically logged and recorded against the contact. SMS, email and meeting scheduling sit on the same record, and Workflows let you string together multi-channel sequences with branching logic.
Reporting is sales-rep focused: leaderboards, activity comparisons, funnel reports and call analytics. The platform has a clean API and a respectable integration list (Stripe, HubSpot Marketing, Segment, Zapier and the usual data providers), but it's deliberately narrower than HubSpot or Salesforce - the philosophy is to do sales execution exceptionally well rather than to be everything to everyone.
Who it's for
Inside sales teams (SDRs and AEs), high-velocity SMB SaaS pipelines, lead-gen agencies, recruiting teams and any business where the sales motion is dominated by phone and SMS conversations. Less common but increasingly used by field service, trades and home services teams who do a lot of inbound and outbound calling.
Pricing, in rough terms
Per user per month, billed annually, across Startup, Professional and Enterprise. Roughly USD 49 per user at the entry tier and around USD 139 at Enterprise. Plans bundle generous calling minutes, SMS and email allowances; you pay extra for phone numbers, carrier fees and overage. There's a 14-day trial.
When Close is the right fit
Right when calling and texting are central to the sales motion and you want reps to spend more time talking and less time logging. Also a strong choice for sales-led startups that want a CRM built for the team that uses it, not for marketing or finance. A poor fit if your sales is mostly meetings and email, or if you need integrated marketing automation and support tooling - those teams should look at HubSpot or Salesforce with Service Cloud.
Watch-outs
Per-seat cost is higher than most comparable CRMs because the dialer, SMS and sequence tooling are bundled rather than charged separately - account for that when comparing list prices. Carrier fees and overage on heavy outbound days can sting; monitor usage in the first month. Reporting is good for sales execution but light on cross-functional analytics, so expect to send data to a warehouse if leadership wants deeper cuts.