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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Salesforce Starter

    Score9 out of 10
    Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
    Salesforce Starter (formerly Salesforce Essentials) is a small business CRM that replaces the former SalesforceIQ product. It is priced at $35 per user, on a monthly basis, or at $25 per month for if billed annually ($300) and can be tried free for 14 days on a trial.

    $35

    per month per user

    VerticalResponse

    Score10 out of 10
    N/AVerticalResponse is an email campaign management software and services platform from Deluxe. In addition to providing email marketing tools, VerticalResponse offers fully managed email marketing services from campaign launch and management to reporting and analysis.

    $9

    per month

    Pricing
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Basic
    $11.00
    per month
    Pro
    $16.00
    per month
    Pro Plus
    $196.00
    per month
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Free Trial
    YesYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Considered Both Products
    Salesforce
    No answer on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    80%
    Would buy again
    4 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    80%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    4 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    80%
    Implementation went as expected
    4 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Sales Force Automation
    Comparison of Sales Force Automation features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    8.7
    7 Ratings
    10% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Customer data management / contact management7.27 Ratings00 Ratings
    Territory management7.57 Ratings00 Ratings
    Opportunity management9.07 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integration with email client (e.g., Outlook or Gmail)9.46 Ratings00 Ratings
    Quote & order management9.65 Ratings00 Ratings
    Interaction tracking8.56 Ratings00 Ratings
    Channel / partner relationship management9.75 Ratings00 Ratings
    Marketing Automation
    Comparison of Marketing Automation features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    7.2
    6 Ratings
    7% below category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Lead management7.26 Ratings00 Ratings
    CRM Project Management
    Comparison of CRM Project Management features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    8.2
    5 Ratings
    6% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Task management9.65 Ratings00 Ratings
    Billing and invoicing management6.35 Ratings00 Ratings
    Reporting8.65 Ratings00 Ratings
    CRM Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of CRM Reporting & Analytics features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    9.0
    5 Ratings
    16% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Forecasting9.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Pipeline visualization8.85 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable reports9.25 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    6.7
    6 Ratings
    13% below category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Custom fields6.96 Ratings00 Ratings
    Custom objects6.95 Ratings00 Ratings
    Scripting environment5.75 Ratings00 Ratings
    API for custom integration7.25 Ratings00 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    8.6
    6 Ratings
    2% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Single sign-on capability8.66 Ratings00 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions8.66 Ratings00 Ratings
    Social CRM
    Comparison of Social CRM features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    8.6
    5 Ratings
    14% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Social engagement8.65 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integrations with 3rd-party Software
    Comparison of Integrations with 3rd-party Software features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    8.2
    5 Ratings
    8% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Marketing automation8.25 Ratings00 Ratings
    Compensation management8.15 Ratings00 Ratings
    Platform
    Comparison of Platform features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    8.3
    6 Ratings
    9% above category average
    VerticalResponse
    -
    Ratings
    Mobile access8.36 Ratings00 Ratings
    Email & Online Marketing
    Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    -
    Ratings
    VerticalResponse
    9.9
    8 Ratings
    21% above category average
    WYSIWYG email editor00 Ratings10.07 Ratings
    Dynamic content00 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Ability to test dynamic content00 Ratings10.04 Ratings
    Landing pages00 Ratings10.04 Ratings
    A/B testing00 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Mobile optimization00 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Email deliverability reporting00 Ratings10.08 Ratings
    List management00 Ratings10.08 Ratings
    Triggered drip sequences00 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    -
    Ratings
    VerticalResponse
    10.0
    9 Ratings
    27% above category average
    Dashboards00 Ratings10.09 Ratings
    Standard reports00 Ratings10.09 Ratings
    Custom reports00 Ratings10.06 Ratings
    Pre-Send Testing
    Comparison of Pre-Send Testing features of Salesforce Starter and VerticalResponse
    Feature
    Salesforce Starter
    -
    Ratings
    VerticalResponse
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    20% above category average
    URL Validation00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Link Tracking00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Image Validation00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Inbox Display00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Email Accessibility Tools00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Spelling and Grammar Check00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Spam Testing00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Email Previews00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Small Businesses
    Salesflare
    Score10 out of 10
    Mad Mimi
    Score10 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Kintone
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Campaign Monitor by Marigold
    Score9 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Oracle Sales
    Score8.9 out of 10
    Emma by Marigold
    Score8.4 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (7 ratings)
    10.0
    (28 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    4.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.6
    (19 ratings)
    Usability
    8.4
    (4 ratings)
    9.0
    (5 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (4 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (4 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Salesforce StarterVerticalResponse
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Salesforce
    If you own a business that has complex selling processes or requires integrations with 3rd party tools/systems, you should look at Professional, Enterprise, or Unlimited editions. Salesforce operates very well across pretty much every industry, but not all sales, marketing, and operational processes are created equal. If your marketing process requires a long list of sendable contacts then I would recommend adding on Pardot or Hubspot. Always start small and scale up, to avoid boxing yourself in down the road.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    VerticalResponse
    For businesses requiring advanced email marketing features like sophisticated automation, in-depth analytics, and extensive customization, VerticalResponse might fall short due to its limited featuresVerticalResponse is ideal for small businesses or freelancers who need a simple, straightforward email marketing tool. Its ease of use and basic features make it suitable for those without extensive technical expertise in email marketing
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Salesforce
    • Tracking phone calls is extremely easy when using the app on the iphone. After a phone call is complete it prompts the user to enter in call details.
    • SalesforceIQ also automatically logs emails for us. This has saved us time from entering in information manually.
    • SalesforceIQ was easy to set up and allowed us customization for fields that were relevant to our business.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    VerticalResponse
    • I love the ease of list builder because we often times have a lot of data to import. It would be simply impossible without this tool, considering the amount of customer data we have for any one given email.
    • We really enjoy the ease of use of the HTML wizard as well. It helps even a novice be able to make a beautiful and attention grabbing email.
    • The dashboard is functional and easy to find when you need with a quick search.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Salesforce
    • Table views can be sorted by column. Filters can be applied, but only to one column. Multi-column filtering like Excel allows would be extremely useful and a big improvement.
    • The ability to quick copy data in a table view would also be helpful, like (ctrl ') in excel.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    VerticalResponse
    • The type face is small. Not sure if this is to avoid overwhelming the reader, but I could see this being an issue with vision-impaired people or people who don't see small print well.
    • Sometimes I find it takes multiple clicks to make one simple change. I wish there was a search field at the top of the screen that allowed me to jump directly to a client's entry to update it there.
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Salesforce
    No answers on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    Product is easy for both technical and non-technical people to use. A cost effective solution for sending out large number of messages. We can manage unsubscribes by individual accounts, so we can have multiple multiple accounts combined to maximize our buying power on credits. Effective API for sending/receiving data makes tool a valuable asset.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Salesforce
    The system is very user-friendly on a desktop but lacks mobile friendliness. The Customer relationship manager disappears after the deal is signed. We struggled to get the system in a usable format, which was not cost-effective. The CRM system on desktop was great but way more complicated than it should be.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    VerticalResponse
    I truly love this product. We are moving to an all-in-one system next year and my greatest fear in doing so is how much I will miss this platform. Although we are excited for things ahead, I will always keep Vertical Response in my back pocket incase I don't love the new platform as much
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Salesforce
    No answers on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    Never had an issue with uptime
    Read full review
    Performance
    Salesforce
    No answers on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    No issues
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Salesforce
    No answers on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    At Vertical Response the help desk associates are courteous, knowledgeable and helpful. You can tell they enjoy what they do. And clearly, they are well trained because most times, the first point of contact is able to resolve any issue you may have. There have been very few times where an associate has needed to get back to me or escalate me to a supervisor
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Salesforce
    No answers on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    Basic functions and online help...we used what was needed, at the time, and will continue to explore other online trainings as our functional needs expand
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Salesforce
    No answers on this topic
    VerticalResponse
    Salesforce integration never worked right. We had to abandon.
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Salesforce
    more expensive but as an industry leader and go, the learning curve pays for itself in ROI in lost time in onboarding
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    VerticalResponse
    In addition to using Vertical Response personally I also manage email marketing for clients that already use Mailchimp, Robly and Constant Contact. While most of these platforms all offer similar features I choose Vertical Response first if the client does not have a platform in place. Typically I am also teaching the client how to use this tool and the Vertical Response visual interface is very easy for me to teach a client how to navigate and create their own campaigns.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Salesforce
    • It made the job more efficient for staff so they can spend time doing other tasks rather than configuring and maintaining Salesforce Starter.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    VerticalResponse
    • We were able to blast out promotions our company was having to customers which created an increase in business.
    • By blasting out any service issues, it keeps our customers informed so that they are not wondering what is going on.
    • Allows us to store unsubscribed emails so that we are not constantly pestering people who do not want to be emailed.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Salesforce Starter Screenshots

    Product screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshot