The 18 best sales apps for small businesses in 2021

Updated March 2021

If you have to make sales, you know that there’s a lot of software out there to help. From mobile sales apps for people who are always on the road, to more general sales rep software… how do you know what the best investments are (especially if you have a tight budget)?

Don’t sweat it—we’ve done the legwork for you—and your sales team—here. We’ve even included a bonus roundup of tools that aren’t just great for sales; your whole office will enjoy them too.

Today we’ll cover:

• 5 benefits of using sales apps
• The best all-in-one communications apps for sales teams
• The best sales tracking/CRM apps
• The best sales apps for closing the deal

BONUS:

• The best productivity apps for salespeople
• The best file-sharing apps for sales teams
• The best note-taking apps for sales

🤔 Are you thinking about purchasing a sales app? What should you consider during the buying process? Grab the buyer’s guide to sales apps.

5 benefits of using sales apps

Why use just a phone and Rolodex when there are so many affordable, easy-to-use tools available that can cut down on your low-value, manual work and give you more time to actually sell? Here are just a few reasons you might want to get your sales team on these apps (and we’ll go into more detail about which apps can help you accomplish each one):

1. Save time

Small businesses know this more than anyone: time = money. Using apps can help your sales team cut down on administrative tasks so they can focus on their main objective. From note-taking to contracts to lead tracking and cold calling, almost every step of the sales process can be done more efficiently if you have the right app.

2. Close more deals

With administrative tasks simplified and documents available from any device, you can move through proposals and contract signings more quickly. This improved turnaround time could add up to real money in the bank for your business.

3. Improve communication

Silos are a real roadblock to a well-oiled communication machine. When your whole sales team, and other departments, can chat and share files in real time, it puts everyone on the same page to help land a sale:

This is great for internal collaboration and creates a seamless experience for new customers.

4. Track everything

Sales management apps can take a lot of the guesswork out of how productive your team is, thanks to all the data they collect. Setting standard benchmarks in a sales tracking app (for example, the amount of time it takes to reply to a prospect) can help you evaluate and optimize performance, without manually tracking each salesperson’s work.

Even being able to see tasks and deadlines can go a long way in helping you and your team stay organized. For example, not only does the RingCentral app let you message your teammates and make video calls, it also lets you create and assign tasks right in your messaging threads so that they’re visible to the team:

5. Keep your team happy

Employees today want more flexibility. And with a sales team, the more agile they are, the more chances they have to go out and sell. Making work more accessible and flexible is a key employee retention strategy and could help you keep the best and brightest on your team.

The best all-in-one communications apps for sales teams

1. RingCentral Office®

RingCentral Office is a one-stop-shop for team and prospect communications. The clean and intuitive app includes message, video, and phone, all in one place. That means easy access to unlimited calls, texts, and team messaging whether you’re in the office or on the road.

RingCentral Office includes all of this and also integrates with hundreds of apps like: 

• Salesforce
• Google Drive
• Hubspot
• Zoho CRM
• Pipedrive

…and a whole lot more. With these customizations, you can really make RingCentral your own. And that means your entire team (not just sales) can collaborate and track progress from anywhere in the world.

Do more proactive selling with Engage Voice

Your whole office will love RingCentral Office, and now we’ve built a platform just for sales teams. RingCentral Engage Voice™ is your prospect hub. You can upsell, cross-sell, collect, and promote your product with powerful outbound campaign management, all in one app. 

With Engage Voice, you get personalized scripting and dialing options for all kinds of sales processes. Plus, see real-time insights to monitor your team’s progress toward those all-important goals.

Check it out:

🕹️ Learn how fast-growing sales teams use RingCentral to close deals. Book a product tour today:

Choose a time

💰 You can also use this calculator to see roughly how much your business could save by using RingCentral to support your team’s communication with each other—and clients.

2. Spotio

Spotio is an outside sales app that shares some features with RingCentral, like team chat. But its main focus is built-in, sales-specific products like territory management, e-contracts, and lead tracking. You can also evaluate and monitor individual salespeople’s performance at a glance:

3. SalesRabbit

Like RingCentral, a big selling point for SalesRabbit is its ability to integrate with all kinds of big-name apps, like Salesforce and many others. It’s very similar to Spotio in what it offers: sales team tracking, sales territory planning, and digital contracts. There is also a suite of products for sharing proposals and presentations, on and offline.

The best sales tracking/CRM apps

1. Salesforce

The big name in the game, and for good reason. Salesforce is an all-inclusive CRM (customer relationship management) software that can be readily customized to what your sales needs are. If you need help keeping track of your leads and nurturing them, this might be the right app for you.

2. Hubspot Sales Hub

In addition to the standard sales automation and tracking you get with Salesforce, Hubspot Sales Hub offers some other functionality (though it’s a little limited) for connecting with potential customers directly through the app at their most affordable tier:

3. Zendesk Sell

Zendesk Sell touts a clean and simple interface that allows you to see all of your prospect details in one place, instead of constantly switching tabs. They also have a built-in database for adding new leads, and the pricing tier you choose decides how many credits you get toward using this database:

4. Salesflare

Small B2B businesses looking for a CRM solution at a lower price point would find Salesflare as a decent alternative. It’s easy to setup and use. It also comes with features that help automate most of the usual data input.

The best sales apps for closing the deal

1. Proposify

From proposal to closing, Proposify helps your sales team stay organized and on deadline with interactive quoting, a content library for sharing documents with prospects, and e-signature capabilities.

2. DocuSign

Get those contracts signed without the wait. DocuSign is well known for e-signatures, but their app also offers contract lifecycle management and agreement analytics, if you’re willing to pony up some extra cash per month for their Advanced Solutions.

3. Invoice2Go

This isn’t the first time we’ve shouted out Invoice2Go. They’re one tool to use to get paid faster as a small business. Your team can create invoices and track payments and receipts all in one place for easy follow-up with clients. And your sales team can easily keep tabs on their expenses as they woo new customers.

The best productivity apps for sales teams

1. Basecamp

At the heart of this app is productivity. If your sales team needs some support in project management and hitting targets, Basecamp might be the right choice for you. Like with the RingCentral app’s channels, you can split work into projects and invite the right team members to the table for each one.

In addition to project management, there is team chat and file sharing, as well.

2. Todoist

If your sales team is anything like other sales teams, they might have a pretty serious competitive streak. In that case, Todoist could be the perfect productivity app to keep them motivated. Why? Gamification.

Todoist has managed to turn completing projects and checking off tasks into a game, with Karma points and new levels of mastery as you go. How can you turn these wins into rewards for your team? The only limit is your imagination.

💫Pro-tip:

3. Asana

If your team needs help managing complex projects from start to finish, check out Asana. You can design pipelines and assign teammates to every step of the project, so nothing falls through the cracks. Plus, you can drag and drop assignments and check on upcoming tasks in different ways—calendar, list, and board—which is sure to help folks with different working styles adapt more quickly to the new tech in town.

The best note-taking apps for salespeople

1. Evernote

A clean, easy-to-use app for jotting down notes while you’re on a sales call. Evernote syncs between your devices so you’re always looking at the most accurate information, and it makes organizing your thoughts a snap.

2. Simplenote

This note-taking app is not only simple and free, but it also lets you take notes together as a team and share that team knowledge. While it’s designed for a great mobile experience, you can get it on your PC or Mac computer, too.

3. Dragon Anywhere

It makes sense that your sales team might prefer talking to writing stuff down; it’s what they’ve chosen to do for a living! Give them the freedom to dictate notes with a mobile voice-to-text app like Dragon Anywhere.

The best file-sharing apps for sales teams

1. Google Drive

It’s easy to create, organize, and collaborate on documents with Google Drive. Whether it’s a word processing doc, spreadsheet, or a presentation, your sales team can work together and have all of the most important information in the same place.

Bonus tip: You can integrate Google Drive with a communication app like RingCentral to upload files directly to a team chat without having to email them.

2. Dropbox

Dropbox is a good, secure choice for storing and sending large files between your team and clients. It doesn’t let multiple people edit documents like Drive does, but this might actually be a benefit if you plan to share proposals and contracts.

Like Google Drive, Dropbox can also integrate with team messaging platforms so that you can upload and share files directly in a group chat with your teammates.

3. DocScan

Transform your phone into a pocket scanner with this handy app. You can convert business cards and documents into JPEGs and PDFs, and even sign and email business contracts while out on the road.

What are the best sales apps for your team?

We’ll let you be the judge of that, but we hope you found some helpful options in this roundup.

Whatever your sales team’s needs are, it’s always a good idea to pick a product that plays well with others and can grow with your business. Choose something that’s scalable and integrates with hundreds of apps to really shorten the sales cycle and minimize the amount of manual work you have to do. Imagine how much time and money you could save if your whole team works together in the same place, instead of jumping from app to app.

Learn how RingCentral can assist your sales team (and other teams too)—get a free demo.

Originally published May 16, 2020, updated Jun 14, 2022