What is CRM?
CRM is an application that helps manage and monitor interactions with customers, enhancing customer care and business. It is used by departments like sales, marketing, and customer service to manage customer information, monitor interactions, and measure customer behavior. Zoho CRM and Bigin by Zoho are popular CRMs for their efficient data management.
At first glance, they might look like two versions of the same thing. After all, they’re both made by Zoho. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll see they’re built for very different kinds of businesses.
Let’s unpack those differences and explore the two.
Zoho CRM is considered the more “grown-up” version of the two. It’s packed with features—some of which you may not even realize you need until your business starts to scale.
It’s built for companies that have multiple team members, a longer sales cycle, and lots of moving parts. Think lead scoring, custom reports, automation workflows, integration with apps like Slack or Microsoft 365.
It also comes with an AI assistant named Zia, who can do things like predict which deals are most likely to close or suggest the best time to contact a lead. It’s the kind of system that requires a bit of onboarding, maybe a few YouTube tutorials (or a Zoho partner), but once it’s in place, it can totally transform how your team works.
Now lets take a look at Bigin-
Bigin, on the other hand, is like Zoho CRM’s little sibling. This tool is a game-changer for small businesses.
It’s incredibly easy to set up. All you have to do is sign up and start using it within an hour. It gives you a visual sales pipeline, email and phone integration, and just enough automation to make things easier without being overwhelming.
What it doesn’t do: deep customisation, complicated workflows, or a million integrations. But honestly, if you’re a solo entrepreneur or running a small team, you probably don’t need all that. Sometimes simple is exactly what you want.
Talking about the core differences between Zoho CRM and Bigin –
Now lets take a look at what type of industry is interested in using which of the two-
Small Local Businesses & Start-ups – Prefer Bigin –Often businesses like home cleaning services, small legal firms, freelance consultancies, or boutique travel agents often don’t need a robust, enterprise-grade CRM. They want a simple tool to manage customer communication, follow up on leads, and ensure no deals slip through the cracks.Bigin is easier and can manage such small scale business with great ease. Its simplistic design and user -friendliness makes it a great choice. Later they can shift to Zoho CRM as the business expands and its managing needs increase.
Bigin also has Bigin free, Bigin express, Bigin premier and bigin 360 editions. Each has different pricing and features provided accordingly.
Medium to Large Enterprises – Prefer Zoho CRM
Industries like IT services, real estate, manufacturing, and financial services that have layered sales teams, regional managers, and multi-touchpoint customer interactions benefit from Zoho CRM’s rich feature set.
Zoho has Zoho free, Zoho CRM Standard, Zoho CRM Professional, Zoho CRM Enterprise and Zoho Ultimate editions, each having different prices and features.
How Does Each Help Businesses?
Bigin Helps By:
- Reducing adoption friction: Businesses can go live the same day.
- Keeping costs low: Perfect for solopreneurs or tight-budget operations.
- Offering essential CRM features without a steep learning curve.
Zoho CRM Helps By:
- Enabling scale: Supports complex workflows and multiple pipelines.
- Increasing visibility: Deep analytics allow better forecasting.
- Automating extensively: From lead assignment to customer engagement.
- Integrating with ERPs, marketing tools, and communication platforms for end-to-end management.
There’s no “better” tool—just the right one for your stage of business.
- Choose Bigin if you’re a small team needing a fast, affordable way to manage customer pipelines and communications. It’s ideal for getting started with CRM without overwhelming your workflow.
- Choose Zoho CRM if you require a scalable, customizable system with deep automation, analytics, and integration potential. It’s best for businesses that are either growing fast or have already reached a certain level of operational complexity.
The good news? Both tools are part of the Zoho ecosystem, and Zoho makes it fairly simple to migrate from Bigin to Zoho CRM when your business outgrows the former.
At the end of the day, a CRM isn’t just about features or pricing. It’s about how well it fits your workflow. It should make your day easier—not add more complexity.
One of the nicest things about Bigin is that it’s friendly. It doesn’t try to be everything to everyone. It just helps small businesses stay on top of their customer relationships in a way that feels natural. It’s the kind of tool you can figure out without needing a manual.
Zoho CRM, on the other hand, is a serious piece of software. It’s what you move to when your business gets more complex. And while it may require a bit more setup, the payoff is worth it—especially if you’re managing multiple salespeople, large deals, or want to start forecasting future revenue.
If you’re still in doubt, here’s what we’d recommend: give Bigin a try first. It’s cheap, easy to install, and an excellent way to get a feel for working with a CRM. You’ll get an idea of what you actually require—and what you don’t.And then, when your business expands to the point that you need more power, Zoho CRM is just a click away, and it’s ready when you are.
No matter which path you’re on, breaking away from spreadsheets is a good move in the right direction. A good CRM is not about controlling customers. It’s about providing you with clarity and control to grow with confidence.