Who this guide is for

As a broker managing a team of 20-50 professionals, whether in real estate, finance, or insurance, coordinating client relationships, deals, and transactions across your growing organization presents unique challenges. At this scale, you need a CRM system that can handle complexity without overwhelming your team with unnecessary features designed for enterprise giants.

The right CRM in your tech stack can help your mid-sized brokerage manage client relationships, automate follow-ups, streamline communication across your team, and maintain visibility into your collective sales pipeline—all while remaining intuitive enough for rapid adoption by your 20-50 person team.

In this blog post, we'll explore the best CRM options for brokerages like yours, focusing on solutions that scale perfectly for teams of 20-50 people and features that help you boost efficiency, improve client satisfaction, and close more deals.

Why you need a CRM

A CRM is indispensable for a mid-sized brokerage of 20-50 people looking to streamline operations and maximize team performance without the complexity of enterprise solutions.

Challenges without a CRM

Below are common challenges a brokerage firm with 20-50 team members faces when managing operations without a CRM.

• Disorganization across teams: Without a CRM, information is scattered across multiple spreadsheets and individual email accounts, leading to confusion and duplicated efforts across your 20-50 person team.
• Missed opportunities: With multiple brokers handling leads, opportunities slip through the cracks due to lack of systematic tracking and team coordination.
• Inefficient team processes: Manual data entry and individual tracking systems consume valuable time that your team of 20-50 professionals could spend on client interactions and deal closing.
• Lack of team insights: Without centralized data, it's impossible to gain actionable insights into team performance and identify which brokers need support or recognition.
• Inconsistent team communication: Communication with clients and among your broker team becomes fragmented, affecting relationship management and internal coordination.

Benefits of a CRM

Wondering whether it's worthwhile for your 20-50 person brokerage to invest in a CRM? Below are direct benefits the right CRM can deliver for your team.

• Centralized team information: A CRM consolidates all client and broker data in one accessible platform, enabling seamless collaboration across your 20-50 person team.
• Enhanced team efficiency: Automated processes reduce manual tasks, allowing your brokers to focus on high-value client activities while maintaining team coordination.
• Improved client relationships: With shared client histories, any team member can personalize interactions and maintain consistent service quality across your brokerage.
• Better team decision-making: Analytics and reporting tools provide insights that help your management team make informed decisions about resource allocation and performance optimization.
• Increased team sales: Streamlined processes and coordinated lead management directly contribute to higher conversion rates across your entire team.
• Consistent team communication: Integrated communication tools ensure all client interactions are tracked and accessible to relevant team members.
  

How to boost your brokers' efficiency with a CRM

1. Mapping your process

Start by using a CRM to map out your team processes so you can fully customize it to suit your 20-50 person brokerage's needs.

• Identify key stages: Break down your brokerage process into clear stages such as lead generation, client onboarding, deal negotiation, and closing that work for your team size.
• Set team milestones: Define specific milestones within each stage to track progress and performance across your 20-50 brokers.
• Automate team workflows: Use CRM automation features to move clients through stages seamlessly, ensuring consistency across your entire team while reducing manual work.
• Monitor team metrics: Implement dashboards and reporting tools to track key performance indicators (KPIs) for each team member and stage.

2. Lead qualification

You can also use your CRM to qualify leads more efficiently across your team of 20-50 brokers.

• Team scoring models: Use CRM scoring models to rank leads based on criteria like engagement and financial capacity, ensuring your team prioritizes the best opportunities.
• Custom team fields: Create custom fields to capture essential lead details, helping all team members quickly assess potential across your brokerage.
• Automated team segmentation: Segment leads automatically based on scores and characteristics, enabling personalized follow-ups by the most appropriate team members.
• Integrated data sources: Connect your CRM with external data sources for enriched lead profiles, giving your entire team better qualification capabilities.

3. Outreach and follow-up

A CRM can help your team of 20-50 brokers automate outreach and follow-up sequences while maintaining consistency.

• Team email campaigns: Set up automated email sequences that maintain your brokerage's voice and standards across all team member communications.
• LinkedIn team outreach: Use CRM tools to coordinate LinkedIn outreach across your team, expanding your network efficiently without overlap.
• Consistent team templates: Create and share personalized email and message templates for quick and consistent communication across your 20-50 person team.
• Coordinated follow-up reminders: Set automated reminders that ensure no team member misses critical follow-ups, maximizing opportunities across your brokerage.

4. Nurture existing leads, investors, customers and investments opportunities

The data in your CRM can help your team strategize for coordinated upselling and cross-selling campaigns across your 20-50 person brokerage.

• Coordinated campaigns: Use CRM data to create targeted marketing campaigns that leverage insights from across your entire team's client interactions.
• Team-based segmentation: Segment existing clients based on collective team insights and purchase history for more effective upselling coordination.
• Automated team recommendations: Implement CRM features that suggest additional services based on patterns identified across your team's client portfolios.
• Team feedback loops: Regularly gather feedback from clients through CRM-integrated surveys, sharing insights across your 20-50 person team to improve offerings.
  

How to evaluate and choose a CRM platform

1. Define your requirements

Identifying the key features needed for your 20-50 person brokerage firm is crucial in selecting the best CRM for teams your size. Consider functionalities like team lead management, automated follow-ups, integration capabilities, and reporting tools that provide visibility across your entire team. For real estate brokerages of 20-50 people, features such as shared property tracking and team communication tools are essential. Insurance brokerages your size might prioritize collaborative policy management and team-wide client renewal systems. Tailoring your CRM to your team's specific needs ensures it supports your business processes efficiently at scale. Start by looking for the following key features for mid-sized teams.

Key features of a CRM for brokers

• Team-focused automated processes: Streamlines tasks by automating workflows across your 20-50 person team, allowing brokers to focus on high-value activities while maintaining consistency. This feature is crucial for mid-sized brokerages aiming to scale efficiently without losing coordination.
• Contact enrichment for teams: Automatically finds leads, investors, customers, and investment opportunities' contact information for your entire team, enhancing efficiency across your 20-50 person brokerage. This reduces manual data entry and ensures all team members have access to up-to-date information.
• Team-shared structured pipeline: Tracks leads, investors, customers, and investment opportunities through defined stages with visibility across your entire team, ensuring process clarity and coordination. A well-structured shared pipeline helps your 20-50 brokers manage prospects collaboratively.
• Team communication tools: Increases communication efficiency with shared templates and coordinated email sequences across your brokerage team. This feature ensures timely and consistent communication that maintains your brand standards across all 20-50 team members.
• Social media integration for teams: Seamlessly imports leads from LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter and more, bringing contact information into a shared CRM accessible by your entire team. This integration helps your brokerage leverage collective professional networks effectively.
• Team analytics: Provides essential data analysis and predictive insights for better team planning and individual performance management. Your management team can make informed decisions about resource allocation and identify coaching opportunities across your 20-50 brokers.

2. Budget considerations

Balancing cost and return on investment is vital when choosing a CRM for your 20-50 person brokerage team. While enterprise platforms may offer extensive features, they often come with prohibitive costs for mid-sized teams. Look for CRM solutions that provide robust functionality specifically designed for teams of 20-50 people, ensuring you get the features you need without paying for enterprise capabilities you won't use.

3. Selection process

Researching and choosing the right CRM vendor for your 20-50 person team involves several steps. Start by reading reviews from similar-sized brokerages and asking for recommendations from other mid-sized firms in your industry. Shortlist vendors with proven track records serving teams your size. Assess their customer support, training resources, and customization options that work well for growing teams.

4. Get a demo

Trial and comparison are key in selecting the top CRM for your 20-50 person brokerage team. Take advantage of free trials to test how well the CRM handles your team size and workflow complexity. Compare different platforms based on user experience, team collaboration features, and scalability that matches your growth trajectory. Gather feedback from multiple team members to ensure the chosen CRM works effectively across your entire brokerage. To get a demo of folk, click here.

👉🏼 Try folk now to manage contact-based reminders with your team

3 tips for implementing a CRM

1. Import your data in your new CRM

Transitioning your 20-50 person team to a new CRM can be seamless if you start by importing your existing data systematically. Most CRMs allow you to export your team's collective data as CSV files from current systems, ensuring no client information is lost during the transition.

2. Create your first pipeline

Once your data is imported, set up your first team pipeline. For your 20-50 person brokerage, this might involve stages such as Lead Generation, Initial Contact, Property Showing, Offer Negotiation, and Closing. Tailor these stages to reflect your team's collaborative workflow, ensuring each status captures deal progress and enables effective handoffs between team members.

3. Onboard your team

Effective implementation of a CRM across your 20-50 person team requires systematic onboarding that ensures every team member is comfortable using the new system. Conduct training sessions in small groups to familiarize brokers with the CRM's features and establish best practices for team collaboration. Encourage questions and feedback to ensure smooth adoption and maximize the CRM's benefits across your entire brokerage firm.

The 5 best CRMs for brokers

1. folk

folk is the ideal CRM platform for 20-50 person brokerage teams, offering perfectly balanced functionality that scales with your team without enterprise complexity. Its modern interface and collaborative features make it the top choice for growing brokerages seeking efficient contact management, streamlined workflows, and seamless team coordination.

Key features

• Team contact enrichment: Automatically enriches contact details for your entire team by finding emails and LinkedIn URLs, enabling efficient outreach across your 20-50 person brokerage without additional per-user costs or manual data entry.
• Collaborative social media integration: Seamlessly import contacts from LinkedIn with team sharing capabilities, track conversations within folk, and use shared templates for consistent communication across your brokerage team.
• Team email integration: Full email sync, shared templates, and team tracking features, enabling your 20-50 person team to manage all communications collaboratively from the CRM.
• Team-optimized AI features: AI tools assist in managing contacts and relationships across your team, automating routine tasks, and suggesting actions that improve productivity for mid-sized brokerages.
• Extensive team integrations: folk integrates seamlessly with over 6,000 apps, including Gmail, Zapier, and Make, allowing your team to centralize workflows and reduce manual data entry across your 20-50 person brokerage.

Pros

• Perfect for mid-sized teams: folk is specifically designed for teams like yours, offering intuitive functionality that scales perfectly for 20-50 person brokerages without overwhelming complexity or enterprise bloat.
• Complete team solution: folk streamlines your entire team's workflow by enabling collaborative contact import from LinkedIn, automatic email finding, coordinated outreach through shared templates, and unified pipeline tracking, eliminating the need for multiple tools and reducing costs for your growing brokerage.
• Team-focused social integration: Seamlessly import and share contacts from LinkedIn across your team, track all conversations within folk, and maintain consistent communication through shared templates.
• Scalable customization: Custom fields, pipelines, and workflows that grow with your 20-50 person team without requiring technical expertise.
• Cost-effective integrations: folk integrates seamlessly with over 6,000 apps, allowing your team to centralize workflows efficiently while keeping costs predictable as you scale from 20 to 50 team members.

Cons

• Advanced reporting and analytics: folk offers advanced analytics and reporting, including pipeline and deal-stage analytics, revenue forecasting with weighted probabilities, and performance breakdowns by owner, channel, industry, region, or any custom field.

Price and plans

You can try folk for free with a 14-day free trial, perfect for testing with your 20-50 person team. After that, the monthly or annual subscription plans offer excellent value for mid-sized brokerages.

• Standard: $20 per user, per month,
• Premium: $40 per user, per month,
• Custom: Starts from $60 per user, per month.

2. HubSpot

HubSpot CRM is a comprehensive platform offering integrated tools for managing sales, marketing, and customer service, though it can become costly as your 20-50 person team grows and requires more advanced features.

Key features

• Sales Hub: Provides deal tracking, pipeline management, sales automation, and reporting, useful for teams of 20-50 people managing multiple leads, investors, and investment opportunities.
• Marketing Hub: Includes email marketing, ad tracking, landing pages, and lead generation tools to help mid-sized brokerages attract and nurture potential clients across their team.
• Lead scoring: Prioritize leads with predictive scoring to improve sales efficiency across your 20-50 person team, ensuring brokers focus on high-potential opportunities.
• Service Hub: Offers customer service tools like ticketing, live chat, and knowledge bases to enhance client satisfaction and retention for growing brokerages.
• Operations Hub: Syncs and automates business processes across different systems, though this can become complex for mid-sized teams to manage effectively.

Pros

• User-friendly interface: The intuitive interface works well for mid-sized teams, though it can become complex as you add more features needed for 20-50 person operations.
• Comprehensive free plan: Offers a useful free version for small teams, though limitations quickly become apparent as your team grows toward 50 people.
• Marketing integration: Strong integration between sales and marketing tools, beneficial for established teams with dedicated marketing resources.
• Automation capabilities: Provides automation tools for email marketing and workflows, though setup can be complex for growing teams without dedicated IT support.
• Customizable reporting: Allows creation of custom reports, though advanced features require higher-tier plans that become expensive for mid-sized teams.

Cons

• Expensive scaling: Costs escalate quickly as your 20-50 person team needs more features, making it financially challenging for mid-sized brokerages to scale.
• Complex for mid-sized teams: Advanced features have a steep learning curve and may require dedicated resources that 20-50 person teams often lack.
• Limited free tier functionality: Free plan restrictions become limiting as your team grows, forcing expensive upgrades sooner than expected.
• Email marketing restrictions: Email limits in lower tiers can be restrictive for active mid-sized brokerages with growing client lists.
• Add-on costs: Essential features often require paid add-ons, significantly increasing total cost of ownership for growing teams.
  

Price and plans

Prices and plans on HubSpot's CRM suite for an annual subscription are as follows.

• Starter: $15 per user, per month.
• Professional: $450 per user, per month.
• Enterprise: $1,500 per user, per month.

3. Pipedrive

Pipedrive is a sales-focused CRM offering pipeline management and automation features, though it may lack some advanced collaborative features that 20-50 person brokerage teams need for optimal coordination.

Key features

• Lead and deal management: Centralized tools to manage leads, investors, customers, and investment opportunities, though team coordination features are limited for 20-50 person brokerages.
• Sales automation: Workflow automation to handle repetitive tasks like lead routing and follow-ups, though it may require multiple tools for comprehensive team management.
• Email integration: Email sync, templates, and tracking features, enabling individual brokers to manage communications, though team collaboration could be stronger.
• Basic reporting: Standard reporting tools to track performance, though advanced analytics needed for team management require higher-tier plans.
• Pipeline customization: Options to customize pipelines and fields, though team-wide configuration can become complex as you approach 50 users.

Pros

• Clean interface: Intuitive design that works well for individual brokers, though team collaboration features are somewhat limited for 20-50 person operations.
• Sales pipeline focus: Strong visual pipeline management, beneficial for brokers who prefer straightforward deal tracking over complex team coordination.
• Reasonable pricing: Competitive pricing for basic plans, though costs increase significantly when adding features needed for mid-sized team management.
• Email automation: Decent automation for individual email workflows, though team-wide campaign coordination requires additional tools or higher plans.
• Mobile accessibility: Good mobile app for individual brokers, though team coordination features are limited on mobile platforms.

Cons

• Limited team collaboration: Lacks advanced team coordination features that 20-50 person brokerages need for effective collaboration and shared workflows.
• Basic reporting for teams: Reporting features in lower tiers are insufficient for managing and analyzing performance across a 20-50 person team.
• No built-in email marketing: Requires third-party integrations for email marketing, adding complexity and cost for mid-sized teams.
• Limited advanced features: Missing some advanced CRM capabilities like AI tools and sophisticated automation that growing teams need.
• Scaling costs: Expenses increase quickly when adding necessary features for team coordination, making it less cost-effective than dedicated team-focused solutions.
  

Price and plans

An annual subscription plan basis is as follows.

• Essential plan: Starts from $24 per user, per month.
• Advanced plan: Starts from $44 per user, per month.
• Power plan: Starts from $79 per user, per month.
• Enterprise plan: Starts from $129 per user, per month.

4. Zoho

Zoho is a comprehensive CRM system with extensive customization options, though its complexity can be overwhelming for 20-50 person brokerage teams who need efficient implementation without lengthy setup processes.

Key features

• Lead and contact management: Manages leads, investors, customers, and investment opportunities with segmentation capabilities, though setup can be complex for mid-sized teams.
• Sales pipeline management: Visual pipeline management with customization options, though extensive configuration may overwhelm 20-50 person teams.
• Customizable dashboards: Allows creation of custom dashboards and reports, though complexity may require dedicated IT resources that mid-sized brokerages often lack.
• Multi-channel communication: Integrates various communication channels, though setup and maintenance can be challenging for growing teams.
• Workflow automation: Comprehensive automation capabilities, though implementation complexity may slow adoption across 20-50 person teams.

Pros

• Competitive pricing: Reasonable pricing for basic functionality, though advanced features needed for team coordination require higher tiers.
• Extensive customization: High degree of customization possible, though this can overwhelm teams who need quick deployment and adoption.
• Zoho ecosystem: Integrates well with other Zoho products, though this creates vendor lock-in and may not suit teams using diverse tool stacks.
• Multi-channel support: Supports various communication channels, though setup complexity can delay implementation for mid-sized teams.
• AI features: Includes AI assistant capabilities, though advanced AI features are limited compared to more modern alternatives.

Cons

• Complex implementation: Setup and configuration are complex and time-consuming, particularly challenging for 20-50 person teams without dedicated IT resources.
• Steep learning curve: Extensive features create a difficult learning curve, potentially slowing adoption across your mid-sized team.
• Performance issues: Can experience slow performance with larger datasets, problematic for active brokerages managing substantial client databases.
• Limited third-party integrations: While integrating well within the Zoho ecosystem, connections with external tools can be limited or require custom development.
• Overwhelming interface: The abundance of features and options can overwhelm users who need streamlined, intuitive functionality for daily operations.
  

Price and plans

Zoho's free plan is limited to three users suitable for small businesses. After that, an annual subscription plan is as follows.

• Standard: $20 per user, per month.
• Professional: $35 per user, per month.
• Enterprise: $50 per user, per month.

5. Salesforce

Salesforce is a powerful CRM platform designed for large enterprises, offering extensive features that are often excessive and expensive for 20-50 person brokerage teams who need efficient, user-friendly solutions.

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Key features

• Enterprise customization: Highly customizable platform designed for large enterprises, though this complexity is often overwhelming and unnecessary for 20-50 person teams.
• AI integration: Advanced AI features through Salesforce Einstein, though these capabilities come at premium prices that may not justify the cost for mid-sized brokerages.
• Extensive integrations: Broad integration capabilities through AppExchange, though complexity often requires specialized consultants that mid-sized teams cannot afford.
• Advanced analytics: Comprehensive reporting and analytics tools, though setup and utilization require expertise that 20-50 person teams typically lack.
• Mobile access: Robust mobile application, though the complexity of the full platform can make mobile usage difficult for teams needing simple, efficient tools.

Pros

• Comprehensive features: Extensive functionality covering all business aspects, though this creates unnecessary complexity for mid-sized brokerage operations.
• High scalability: Can handle massive enterprise scaling, though 20-50 person teams rarely need this level of scalability and pay premium prices for unused capacity.
• Advanced analytics: Sophisticated reporting capabilities, though setup complexity often requires dedicated analysts that mid-sized teams cannot afford.
• Extensive integrations: Broad third-party integration possibilities, though implementation typically requires expensive consultants and ongoing technical support.
• Industry recognition: Well-established platform with strong reputation, though this enterprise focus makes it less suitable for nimble mid-sized teams.

Cons

• Prohibitive cost: Extremely expensive for 20-50 person teams, with licensing fees and implementation costs that can consume significant portions of mid-sized brokerage budgets.
• Overwhelming complexity: Enterprise-level complexity creates steep learning curves and requires extensive training that can slow productivity across your team.
• Complex implementation: Setup and customization require expensive specialized consultants, making total cost of ownership unsustainable for most mid-sized brokerages.
• Overkill for mid-sized teams: Feature set designed for enterprise operations is excessive for 20-50 person teams who need efficient, streamlined functionality.
• Technical complexity: Integration and customization require significant technical expertise, creating dependency on expensive external resources.
  

Price and plans

• Starter Suite: $25/user/month provides basic CRM features for small businesses
• Pro Suite: $100/user/month includes advanced tools for growing businesses
• Enterprise Plan: $165/user/month offers extensive customization and automation for large companies
• Unlimited Plan: $330/user/month provides comprehensive features for large enterprises
• Einstein 1 Sales: $500/user/month provides AI-driven insights and advanced features for large enterprises

Conclusion

For 20-50 person brokerage teams, selecting the right CRM can significantly impact your team's efficiency, collaboration, and growth potential. The key is finding a solution that scales perfectly with your team size without overwhelming complexity or enterprise-level costs.

Among the platforms evaluated, folk CRM stands out as the ideal choice for mid-sized brokerage teams. Its intuitive interface, collaborative features, and team-focused functionality provide exactly what 20-50 person brokerages need: streamlined workflows, shared contact management, seamless LinkedIn integration, and cost-effective scaling. Unlike enterprise solutions that overwhelm mid-sized teams with unnecessary complexity, or basic tools that lack collaborative features, folk strikes the perfect balance for growing brokerages. HubSpot offers comprehensive features but becomes expensive as teams scale. Pipedrive provides good individual functionality but lacks team collaboration capabilities. Zoho and Salesforce, while powerful, introduce complexity and costs that often exceed what mid-sized brokerages need or can efficiently manage.

For your 20-50 person brokerage, folk CRM offers the optimal combination of team-focused functionality, intuitive adoption, and scalable pricing that grows with your success. Evaluate your specific team requirements, leverage free trials, and choose a platform that empowers your brokers to collaborate effectively and close more deals together. Try folk for free here.

👉🏼 Try folk now to never miss a follow-up across your 20-50 person brokerage

Need a helping hand? Use our free tool to find your perfect CRM match.

FAQ

What is a CRM in private equity?

A private equity CRM centralizes LP, portfolio, and target relationships. It tracks fundraising and deal flow, logs emails and meetings, standardizes pipelines, and reports progress. Email and sourcing integrations help partners and associates collaborate.

Which CRM works best for a 20–50 person brokerage?

Choose a platform with shared pipelines, email sync, LinkedIn import, automation, role permissions, and clear reporting that your team will adopt quickly. Test with real data and user feedback. A team-focused option to trial is folk.

What features should a CRM for mid-sized brokerages include?

Key features include a shared pipeline, contact enrichment, automated follow-ups, email templates, LinkedIn capture, role-based permissions, dashboards and forecasting, and integrations to your email, calendar, and marketing tools.

How much does a CRM cost for teams of 20–50?

Costs range roughly $15–25/user/month for entry tiers, $20–60 for team-focused plans, and $100–500+ for enterprise suites. Factor add-ons (email sends, automation, analytics), onboarding, and annual discounts to estimate true total cost of ownership.