Running an agency is tough. You work hard to maximize productivity and retain clients while improving internal communication and avoiding micromanagement. The process never seems to end.
But you don’t need us to tell you that.
Our job is to offer solutions. So, in this article, we’ll discuss the best agency management software that can help simplify your work and overcome common pain points. Luckily enough, there are many options available. In this post, you’ll learn:
- The basics of agency management software
- How to pick the right platform for your agency
- The best tools in different categories
Let’s dive in!
What is agency management software, and how to pick one?
Agency management software is a term that describes a software tool or tools that help agencies manage their operations more efficiently. This type of platform assists with tasks like:
- Client management
- Project management
- Team collaboration
- Resource planning
- Finances
- Human resource management
Agencies use these platforms to streamline their workflows, automate routine tasks, and make data-driven decisions. However, it’s important to point out that not all agency management system tools are the same. You should search for the right platform based on the following criteria:
- The needs of your agency: The best tool is the one that suits your business needs. For instance, you may need software for project management, but not necessarily for invoicing or client management.
- Your budget: You’ll find amazing tools with all kinds of features, but these all encompassing options can get pretty expensive. Search for a more specific agency management tool that suits your budget.
- User-friendliness: Digital agencies need a user-friendly platform that all employees can pick up quickly and use with ease.
- Third-party integrations: The right agency management software integrates with third-party systems you’re using already.
Now that we’ve got that covered, let’s focus on some of the finest platforms currently available.
Top nine agency management tools
The good thing about agency management is the sheer number of software options available. But it can also be a burden for those who don’t know exactly what they are searching for. That’s why we’ve created a list of the best agency management software in different categories.
Here are our top nine picks.
1. Data and content collection: Content Snare
Most agencies deal with clients who forget or take a long time to send important content, files, or information. If you’re like most agency owners, you’ll appreciate Content Snare for sure. Our platform simplifies the time-consuming and frustrating process of collecting content, files and data from clients, so you can spend more time doing the actual work.
Content Snare automates data collection. With it, you can do the following:
- Create content request forms
- Send automated reminders
- Streamline client onboarding
- Approve or reject client submissions
- Send documents securely
Content Snare automatically saves changes in content request forms, so clients can pick up where they left off. You can build a form from scratch, but you can also choose one of our 50+ ready-made templates.
But Content Snare doesn’t just save your time—it boosts your productivity, keeps projects on track, makes clients happy, and grows your business.
Content Snare pricing plans
- Basic: $29 per month
- Plus: $59 per month
- Pro: $99 per month
- Custom: $179 per month
Stop chasing clients for content and documents
Content Snare transforms the way you gather content and documents. Turn a tangled mess into a smooth process that frees up your time and boosts productivity.
2. Agency management tool for scheduling: Calendly
Calendly is a scheduling tool that helps individuals and agencies schedule meetings, appointments, and events. Using its simple interface, users can create and share their availability with others, eliminating the need for back-and-forth emails to arrange meetings.
Calendly is particularly useful for agencies because it offers advanced scheduling features:
- Meeting reminders and follow-ups
- Automated event notifications
- Round-robin scheduling for distributed teams
- Invite redirects
- Analytics and insights
Calendly integrates with popular calendar platforms like Google Calendar, so you can easily manage your schedules across multiple platforms. In addition, the platform enables many customization options—you can remove Calendly branding and tailor the content on your scheduling pages.
Calendly pricing plans
- Basic: Free with limited features
- Essentials: $8 per user monthly
- Professional: $12 per user monthly
- Teams: $16 per user monthly
- Enterprise: Price available upon request
3. Project management software: Monday
Monday isn’t specifically designed for digital agencies, but it’s still one of the best project management systems for this type of business. With it, you can monitor project progress in real-time and build customized reports or dashboards.
Monday successfully streamlines agency operations, improves team collaboration, and keeps track of deadlines and budgets. In addition, it covers a whole range of features:
- Task and project management
- Workload allocation
- Client relationships and collaboration
- Operations processes
The tool gives you pre-built templates for various project management scenarios. These include marketing campaigns, website design, or social media management. The best thing is that you can easily customize these templates to fit your specific needs and processes.
Monday is also integration-friendly, so you can combine it with numerous agency tools like Google Drive, HubSpot, Mailchimp, and so on.
Monday pricing plans
- Individual: Free with limited features
- Basic: $11 per user monthly
- Standard: $14 per user monthly
- Pro: $22 per user monthly
- Enterprise: Price available upon request
4. Team collaboration and messaging: Slack
Slack is an instant messaging tool that enables efficient communication and collaboration. It allows team members to communicate in real time through chat, voice, and video calls.
One of the core strengths of Slack is its ability to organize conversations into channels. This is highly convenient because you can create channels for different projects or topics. You can keep an eye on everything without losing focus. More advanced Slack plans give you extra features:
- Large-scale collaboration for up to 500 thousand users
- Screen sharing with up to 50 users
- 24/7 support that responds in four hours
In addition, Slack integrates with hundreds of third-party apps and platforms. Marketing agencies will appreciate integrations with tools like HubSpot, Mailchimp, and SketchDeck.
Slack pricing plans
- Free: Free with limited features
- Pro: $7.25 per user a month
- Business +: $12.50 per user a month
- Enterprise: Price available upon request
5. Time tracking: Harvest
Harvest makes it easy to track time across multiple projects. It keeps track of all tasks and expenses, so you can gain deeper insights into your team’s productivity. The platform’s powerful analytics enables users to improve the way they work and the way they charge clients. Although simple, Harvest has many features:
- Custom reminders
- Real-time budget tracking
- Insightful data visualizations
- Mobile tracking
Harvest enables invoicing and online payments via PayPal and Stripe. It also integrates with multiple accounting and bookkeeping tools, so you can instantly transfer invoices and other documents to these platforms.
Harvest pricing plans
- Free: Free for single users with two project max
- Pro: $10.80 per user a month
6. Sales and resource planning: Productive
Productive is an all-in-one agency management system, but we’ll focus on its sales and resource planning abilities. It helps agencies manage their projects, resources, and finances. Productive assists you in understanding your sales funnel from top to bottom, so you can attract more clients and grow revenue. The platform has a range of useful features:
- Revenue forecasting
- Overhead calculation
- Budgeting and expense management
- Advanced financial reporting
Our favorite Productive feature is resource planning. The platform allows agencies to manage their resources, including people, equipment, and materials, in real time. That way, it’s easy to optimize resource utilization and avoid overloading team members with too much work.
Productive pricing plans
- Essential: $17 per month
- Professional: $24 per month
- Ultimate: $32 per month
- Enterprise: Price available upon request
7. Search engine optimization: Ahrefs
No agency can work without a search engine optimization (SEO) tool, so we have to add Ahrefs to the list. This platform has become the norm among SEO specialists because it provides a comprehensive set of features like:
- Keyword research
- Site audits
- Backlink analysis
- Rank tracking
- Competitor analysis
Ahrefs assists agencies in improving their own and their clients' websites. That includes maximizing search engine visibility, monitoring competitors' rankings, and identifying potential link building opportunities.
We also like its Content Explorer, a feature that finds popular content in any given niche and analyzes it for link building and content marketing purposes. You can also use features like domain comparisons, social media analysis, and so on.
Ahrefs pricing plans
- Light: $99
- Standard: $199
- Advanced: $399
- Enterprise: $999
8. Task management for Gmail: Yanado
Yanado is the best task and project management tool that seamlessly integrates with Gmail. It’s a perfect solution for small teams and agencies that manage operations through the most popular email provider.
The purpose of Yanado is to help users stay organized without leaving their Gmail inboxes. It offers many functionalities:
- Task management and to-do lists
- Project management
- Subtasks, tags, and custom statuses
- Real-time notifications
- Analytics and reports
We know that most platforms say they are easy to use, but Yanado really impresses clients with its simplicity. You get real-time updates on the status of tasks, all within a simple and intuitive dashboard. It also offers advanced capabilities to manage complex projects, including subtasks, recurring tasks, and custom workflows.
Yanado pricing plans
- Free: Free with limited features
- Startup: $6 per user a month
- Premium: $15 per user a month
- Enterprise: Price available upon request
9. Productivity tool: Notion
Notion is an all-in-one agency management tool that combines multiple functionalities. That includes a note-taking app, project management tool, knowledge base, and database. With Notion, you can do the following:
- Create an agency knowledge base
- Manage tasks and coordinate projects
- Create and share documents
- Use design and marketing templates
Notion's database functionality allows users to create relational databases. You can use it for tasks such as tracking leads, managing contacts, and organizing content. It also has a variety of views, including table, calendar, and kanban.
The system integrates with many apps, including Slack, Trello, and Google Drive. However, you can also create custom internal integrations with Notion’s API.
Notion pricing plans
- Free: Free with limited features
- Plus: $8 per user a month
- Business: $15 per user a month
- Enterprise: Price available upon request
Streamline your workflow with the best agency management system
Agency management software can be a game-changer for agile teams eager to streamline their operations. By automating time-consuming tasks, facilitating collaboration, and providing valuable data insights, the right tool can help you boost productivity and improve your bottom line.
However, it's essential to select an agency management system that meets your unique requirements and aligns with your business goals. That way, you can maximize the benefits of the tool and achieve optimal results.
