10 enterprise software applications every business needs

Every business runs on software. The question is whether the tools you're using are helping your team move faster, or just adding noise.

This list covers 10 enterprise software applications worth knowing, organized by function: communications, customer service, sales and marketing, and HR. For each one, you'll find what it does and why it earns a place in a well-run business.

Communications software

Strong internal and external communication keeps teams aligned and clients informed. These two platforms cover the essentials.

1. Zoom

Zoom is the default choice for business video communication, and for good reason. It's free to start, works across devices, and connects people anywhere in the world without setup friction.

Common use cases include:

• Video meetings for internal teams and client calls

• Webinars for product launches or training sessions

• Conference room integration for hybrid teams

• Phone system replacement for distributed organizations

• Business messaging for quick team communication

Zoom's ease of use and near-universal adoption make it a reliable default. Other options worth knowing: Skype for peer-to-peer calls and Microsoft Teams for organizations already in the Microsoft ecosystem.

2. Hootsuite

Social media is a legitimate business channel, and managing it manually across platforms is unsustainable. HootSuite solves that by centralizing scheduling, monitoring, and reporting in one place.

Key capabilities:

• Schedule content across platforms in advance and track what performs

• Monitor brand conversations to catch questions or issues early

• Integrate with tools like Google Drive and Mailchimp to keep workflows connected

Other social media management tools to consider: BuzzSumo for content research and Buffer for simpler scheduling workflows.

Customer service software

"Klipfolio is an extraordinary tool, not only to bring hidden client information into the spotlight, but also to give us the power to make immediate data-driven decisions where action is necessary." – Rodrigo Rojas, Founder and CEO, TimeHunter

Customers reach out through more channels than ever. The right software keeps your team responsive without letting anything fall through the cracks.

3. Intercom

Intercom is built for businesses that sell and support online. It helps your team stay close to customers without requiring them to reach out first.

What it does well:

• Live chat lets your team respond to visitors in real time, before they leave

• Customer journey tracking shows every action a user has taken on your site

• Segmentation helps you identify which customers are likely to return and which need attention

4. Mailchimp

Email remains one of the highest-return channels for customer communication. MailChimp makes it accessible for growing teams, with a free tier and enough depth to run serious campaigns.

Useful features include:

• Campaign testing to see which messages resonate with specific audiences

• Subscriber management to maintain a clean, organized contact list

• Performance tracking with open rates, click data, and engagement trends

• Integrations with Google Drive, Dropbox, Wix, and more

Other email platforms worth considering: Sendinblue and ActiveCampaign.

Sales and marketing software

Revenue growth depends on finding the right customers and keeping them. These tools help your team do both, with less manual effort.

5. Salesforce CRM

Salesforce CRM is the most widely used CRM platform for a reason. It brings your sales pipeline, customer data, and marketing activity into one place, so your team spends less time hunting for information and more time closing.

Core capabilities:

• Sales Cloud to manage deals and move prospects through the pipeline

• Service Cloud for structured customer support at scale

• Multi-channel marketing to build campaigns that target and convert leads

6. Marketo

Marketo is built for teams that want to grow through content and relationship-building rather than cold outreach. It handles the full lifecycle from lead generation through conversion and retention.

Features include:

• Email and social campaigns with built-in targeting

• Landing pages for campaign-specific conversion

• CRM integration to keep sales and marketing aligned

• Lead management and analytics to track what's working

Other marketing automation platforms worth considering: HubSpot CRM and Oracle Eloqua.

7. Yesware

Yesware is a sales-focused email tool that gives your team visibility into what happens after they hit send. Knowing who opened an email, when, and whether they forwarded it changes how salespeople follow up.

What it adds to your workflow:

• Email tracking to see open rates and locations in real time

• Forwarding visibility so you know when a prospect shares your message internally

• Customizable templates that help your team send the right message at the right moment

8. Google Analytics

Google Analytics is the baseline for understanding how visitors find and use your website. It tells you where traffic comes from, which pages convert, and where people drop off, information your sales and marketing team needs to make good decisions.

Key features:

• Performance reports on traffic, engagement, and conversions

• Goal tracking tied to specific business outcomes

• Campaign analytics to measure what's driving results

You can also connect Google Analytics data directly to Klipfolio dashboards. We've covered how to work with its data in our platform if you want to go deeper.

Other web analytics tools worth knowing: Adobe Analytics, HotJar, Crazy Egg, and FullStory.

Bonus: Once your analytics are in order, A/B testing tools like VWO or AB Tasty can help you improve conversion rates systematically.

Human resource software

Your team is your most important asset. These tools reduce the administrative burden of managing people, so your HR function can focus on the work that actually matters.

9. BambooHR

BambooHR covers the full employee lifecycle in one platform. It's built for growing companies that need HR infrastructure without the complexity of enterprise HR systems.

What you get:

• Applicant tracking to manage hiring without spreadsheets

• Onboarding workflows that give new employees a confident start

• Payroll management integrated with the rest of your HR data

10. Gusto HR

Payroll is one of the most error-prone processes in any business. Gusto HR removes most of that risk by automating the parts that cause problems.

Key capabilities:

• Automated tax and deduction calculations so nothing gets missed

• Direct deposit with minimal manual steps after setup

• Employee self-service for personal information, pay stubs, and benefits

Connecting the picture with Klipfolio

Each of these tools generates data. The challenge for most leaders isn't getting data, it's knowing what it means and what to do next, without waiting for someone to pull a report or paste numbers into a chatbot and hope for a useful answer.

Klipfolio's business dashboard software connects to 130+ data sources, including many of the tools on this list, and surfaces the numbers that matter in one place. Your team stops hunting. You stop asking. The right information is just there.