We all know we should love our CRM. It's the central nervous system of our business, the holy grail of customer data, the... well, you get the idea. But if you’re anything like me, there are days when logging in to update a lead feels like a chore you’d pay to avoid. The clicking, the tabbing, the endless fields. It’s a workflow designed in a boardroom, not in the real world where you're juggling a dozen things at once.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve jotted a note on my phone or sent myself an email, promising to “update Salesforce later.” Later, of course, never comes. The data gets stale, opportunities get missed, and the whole expensive system becomes less of a brain and more of a dusty attic.
So when I stumbled upon a tool called Hints, my inner, perpetually-overwhelmed marketing nerd sat up and paid attention. The premise is so simple it's almost insulting: What if you could just… talk to your CRM? What if you could manage your entire pipeline from the messaging apps you already have open all day? It sounded too good to be true. But after playing around with it, I'm convinced it's one of the most practical workflow innovations I’ve seen in years.
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So, What is Hints, Really?
Think of Hints not as a new CRM, but as a universal translator for you and your existing one. It’s a smart layer that sits on top of platforms like HubSpot, Pipedrive, or Salesforce and lets you interact with them using plain English (and other languages, too). It works through the apps you’re already glued to: Telegram, WhatsApp, SMS, and even has its own iOS and web apps.
Instead of logging into HubSpot, finding the contact, clicking ‘edit’, and adding a note, you just send a message. Something like, “Add note to Jane Doe: she’s interested in the premium package, follow up next Tuesday.” And Hints does the rest. It finds Jane Doe, adds the note, and even creates a follow-up task for you. It’s the personal assistant I've always wanted but could never afford.
The Features That Actually Change Your Day
A lot of SaaS tools come packed with features that look great on a landing page but you never actually use. Hints is different. Its features feel purposeful, designed to remove friction from the most common sales and marketing tasks.
Talk to Your CRM Like a Human
This is the main event. The ability to update everything with natural language is a game-changer. It’s not just text, either. You can send a voice message on your way to the next meeting: “Create a new deal for Acme Corp, value $5000, in the 'Proposal' stage.” Done. No fumbling with your phone, no pulling over to type. This single feature transforms CRM data entry from a dedicated, sit-down task into a series of micro-actions you can perform anytime, anywhere. Its a tiny shift with a massive impact on productivity.
Telegram as Your New Sales Hub
For many teams, especially in certain global markets, Telegram is life. Hints leans into this hard. You can set up your entire team in a workspace, manage deals collaboratively, and even run automated outreach campaigns from a single Telegram account. Their ‘Folder Sync’ feature is particularly clever; it can automatically pull contacts from your Telegram chats and groups into your CRM. Imagine adding every member of a new client's project group to your CRM without lifting a finger. That's some serious time saved.
Little Tricks That Make a Big Difference
Beyond the headline features, there are a few smaller things that show a real understanding of the user. My favorite? Screenshot recognition. You know when a client sends you their contact info in a weirdly formatted screenshot? Instead of manually typing it all out, you just forward the image to Hints. It parses the text and creates a new lead. It feels like magic. It also offers a morning digest of your tasks and calendar integration, pulling all your important to-dos into one place before your day even gets chaotic.
Who Should Be Using Hints?
I see a few groups getting massive value from this. First, the solo-preneurs and freelancers. The free and low-cost Pro plans are perfect for individuals who live out of their phones and need to be ruthlessly efficient. If you’re a consultant who manages client relationships in Pipedrive but communicates via WhatsApp, Hints will bridge that gap beautifully.
Second, small, agile sales teams. Especially those who are already heavy Telegram users. The Team plan allows for collaboration without the formal, rigid structure of a full-blown CRM interface. It fosters a more conversational, fast-paced way of managing a shared pipeline.
Who is it not for? Probably massive enterprise companies with deeply entrenched, complex processes and strict compliance rules. While Hints integrates with Salesforce, a 1,000-person sales team probably isn't going to switch to managing deals via Telegram overnight. This tool is for the nimble, not the behemoths.
Let's Talk Money: The Hints Pricing Breakdown
Pricing is always the million-dollar question, right? Or in this case, the ten-dollar question. Hints uses a tiered model that seems pretty fairly priced for the value it offers.
| Plan | Price | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Personal | Free | Individuals getting started. Offers a surprisingly robust set of features like the Telegram mini-app, audio updates, and calendar sync. |
| Pro | $10 / month | Power users and solo-preneurs. Unlocks unlimited leads and over 7,000 integrations (likely via Zapier), which is huge. |
| Team | $40 / month | Small teams (up to 3 users, then $7/extra user). Adds crucial collaboration tools and workspace management. |
| Outreach | $300 / month | Sales-focused teams running large-scale campaigns. Adds advanced outreach logic and multi-account support. |
In my opinion, the Pro plan at $10/month is the sweet spot. The jump in functionality from Free, especially with the integrations, is well worth the price of a couple of coffees.
The Good, The Bad, and The Realistic
No tool is perfect, and a good review calls out the potential gotchas. I love the seamless integrations and the sheer convenience of the natural language commands. The automation possibilities, especially within Telegram, are a huge plus for anyone doing direct outreach.
However, you have to be realistic. The effectiveness of the whole system hinges on the quality of its chat and voice recognition. While it worked well in my tests, a strong accent or mumbling could potentially cause issues. Also, its a layer on top of other systems, so you're reliant on those third-party integrations running smoothly. And as you scale up, the pricing for the Team and Outreach plans, while fair, can start to add up for a larger crew.
Is Hints the Future of CRM Interaction?
Look, I'm not saying Hints is going to replace HubSpot. But it might just replace how you use HubSpot. It doesn't try to reinvent the wheel; it just builds a much better, faster road to it. For too long, we’ve adapted our behavior to fit our software. Hints is part of a welcome trend where software is finally starting to adapt to us—to our messy, conversational, on-the-go way of working.
If you're tired of the CRM grind and live in your messaging apps, you owe it to yourself to check out the free plan. It might just be the hint you needed to make your workflow flow again.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need an existing CRM account to use Hints?
Yes, for the most part. Hints is designed to be a conversational interface for popular CRMs like Pipedrive, HubSpot, and Salesforce. Its main job is to make managing those platforms easier. You need to connect it to one of those accounts to get the full benefit.
How accurate is the voice and text recognition?
In my experience, it's quite good for standard commands and clear speech. It uses sophisticated natural language processing. However, like any AI-powered tool, accuracy can depend on things like audio quality, background noise, and strong accents. I'd suggest testing it with your own speaking style on the free plan.
Is my data secure when using Hints?
Hints acts as a secure conduit to your CRM. It uses the official APIs provided by platforms like HubSpot and Salesforce, which means it adheres to their security protocols. Data isn't stored permanently on Hints' servers in the same way it is in your CRM; it's processed and passed through. However, as with any third-party app, you should always review their privacy policy.
Can I use this for more than just sales?
Absolutely. While many features are geared towards sales (deals, outreach), the core functionality is about managing contacts and tasks. You could use it for project management, networking, or managing any kind of stakeholder relationship you track in your CRM.
What happens if I have multiple contacts with the same name?
This is a great question. Hints is smart enough to handle duplicates. If you say “Add note to John Smith,” and you have three John Smiths, it will typically ask for clarification (e.g., “Do you mean John Smith from Acme Inc. or John Smith from Beta Corp?”) to ensure the data goes to the right place.
Can I really use this on WhatsApp?
Yes, Hints supports multiple messaging platforms, including WhatsApp and Telegram. This allows you to update your CRM from whichever chat app you prefer, making it incredibly flexible for teams that communicate across different channels.
