Best PM Tools

Creative agencies excel at delivering innovative projects, but the complexity of managing multiple tasks, deadlines, and client expectations can often be overwhelming, leading to missed opportunities, and frustrated teams. In such situations, project management software can be a valuable solution. 

Project management software solves these problem by centralizing project details, facilitating team collaboration, and helping you manage resources more effectively. These software are built to simplify multiple projects handling simultaneously. With the right software, your team can work seamlessly, stay organized, meet deadlines, and ensure client satisfaction. 

Dive into our guide as we have explored the seven best project management tools for agencies in 2024, tailored to your agency’s needs.

Here’s a quick overview of each software, which will be further discussed in detail: 

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Why Should Creative Agencies Use Project Management Tools?

Creative agencies often handle multiple projects with tight deadlines and diverse teams. Whether it’s aligned designers, writers, and marketers or managing client expectations, the complexity can feel overwhelming. So, by introducing project management software, agencies can increase efficiency and productivity while maintaining their creative edge. 

Following are some of the benefits that project management software offers: 

  • Ease of Use: These tools are intuitive, allowing non-technical team members to hit the ground quickly without facing a steep learning curve
  • Collaboration Features: Seamless communication among team members, regardless of their role, keeps creative projects on track
  • Resource Management: Managing the availability and workload of designers, developers, and copywriters becomes much easier
  • Integration Capabilities: Software that integrates with third-party applications like Slack software or Adobe Suite ensures smooth workflow transitions
  • Customization Options: Custom dashboards and templates ensure that agencies have the means to tailor the software to fit their unique process

Keeping these factors in mind make it easier to synergize the creative talents within the team, align project goals, and deliver exceptional results within the constraints of time and resources. 

7 Best Project Management Tools For Agencies

Choosing the right project management software is vital for creative agencies aiming to boost productivity and streamline workflows. Whether you are a small agency or a large firm, selecting software that aligns with your team’s size, needs, and project types is essential for maximizing efficiency and effectiveness. 

The seven best project management tools for agencies are discussed below in detail: 

1. Scoro - Best For Visibility Into Agency Operations \

Scoro

Scoro is a work management software for professional service businesses, including creative agencies. This software offers a unified platform that integrates project management, financial oversight, and resource planning, making it especially valuable for agencies prioritizing operational transparency. 

Moreover, Scoro’s robust reporting and analytics features provide insights into project progress, agency performance, financials, and team utilization. This helps the team make informed decisions based on real-time data.

Key Features

  • Resource planning
  • Time tracking
  • Reporting and dashboard
  • Sales and CRM
  • Project budgeting
  • Capacity planning

Benefits For Agencies 

Scoro’s all-in-one work management capability combines project delivery, sales and CRM, resource planning, time-tracking, and financial management into a single software. This integration is vital for creative projects where real-time updates and collaboration are essential.

Additionally, Scoro software seamlessly integrates with various applications, including Asana software, Jira, and QuickBooks, making it the right fit for the agencies. 

Pricing 

Scoro offers four pricing plans, each with a 14-day free trial:

  • Essential: $28/user/month
  • Standard: $42/user/month
  • Pro: $71/user/month
  • Ultimate: Custom Pricing

2. ClickUp - Best For Customizable Workflows 

ClickUp

ClickUp is a highly versatile project management tool designed for creative teams. It provides features that support every step of the design process, from collaboration to task management, and client approvals. Teams in ClickUp software can customize workflows with multiple views and templates. This enhances the ability to streamline creative processes.

Key Features

  • Gantt charts
  • Kanban boards
  • Time-tracking
  • Dashboards
  • Automations

Benefits For Agencies 

ClickUp software allows creative teams to collaborate efficiently, offering task management features, such as checklists, subtasks, and templates to organize projects. Its visual tools like Gantt charts and Kanban boards help teams track progress and deadlines. With integrations like Salesforce, HubSpot CRM software, and Figma, ClickUp is the perfect fit for agencies looking for versatile software. 

Pricing 

ClickUp offers the following pricing tiers:

  • Free Forever: Free
  • Unlimited: $10/user/month
  • Business: $19/user/month
  • Enterprise: Custom Pricing

3. Kantata - Best For Resource Management 

KANTATA

Kantata is a SaaS-based project management software designed for creative agencies, making it easier to manage projects from start to finish. It has an intuitive interface that offers clarity on project progress and team workload. Kantata software excels in time-tracking, ensuring agencies can bill clients accurately and keep track of finances.

Key Features

  • Resource management
  • Time-tracking
  • Financial Management
  • Team collaboration
  • Business intelligence

Benefits For Agencies 

Kantata’s project dashboard provides creative agencies with a bird’s eye view of all the projects, ensuring teams stay organized, and tasks remain on schedule. Resource management tools help balance workloads and avoid burnout, ensuring smooth operations across projects. 

Moreover, Kantata software integrates with applications like Salesforce, Xero accounting solution, Slack, and HubSpot to create a streamlined workflow, making it a good choice for project management software for creative agencies. 

Pricing 

Kantata software offers customizable pricing plans. 

4. Productive - Best For Profitability Tracking 

Productive

Productive is an all-in-one management software designed to meet the unique needs of creative agencies. It combines task management with resource planning and financial management to offer a comprehensive plan. What sets Productive software apart is its ability to handle everything from time-tracking to real-time reporting, making it ideal software for agencies. 

The software’s extensive set of features enables agencies to run their operations through a single platform, simplifying processes like resource scheduling, budget oversight, and task management.

Key Features

  • Resource planning
  • Time tracking
  • Collaboration
  • Budgeting
  • Reporting

Benefits For Agencies 

Productive is ideal for creative agencies that need to integrate project management with financial oversight. The real-time reporting and automation features help creative teams stay on top of project progress, while time tracking ensures accurate billing and resource allocation. It integrates with software like BugHerd, Jira, Gusto, and many more, making it a good software choice for agencies. 

Pricing 

Productive software offers four pricing plans along with a 14-day free trial:

  • Essential: $11/user/month
  • Professional: $28/user/month
  • Ultimate: $39/user/month

5. Workamajig - Best For Project And Financial Management 

workamajig

Workamajig is an all-in-one project management software specifically designed for marketing agencies and in-house creative teams. It streamlines operations by combining project management with financial oversight, offering a comprehensive set of features integrated within the software to boost profitability. 

With an intuitive interface, Workamajig allows agencies to manage projects, budgets, and tasks effortlessly. The software also excels in simplifying project creation, allowing teams to develop fully scheduled projects in just a few clicks.

Key Features

  • Finance and accounting
  • Task management
  • Resource management
  • Agency insights
  • Sales CRM

Benefits For Agencies 

Workamajig offers marketing agencies a tailored software solution that meets their unique needs. The ability to quickly create and manage projects ensures that deadlines are met, while the financial and accounting features keep budgets in check. Agencies benefit from enhanced transparency in task management and billable hours, which helps keep projects on schedule. 

Pricing 

Workamajig offers three pricing plans for a team of at least 10+ users:

  • In-house: $41/user/month
  • Agency: $41/user/month
  • Enterprise: Custom Pricing

6. Quickbase - Best For Building Custom Workflows With No-Coding

quickbase

Quickbase is a no-code software that allows creative agencies to build custom business applications that cater to their unique project management needs. Designed for users without extensive coding knowledge, it empowers teams to streamline workflows, centralize project data, and track progress efficiently. This results in improved communication and collaboration across teams, ensuring smooth project execution.

Key Features

  • Resource management
  • Workflow management
  • Budget and financial management
  • Compliance management
  • Sales and CRM

Benefits For Agencies 

Quickbase software provides creative agencies with the ability to create highly personalized project management applications without needing to write code. This flexibility allows agencies to manage projects according to their own processes and workflows. Additionally, QuickBase's integration with tools like Zendesk Suite, Slack, and Microsoft Teams enhances team collaboration by connecting essential systems in one place. 

Pricing 

Quickbase offers four pricing plans:

  • Free trial: $0 (Free for 30 days)
  • Team: Starts at $35/user/month
  • Business: Starts at $55/user/month
  • Enterprise: Custom Pricing

7. Wrike - Best For Real-Time Collaboration 

wrike

Wrike is a work management software designed to help creative agencies collaborate and manage projects more effectively. It provides a central hub for managing all client projects and resources, providing teams with real-time visibility into their workflow. With Wrike, companies can enhance their collaboration efforts, streamline approvals, and maintain complete control over project timelines, and resource allocation. 

Wrike software focuses on uniting the teams by offering real-time collaboration tools, time-tracking, and resource management. It allows agencies to manage more projects in less time, improving efficiency, and client satisfaction through enhanced oversight and streamlined processes.

Key Features

  • Task management
  • Time tracking
  • Collaboration
  • Real-time reports
  • Resource management

Benefits for Agencies 

Wrike software provides real-time collaboration tools and cross-tagging features that gives creative agencies the transparency they need to stay on top of multiple client projects simultaneously. Furthermore, Wrike integrates with third-party apps like Tableau, Power BI, Zoom, and more, making it an optimal choice for creative agencies. 

Pricing 

Wrike offers five pricing plans with 14-day trial period:

  • Free: $0/user/month
  • Team: $9.80/user/month
  • Business - $24.80/user/month
  • Enterprise: Custom Pricing
  • Pinnacle: Custom Pricing

Which Project Management Tool Is Best for Your Agency?

When selecting project management software for your creative agency, it’s vital to consider your team’s needs, project scale, and collaboration requirements. Scoro and Workamajig offer an all-in-one platform that integrates task management, financial tracking, and resource planning. 

For agencies needing flexibility and customization, ClickUp and Wrike stand out with their customizable workflows, and real-time collaboration tools. If financial management and resource planning are your priorities, Productive and Kantata provide robust features that ensure accurate billing, and efficient resource allocation, making them ideal for agencies with high client volumes. 

Ultimately, the best project management tool for your agency will align with how you manage your creative workflows, track project progress, and collaborate with clients. Whether you need deep financial insights, strong collaboration features, or powerful project planning tools, selecting the right software will streamline your processes, and ensure timely project deliveries. 

Please visit our project management resources center section to explore the wide range of software.