Use case · 7 October 2026
A CRM for a studio and a SaaS product
A lot of founders fund a product with a studio, or run client work alongside the thing they are really building. The two sell to different people, in different ways, from different email addresses. Here is how to run both without them tangling.
Why one shared CRM gets messy
- Different buyers. Studio clients are people who commission work. SaaS prospects are people who might try a tool. They should not share a list.
- Different rhythms. A studio has a handful of large proposals that take weeks. A product has many smaller leads that need a quick nudge.
- Different voices. A proposal should come from the studio’s domain. A product follow-up should come from the product’s.
- One founder. You still have to know, every morning, which follow-up is overdue, whichever business it belongs to.
The setup: one workspace each
In FounderPipe you give each business its own workspace. Take a made-up example: an agency called Northwind Studio and a small SaaS product called Ledgerly. (They are invented, like everything in our screenshots.)
- Create a workspace for each. Each has its own deals board, contacts, companies and outreach lists.
- Import each business’s list separately. Split the CSV first, one file per business. Each import is matched against that workspace’s own records, so nothing crosses over. How the import works.
- Connect a sending domain to each workspace, so the studio writes as the studio and the product as the product. Emails are logged on the contact.
- Set follow-ups as you go. A date on any contact or company puts it on Today until it is done.
Every workspace starts with the same simple pipeline: Lead, Contacted, Demo, Proposal, Won and Lost. If your two businesses sell very differently, you will use those stages differently. The studio’s deals will sit in Proposal for weeks, and the product’s will move through Demo quickly. What stays separate is the board, the people and the lists.
A day with both, in one place
Open Today and you see overdue follow-ups, what is coming up and open pipeline from both workspaces, each item tagged with the business it belongs to. A typical morning, for the made-up pair above:
- Two overdue follow-ups: a proposal check-in for the studio, a trial nudge for the product.
- You send the studio one from the studio’s domain, from the contact’s own page, and it is logged.
- You open a workbook, a call list of product prospects, and work through it, or print it for a morning away from the screen.
- You archive a lead that went nowhere. It leaves your lists but keeps its history, and a later import will not bring it back.
What this will not do
- It does not connect to your product. FounderPipe is a sales CRM. It does not read sign-ups, usage or billing from your SaaS, so trial activity and subscriptions live where they already do.
- It does not merge people across businesses. If a studio client also buys your product, they are two records, one in each workspace.
- It is not a permissions wall. Everyone on your account can open every workspace. If you hire for one business and want the other hidden, you want separate accounts.
If those are dealbreakers, say so in your evaluation and look elsewhere. Our guide to choosing a CRM for multiple businesses covers the alternatives honestly.
Plans and cost
Every account starts with a 14-day free trial. After that, Starter ($15 a month) includes one workspace, Founder ($39) up to five and Portfolio ($89) unlimited, with your own sending domain from Founder up. A studio and a product is two workspaces. See pricing on the homepage.
Questions about running a studio and a SaaS product
Can I run a studio and a SaaS product from one CRM?
Yes. Give each its own workspace, so the studio's clients and the product's prospects have separate contacts, companies and lists, and use the Today screen to see what is overdue across both.
Can each business email from its own domain?
Yes. You can connect a sending domain to each workspace, or use the shared address until you do. Emails are logged on the contact's record.
Can I have different pipeline stages for the studio and the product?
Not today. Every workspace starts with the same stages: Lead, Contacted, Demo, Proposal, Won and Lost. Each workspace has its own board, so the two never mix, but the stage names are the same.
Does FounderPipe track trials or subscriptions for my SaaS?
No. It is a sales CRM and does not connect to your product's sign-ups, usage or billing.
What if a studio client also buys my product?
They appear as two records, one in each workspace. That is the trade-off for keeping the businesses fully apart. See workspace vs pipeline.
How many workspaces do I need?
One per business, so two for a studio and a product. Founder ($39 a month) allows up to five and Portfolio ($89) unlimited, after a 14-day free trial.
Put the studio and the product side by side
One workspace for each, one Today screen for both.
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