Philip Goguen
During a pandemic crisis and economic downturn that has already started and will most probably continue to go even deeper, a question that bugs many managers is how to make the best use of their current resources. One of the answers is by using a system that manages relationships with both existing customers and potential customers, such as CRM (Customer Relationship Management). Whether it is a product or a service, every company should have a clear strategy on how to approach the (potential) client and how to achieve the desired results.
Before you decide to introduce CRM, it’s a good idea to first look at and valorize your current customer access and communication inside and outside the company. Maybe even to consult with an experienced CRM consultant and decide how the system would provide measurable increased business results. Then when you choose to introduce this system into your business, there are various CRM tools or better said CRM business systems on the market, which should support your strategy concerning customers. What are the key points of this system that will be of benefit to you, is best described personal CRM at EngageBay. We will, however, list some of the benefits in the further text.
1. All sectors will use it
CRM can benefit anyone within the company, including sales, marketing, finance, planning, resource management, manufacturing, development, research, logistics, and more. Effective communication – connecting and coordinating departments with each other is one of the best arguments for using CRM. It is suitable for every company and organization, regardless of size, but it is characteristic of everything that the user is in the center of the event, i.e. customer and information about him.
2. Greater security and rationalization
The services of providers that offer web business solutions usually save data regularly, by backing them up to different servers and support the stability and security of services through collocation servers. Outsourcing of services and business systems is an increasingly common practice and brings many advantages, compared to conventional approaches – rarely maintained files on disk. With this approach, your staff is focused on your “core business” and does not waste time supporting and maintaining the business CRM system.
3. Organized customer database and business activities
One of the reasons to use CRM is to have all customer data edited and stored in one place. Such organized data can be qualitatively searched, processed, segmented, analyzed, etc. which makes you ready for everyday business challenges. We can see the overall picture and status of the customer only if at all times we have visible all the activities related to him, both past and open planned activities.
Many CRM solutions are based on a service that you access through a web interface with protected individual user access. The advantage is access to information from anywhere and anytime, allowing you to do business outside the office, on a business trip, or elsewhere. However, special restrictions on external access are possible if you request this from the provider. Also, CRM providers have been allowing access to the system via smartphones as well.
4. Effectively turn opportunities into profits
In addition to an organized database, the CRM system should support notes simply and intuitively and inform you about activities via standard communication media. Thus, activities such as calls, e-mails, offers, contract preparation, complaints, service activities, meetings receive “status” and are not lost, unrecorded, or otherwise missed, thus reducing the risk of missed business opportunities. Planned correspondence and project activities are most often reflected in a better business result thanks to dedicated business CRM systems.
5. Tracking the progress of all employees
To establish successful coordination of all employees, modern approaches through the CRM system allow an overview of daily activities and tasks, which is especially important for smaller companies whose employees perform several different functions, and their work depends on the work of others involved. It can successfully bridge communication delays between the front and back offices.
To encourage the fast and efficient performance of daily tasks, employees assign tasks to each other through a common interface and get the right information at the right time related to the client.
The common interface provides insight into the engagement of members of the sales and project team, which enables efficient work, and results in a reduction of too frequent meetings and telephone calls, which is directly reflected in costs. With such an approach, sales managers are ready to respond on time to the daily challenges faced by members of the sales team.
6. Automats your business process
Either way, you receive business inquiries (via the website, phone call, e-mail, etc.) CRM allows you to channel and automate your business process. CRM, on the other hand, most often automates sales processes, which gives members more time for active sales.
7. Improves decision making
In CRM, you can set priorities for clients, prepare business activities according to conditions and business indicators, filter them, and process them according to various criteria. Here are some examples of what kind of information a well-established system can offer you:
– reports per market segments and products concerning implemented activities,
– reports on the status of business potentials by sales members, period
– better planning of sales activities, according to past activities
– will help segment customers by demographics, brand loyalty, and shopping habits.
– enables a detailed analysis of the sources of our business opportunities, which are often not reflected in proportion to the effort or money invested, which is important information for business strategists.
Although sales staff often view CRM as just another tool, additional work, or just another way for bosses to track their work, sales managers must not forget that a CRM system is not just software, but a new concept for customer relationship management. By establishing a new approach to sales activities, by applying an appropriate CRM system, the sales function in the company is optimized, and sales tasks are better delegated to contact customers on time.
