Customer relationship management (CRM) has been described as a contact list with a brain, because the software that supports it not only stores customer contact information, it remembers all the good (and bad) stuff about your relationship, including any interactions and how the customer reacted to the things your business has done.
From a business perspective, that kind of insight can prove to be gold, allowing you to:
- Build loyalty and reward advocates
- Capitalise on cross and upsell opportunities
- Introduce new products to willing markets
- Identify prospects and convert better
- Use target marketing better with new and existing customers and
- Be smarter about budgeting and spend
And, the benefits are two-fold.
For customers
As a rule, the more you know about a customer, the better their experience can be. With every like, follow, share, purchase, email or telephone call you add to the profile you’re building of them, you can make the next engagement timely, relevant and interesting (whether that’s face-to-face, online or via social media)
It’s a simple concept really, but you’d be surprised how many businesses cause their own brand damage by managing customer relationships badly. Nobody wants to be sent stuff they’ve never shown any interest in, but if you’re a known advocate - an offer, invite or free trial just makes sense.
For a business
Good customer relations positively impact on every element of a company, from team collaboration to productivity and success.
- It enables you to better understand where to spend your time and money, allowing you to funnel resources based on customer intel and support activity that’s proven to produce results in the past to add something positive to your offering.
- It can take the guesswork out of everything from product development to marketing activity, using data to pinpoint when your customers are most active and engaged.
It’s not just a marketing tool either…
- CRM software can benefit operations too, replacing spreadsheets, email threads and conversations with one central information source that allows teams to work together from the same data pool. That way, nothing falls between the cracks and information is collated and available for use in real time.
- It’s invaluable when it comes to project management, planning and measuring business deliverables too. SMART marketing, communication and financial objectives can be set up using CRM data and interim goals can be tracked on everything from email open rates to social media interaction and event attendance.
If you plan activity with the help of CRM software, you can see where your success comes from or where it falls down and learn valuable lessons for your next venture.
Things to think about when choosing CRM software
- Select software to suit you
Different packages offer different functionality, so decide up-front what’s important for the way your business operates and let that guide your search.
If email tracking or custom reports are prerequisites, that will help you prioritise providers. If data visualisation and dashboards, deep hooks into social media, integration with your phone systems or 24-hour support matter most to you, they’ll also help narrow your search further.
An all-inclusive package might sound like a good idea, because it covers all eventualities, but there’s no doubt it will cost you more time and money and will probably deliver less flexibility long-term, so also consider whether more affordable tools or software are a better fit.
Large software packages are often designed as a platform as opposed to tools, which means lots of the features or benefits they advertise are only available with a host of third-party solution providers (who come with their own costs and licensing fees), not options you can simply turn on.
- Ask about pricing and add-ons
CRM software can be priced on several things, so you won’t always get an off-the-shelf cost. Providers tend to price up or down based on features and how many people will use or act as administrators of the software (known as per-user pricing), so it is always important to look at the terms of the software licence.
It’s important to understand how costs are loaded, what’s included in any flat fee and if you can save money by stripping out features or benefits you know you won’t use.
Ask about upgrades and what it takes to maintain the software too, as those costs will have to be factored into future budgets.
- Think about training
Training usually means time, money and taking staff away from their usual tasks, so it’s wise to think things through end-to-end to get a better sense of who needs to be involved and how you’ll incorporate it into your business, so it becomes part of your business toolkit.
That might start with things such as:
- If the software requires new equipment or technology and whether it can be accessed from remote devices
- What you’ll measure
- How information is collated, stored and reported
- If the data needs to be interpreted externally or if it will be business-ready
- How regularly you’ll get information feeds
- How you’ll share data across the business
- Who needs to be involved
- Guarantee security
When it comes to customer information, data protection and cyber security must be front of mind, especially with the impending GDPR. It’s important from a customer experience perspective but there are important legal ramifications too, so it’s not just a nice to have, it’s essential.
Good CRM solutions should take security into account, but don’t assume it’s there. Ask questions, test its reliability and get the guarantees you need to ensure the business and your customers won’t be compromised, as responsibility will ultimately sit with you.
Key takeaways
The reality is, most businesses and agencies can’t afford to invest in software that asks too much up-front or needs expert resource to manage it. You need something that’s affordable, up and running in days, compatible and easy to use.
Trials are essential and should be free, allowing you to experience the system first-hand and get a sense of how intuitive it is when it comes to everyday tasks such as:
- Importing data
- Adding manual information
- Connecting accounts
- Assigning new users and
- Downloading reports
The trial should extend to different people and departments, so you can see how it works across the business. One person might love it, while the rest of the business struggle to get anywhere fast and that’s something you want to learn before you pay for it.
It should be easy to use too. One of the best ways to test this is by asking one team member to train another. This will give you a good idea of how easy it is to onboard new users and how quickly employees learn the ropes.
It’s realistic to expect a learning curve with any new software, but above all, a trial should prove its usefulness. If it creates more work than you expected or you find yourself constantly having to consult the help system to complete basic tasks, don’t ignore the warning signs. It doesn’t mean CRM software isn’t for you. It just means you haven’t found the right one and your IT support or consulting partner can help you find the best fit.
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