The relations that the company improves with its client base will determine its professional level, which is the main reason for the implementation of CRM systems. Its success will depend on how well organized the collection of real customer data is. This is a difficult, painstaking work, and it does not forgive mistakes. Thus, investing in a high-quality customer relationship management tool and implementing CRM systems is a prerequisite for any business that wants to increase customer satisfaction and income.
Briefly about the basics of the CRM process
CRM includes actions and strategies that companies use to manage relationships with potential customers. The key word here is “relations”, due to which loyalty and customer retention are achieved, they are firmly tied to the company's prospects and are easily transformed into company profits. The implementation of CRM systems implies a system of approaches and technologies for compiling customer data through channels or contact points in a client-firm pair.
Data sources are: company website, phone, chat, direct mail, marketing devices and social networks. This allows staff to have information about the customer, purchase history, problems and preferences.
The client is always the king, but for each company it is important that it is a kind and wise king. And this is achieved only if the seller has sufficient information.
Providing an optimal customer experience is not a cheap pleasure. That is why it is important to create an effective system or process that will provide customers with a positive experience and lead the company to business growth and profitability. If everything is done correctly, then the benefits and returns will far outweigh the investments that are invested in building customer relationships.
The CRM project should consider:
- Determining the purpose of implementing CRM-systems and the tasks of the company.
- Needs analysis.
- Evaluating and choosing the right CRM software.
- Election of a group of people who will participate in each stage of the CRM project.
- Allocation of a sufficient budget.
- Preparation of a project plan for the implementation of CRM-systems, which covers all stages.
- Training administrators and users.
- The strategy that will be used to service and improve the CRM project.
The main areas of the system
If someone believes that the CRM system is intended only for large enterprises, then he is very mistaken. CRM is a tool, regardless of who the seller of the goods is: a freelancer, sole entrepreneur, startup or representative of a global corporation. The reasons for the implementation of the CRM-system at the enterprise are of great importance for the business.
Here is some of them:
- Disclosing useful information about customers will help them better understand who they are, how and why they buy the company's products.
- Identification and promotion of trends can easily bring the company forward, in relation to competitors who are not tuned to the "pulse" of customers.
- Organization of interaction with the client channel, from automation of sales processes to marketing campaigns, from business intelligence to storage and access to customer data.
- Optimization and improvement of customer-related processes with the help of CRM-system implementation tools at the enterprise will provide the flexibility and convenience that are needed to respond to customer wishes and facilitate relations with the seller.
Statistics and polls showed that the CRM process has become a serious profitable business. According to Gartner, the global CRM market has grown to $ 36.5 billion in 2017, or 56% since 2012.
CRM system implementation plan:
- Assessment of the goals of the CRM project.
- Initial Project Session (Kick Off).
- Assigning responsibility and role in the Project.
- Definition of development specifications.
- Test and validation.
- Training promoters.
- Administrator training.
- Initial training of the team.
- Strengthening team training.
- Install CRM software.
- Import databases.
- Test and validation.
- The final statement.
The main types of management
There are several types of systems: operational, analytical and collaboration.
The operating room serves to generate and transform information into a specific result. It integrates and automates sales, service support and marketing and includes sales, marketing and service automation. The first one helps automate sales at the stages of implementing a CRM system in order to set a standard for acquiring new customers and managing existing ones.
Marketing Automation - focuses on promoting the marketing process. It automates the sending of marketing messages or publications through interaction channels. Its goal is to find the best way to advertise products and reach more potential customers in order to gain market leadership.
Automation of service - allows the business to retain customers by providing the highest quality services. It covers the automation of customer support services, including problem management, customer calls for incoming / outgoing calls, quality of service based on KPI and the process of implementing a CRM system.
The analytic type has the function of analyzing customer data from several sources to help management departments understand how to improve customer service and experience. This type is based on intelligent analytical methods, pattern recognition, correlation and assisting key specialists in making informed decisions, determining the effectiveness of implementing a CRM system in a company and improving sales support.
The category "collaboration" allows the company to share information with external participants in the process, suppliers and distributors. Combining all of these groups through common information allows you to create more effective target companies.
Stages of implementation. The process of implementing a CRM project is carried out through 4 key sequential stages:
- The objectives of the implementation of CRM-systems.
- Necessary requirements.
- Development.
- Training and customization.
Software requirements
Modern CRM-software is an integrated platform of various functions and capabilities that perform the following tasks:
- Sales automation for trade management.
- Automation of the data center is designed to simplify customer service processes and reduce the load on the contact center while assisting in solving customer problems and disseminating information.
- Contact Manager - classifies the contacts of customers and suppliers, to simplify sorting or searching, operates as a stand-alone module for a small business with a limited budget.
- Sales tracking is a function that is usually part of sales automation, but can be used as a separate module. This function measures and tracks sales, giving the user an overview of performance.
- Analytics and reporting. Provides useful information from collected customer, sales and marketing data and generates reports in the form of ready-made templates.
- Channels of connection. This feature allows you to communicate with customers through several channels, including email, instant messaging, phone, chat, forums and social networks.
- Mobile applications exist in most CRM programs. They allow you to receive and download reports, customer information and other data at the right time and from anywhere.
The procedure for choosing software for the company
Businesses receive an inflow of information through websites and telephone lines, which they can use to make a profit using a CRM application. This software combines information and generates ideas to help the seller minimize costs, increase profits and improve service. Therefore, choosing the right application is important. For its effectiveness, they first get acquainted with reviews from both business partners and IT specialists in the company.
To get the best tool for the company, pay attention to five important factors:
- Definition of a business goal. They get preliminary feedback and materials from IT staff, managers, end users and top managers about what is needed for a CRM solution. This will help to prepare a checklist of priority software requirements, evaluate the effectiveness of the CRM application and return on investment (ROI).
- Evaluate the best deployment option for your business. Both deployment methods have advantages and disadvantages. The SaaS CRM cloud platform provides access to advanced equipment, so it does not require investment in hosting technologies and infrastructure. In addition, SaaS software is easy to implement and quick to use.
- Determination of product scalability. It is important that the CRM application can grow with the business. At the same time, the selected CRM platform should not be too complicated to use. To avoid these problems, pre-tested free software builds.
- Estimated product budget. It plays an important role in making purchasing decisions. In addition to the initial costs, you need to calculate long-term costs and analyze the benefits received for the money spent, you need to clearly know what is included in the pricing package and whether an advance payment is planned.
- Checking the reliability of the supplier, you always need to check that he is authoritative. It is advisable to study case studies on the websites of suppliers to find out how other organizations use the CRM system and contact current users of the software to get feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of the product.
Top Software Tools
CRM has taken a leading position in the software market, which is proof of its usefulness and relevance for business. Using cloud technology to host SaaS platforms has further enhanced its attractiveness by providing unheard of flexibility, scalability, and availability. Suppliers offer CRM tools, both in the form of fully functional, and in the form of separate modules. They can be placed in the cloud or directly on the spot.
There are several popular CRM software tools on the market; on the Internet you can find free software for implementing CRM systems in business. The most affordable and always at hand is Google Apps, which expands the possibilities of using social, mobile CRM.
Another Bpm'online CRM tool is a process-based build on the BPM platform to assist in sales, marketing and service support by combining customer data with business process management tools. Among its many features are drag and drop, customization, mobile capabilities and integration with popular productivity tools.
HubSpot Platform
HubSpot CRM is one of the leading solutions on the market with an intuitive interface and a comprehensive set of functions. This platform is an intelligent and scalable option that offers basic CRM features. It features robust customer tracking options as well as task management features. It can also help handle the site, the telephone system, email, and social networking accounts in the platform. In addition, it integrates with a number of third-party applications such as Microsoft Dynamics, Salesforce, Zapier and Shopify, so the user can easily combine all their favorite business systems on one convenient platform.
This platform, ideal for small startups and a growing business, allows users to easily create a CRM process, helping to manage the sales pipeline and better develop contacts. Large companies can also take advantage of this software, as it was created to help sales teams quickly get started with CRM without making significant changes to their workflow. What further improves this product is that it has a free plan that includes all the basic features of the platform.
The user can register to receive the free HubSpot CRM application and use its functions constantly.
Project for instant sales
Freshsales is best suited for these tasks. It offers integrated phone and email tools, counting options, ways to track user behavior and much more in one effective CRM package. The system is able to make more calls and send targeted emails in just a few clicks. In addition, you can find potential customers who are willing to buy the company's product. Another great thing about this software is that it allows you to define interactions with sales and track user purchases.
Freshsales informs consumers who are interested in the product through real-time email notifications. He can better manage the sales pipeline, visually tracking the progress of transactions and choosing promising ones to focus on each case. The unique Freshsales element allows you to send mass emails created on personalized templates, plan them and synchronize with company calendars.
This application is used by more than 1000 enterprises of various levels, including the best brands such as Vacasa, Weefer, Raved and Ascendore.
If you need to check its capabilities for free, simply register on the site for a free trial.
Famous Salesforce Brand
Salesforce CRM is a well-known name in the industry offering robust and well-integrated CRM features. As part of Salesforce’s extensive sales and marketing products, it offers proven capabilities for sales management, marketing automation, sales data management, and partner management. Like most of the other products listed here, Salesforce CRM features can also be enhanced using applications on AppExchange or by integrating with external systems such as Desk.com, Team Support and Zendesk.
Thanks to this platform, you can easily track customer information and interactions by managing the sales pipeline without leaving the system, greatly simplifying the purchase and sale operations. It also provides real-time information using customer reports and data monitoring solutions. She has her own apps for Android and iOS.
You can try the features for free for a period of time when a user signs up for a free trial.
CRM Benefits
CRM or customer relationship management is a system that seeks to improvise relationships with existing customers, find new potential customers and return former customers. This system can be deployed using software that facilitates the collection, organization and management of customer information.
The implementation of CRM systems is beneficial for both small-scale and large business projects. CRM offers a number of benefits that help you identify, understand, and help your customers so you never have to worry about losing revenue as a result of incomplete data.
Advantages of implementing a CRM system:
- Improved information organization. Thanks to CRM, this becomes an opportunity; it allows you to store an extensive list of customers and any important information about them.
- Allows any employee to provide a high level of service, having access to customer data.
- The effectiveness of implementing a CRM system for several teams. An automatically saved connection allows you to view email, calendar, and phone call data in one easily accessible location. Thanks to this, teams can easily work together to improve the final result.
- Implementation of analytics and CRM systems and reporting. Personalizes panel views to quickly find the information you need, such as customer information, sales goals, and performance reports.
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Customer Relationship Management
Implementing a CRM system using the example of a service company is useful for beginners using the platform. Modern service companies need tools that support their competitiveness and support the search for market needs and trends, strengthen relationships with customers in order to generate value for the company.
Managers based on knowledge of tastes, preferences, customs, and customer needs are key to business success. However, in order to create loyalty relationships, it is imperative to have technological support that can provide them with complete information in a timely manner.
Many household enterprises, transport, tourism, financial institutions, education, healthcare, finance and insurance seek to maximize the benefits of their customers.
This process requires a step-by-step guide:
- Conducting an economic analysis.
- Determining the purpose of implementing CRM systems and the tasks of the company.
- Needs analysis.
- Evaluating and choosing the right CRM software.
- Election of a group of people who will participate in each stage of the CRM project.
- Allocation of a sufficient budget.
- Preparation of a project plan that covers all stages of CRM-system implementation.
- Training administrators and users.
- The strategy that will be used to service and improve the CRM project.
- The construction of processes.
- Scope definition.
- Creation and selection of CRM.
As you can see, there are many CRM benefits that enhance business at any level. This leads to the streamlining of chaos and disorder resulting from normal business trade interactions in the context of prioritizing customers. It provides tools for analyzing, tracking and forecasting sales. According to some CRM statistics, in 2017, 49% of companies have already increased their spending on CRM software and CRM-related technology.