As a business grows, there comes a point where it seems slightly… disorganized.
You may feel that your growth is not fast enough or, on the contrary, that your business is growing so fast that you are completely overwhelmed and no longer know which way to go.
CRM software is certainly not the solution to all your
problems, but we have summarized for you 10 good reasons to invest in customer
relationship management software. First, let's start with a definition:
What is a CRM?
The abbreviation CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It’s a system designed to… manage relationships with your customers.
In practice, it looks like a computer program (in the form of an app or software) that allows you to record data about your customers, quickly and easily display the nature of their relationship with your company (lead, prospective customer , regular client, etc.) and to establish the priority activities to be considered.
For a more detailed answer to this question and to discover the history of CRM, see our article on this subject.
Now let's look at the signs that your business needs a
CRM.
No. 1 — The organization of data concerning your
customers is heterogeneous, even non-existent
Your Excel sheets have done the trick until today, but it's not uncommon for you to desperately search for an address in your emails or can't reach a customer whose phone number doesn't have not been updated.
This is one of the main assets of a CRM. When you receive new information from a client, you only have one platform to update. No more Post-its lying around your offices. Everything is perfectly centralized, whether you work solo or belong to a large team.
As a bonus, some CRMs completely simplify the process
of importing data. For example, Act! automatically updates data from Outlook.
No. 2 — You have trouble keeping track of your sales
team's activities
This problem often appears as a team onboards new salespeople. Each new employee has their own way of organizing themselves, which can lead to too much segregation of data and a lack of transparency.
In this case, a CRM becomes a powerful centralization
tool in which each contact with a customer is recorded, tracked and reminded.
No. 3 — You have too many communication channels
Email, phone, social media, support tickets, online chat, messaging apps… So many communication channels through which your customers can contact you.
The problem is that it is often difficult to follow correspondence through the various media.
It is therefore essential to document each interaction
with your customers, prospective customers or leads in order to simplify
communications and make them accessible to your customer support, sales and
marketing departments. Your customers always have access to the channels of
their choice, and messages are delivered directly to the right people.
No. 4 — Your customers complain about poor customer
support or ineffective after-sales service
Customer complaints can take many forms, but they usually have one problem in common: they are frustrated with the lack of communication. Maybe they feel they weren't informed enough, they were forced to provide the same information multiple times, or they contacted multiple reps for your brand and received conflicting responses...
In this situation, it is essential to gather all the
data concerning your customers in one place. No more confusing or contradictory
messages: no matter how many employees are involved in a sale or in resolving a
problem, they all use the same database, updated in real time.
#5 — Large Data and Manual Updates Are Often Wrong
Manually updating multiple systems is both time-consuming and error-prone. You are likely encountering many duplicates, typos, and errors that can be costly.
A CRM will allow you to collect your customers'
contact details through, for example, an online form that will import them
directly into your system. This method is not only faster and more efficient,
it integrates all touchpoints such as your inbox, calendar or social networks.
No. 6 — Same problem for reports and reports that are
too manual
Importing data to the CRM is not the only processabove
which can be automated. It is just as easy to export data in order to generate
reports. By bringing all the information together in a single platform, you can
easily create detailed reports, filter the data that interests you, customize a
report according to certain critical information (number of contracts obtained
per quarter, leads qualified by the sales team [SQL] or marketing [MQL],
support tickets solved by a specific agent, etc.).
No.7 — It's hard to know which customers to focus your
efforts on
While finding new customers is difficult, it should be
relatively easy to define their value to their business. Using a CRM, you can
easily list your customers according to the budget they represent over a given
period or the products they buy regularly. Armed with this information, it is
easier to anticipate your customers' needs and stimulate upsells or multiple
purchases during your next conversation. Accessing consistent data is also a
great way to strengthen your relationships.
No. 8 — It's getting harder and harder to manage leads
and new customers
If lead tracking is no longer manageable, a CRM will allow you to prioritize. Your team will be able to organize the leads independently and in order of importance, then contact the right person at the right time or even delegate to the salespeople best equipped to close a deal.
If your agents tend to step on each other's toes, a
CRM will allow you to add comments, instructions or authorizations, or even
limit access to certain information.
No. 9 — Your communications need to be streamlined
Communication issues tend to increase as a business grows. This concerns both marketing, sales and after-sales service teams. The larger the staff, the more internal tensions or denial of responsibility are encountered in the event of a problem.
Now is the time to be smart, by organizing your workflow through CRM software.
The proper centralization of tasks and data is
essential, since it allows all information and all modes of communication to be
brought together and tasks and reminders to be applied to them.
No. 10 — Looking for economies of scale
A CRM platform saves time, but also reduces management and administration costs. Depending on the program you choose, you can also speed up the training of new employees since they will only have to familiarize themselves with one software.
The time and resources saved can be deployed towards
what is really important: the growth of your business.
The main advantages
There comes a point in the growth of a business where you need to take advantage of smart management tools. If you have too many leads or salespeople to manage, it's hard to see the big picture. Your after-sales service may be overwhelmed by customers demanding better service.
A CRM tool's main objective is to manage relationships with your customers, but it can do much more: improve communication, unify services, save time, reduce overly manual tasks.
Are you ready to get started? Read our article on the
main features that your new CRM must offer to meet your needs.