What are the benefits of a CRM system?
There are clearly many different reasons as to why your business might need a CRM system. But what kind of benefits can you expect to see?
Save time. A cloud-based CRM system like Salesforce, gives you access to your files anytime and anywhere. No more switching between software to find all your information. And no limitations of only being able to access your data at the office. You’re free to be the responsive, immediate team that your customers want you to be. Automating invoices, payment reminders, welcome emails and targeted promotions will also save you an immense amount of time. Saving time by investing into your CRM not only benefits your customer who will experience less delayed handovers and communications, but also your staff who can update the CRM system at any time, anywhere.
Cultivate a customer-centred environment. The clue’s in the name. “Customer relationship management”. Your customers are what eventually shape your business, giving you a sense of purpose and direction (and let’s not forget about the revenue they bring in). Salesforce allows for seamless interactions with customers. No more trying to recall facts, and no more asking questions the customer has already answered. You have everything you need to know in one place. You get to focus on the customer, and the customer gets a world-class experience. The best CRM tools are there to guarantee that the customer comes first in everything you do.
Improve productivity. Effective CRM tools don’t just improve the customer experience, they also improve the experience of the user. With data readily available to staff, and communication quick and intuitive, employees are given all they need to feel empowered to do their job well. And that’s not all. An intelligent CRM system, such as Salesforce, allows you to track your employee’s performance, meaning they always know what they’re doing right and how they can improve. So investing into a CRM system is not only for your customers! The best CRM tools massively improve the processes and experience for your team as well.
Improve customer service. Your time is valuable, but so is your customers. If they are experiencing a problem with any part of your products or services, they aren’t going to be happy if the resolve is dragged out over a number of days or weeks. Enter, CRM. Incorporating a CRM system ensures that problems can be taken care of quickly. As soon as a customer contacts your company, your representatives will be able to retrieve all available activity concerning past purchases, preferences and any other information that will be conducive to problem-solving for the customer. CRM is the key to being known as a company who looks after their customers, and the best CRM tools guarantees this from the beginning.
Better analytical data and reporting. CRM systems remove the possibility of miscalculated data. Pulling data from your system, software such as Salesforce can easily and accurately produce performance reports or sales goals. Better reporting will guide your future strategies, induce more effective decision making and ultimately create greater customer loyalty and long-run profitability. So CRM is not just great for the customer, it is the perfect solution to tidying up your business processes and becoming more efficient in how you work.
Grow efficiently. The alignment of customers and businesses mean CRM systems help your organisations scale up. Salesforce has an array of add ons and extra features which can be bolted on to your system to grow with your business. This means no matter what stage your business is at, you’ll always have a CRM system which is suited to your needs. The best CRM tools will work for you no matter what stage of growth you are at. Are you a startup? Or have you recently expanded to another location? Choosing CRM tools like Salesforce guarantee that you can expand confidently knowing that your CRM will expand with you.
Customers are the key to a successful business. So investing in an advanced CRM system allows you to understand your customers and give them what they want. By organising your data and establishing effective internal and external communications, your overall business processes and model is improved. CRM is therefore to secret ingredient to an efficient, customer-focused and well-organised company.
M D at John Scott Business Consultants
4yI totally endorse your comments, Cheri; especially if the system is integrated with the company's Communications system, such as Cloudcall. Clients tell me their company sales/marketing productivity significantly improve with this type of integration.