5 Key Reasons People Buy CRM Solutions
Running a successful business is no simple task. When marketing campaigns, data analysis, meetings and customer care all happen simultaneously, you need a powerful solution to bring all of these functions together in one place… Enter CRM.
Gartner predicts that CRM will become a $36 billion market in 2017, with improving customer experiences becoming a top priority for most businesses. Consequently, more businesses will buy CRM solutions to help them improve their customer relationships, increase sales and ultimately revenue.
In the following blog post we share five key reasons SMBs buy CRM solutions, and why you should too…
It provides a central hub of customer information
Like millions of businesses, you may be using paper based systems and spreadsheets to run your operations. This works for the short-term, but long-term it can significantly increase the risk of human error and become a bottleneck as your business grows. According to research, nearly 90% of spreadsheets contain errors, something which can cost you your reputation, not to mention a great deal of money.
CRM solutions help put an end to maintaining thousands of documents, sticky-notes and disorganised cabinets. CRM systems act as a central database for all your customer and prospect information, enabling you to access the information you need at the click of a button. This allows you to quickly build an accurate picture of your customers, allowing you to approach them with the right product or service at the right time.
There are intelligent reporting capabilities
Are you spending a vast amount of time creating reports? Do you rely on multiple sources of truth? If the answer is ‘yes’, chances are you could benefit from an automated solution.
Most CRM software solutions provide you with business intelligence tools and graphical reports to support your decision making. With all of your data in one location, reporting is easy. It enables you to monitor and manage productivity, analyse trends and identify issues in real-time, so you can focus your attention and resources on profitable business activities.
You’ll benefit from a significant increase in productivity
Did you know that only 33% of sales time is spent actively selling? The majority of time is devoted to manual data entry and admin. As a result, lost sales productivity costs companies up to $1 trillion a year.
With CRM software you’re able to automate business processes and eliminate time-consuming tasks. It enables you to streamline your sales and service processes, helping you to improve customer satisfaction and ultimately generate more revenue. For example, you can configure your CRM to send instant follow-up emails when a lead visits a particular product page or automatically generate follow-up reminders for the sales team to contact accounts that have been inactive for a while.
It’ll enable you to provide outstanding customer service experiences
As explained on MyCustomer.com, 54% of consumers would pay more for better customer service, yet many businesses don’t have the tools to understand and connect with their customers effectively. Customer service should be priority for businesses across the world and with a CRM solution in place you can certainly stand out from the competition.
A CRM system will deliver customer information, service history and support knowledge directly to your customer service representatives, facilitating consistent service and promoting customer loyalty. To fast track response times it is possible to manage and resolve support incidents through the Microsoft CRM, for example, using the systems automated routing, queuing and escalation of service requests function, along with case management, communications tracking and auto response e-mail.
It will provide the means to help you make the most of your marketing campaigns
Can you target your customers and prospects effectively? Are you able to generate a consistent amount of quality leads for your business? With marketing often falling down at some hurdle, whether it’s concept or delivery, a CRM solution can help you manage your marketing campaigns more effectively, saving you vital time and resource in the process.
CRM systems are usually equipped with marketing automation tools, allowing you to plan and measure the success of all you marketing activities easily. You can use these tools to identify buying trends and predict future sales, segment customer data and introduce new products and services, in order to improve cross and up-sell opportunities.
CRM Insights helps businesses attract, win and retain more customers. Whether you need to improve your existing CRM system, commission a new one, or convert more of your leads, we give you friendly, cost-effective advice and support. From our base in Peterborough, we’re in easy reach of Huntingdon and Cambridge, and work with a wide range of clients across eastern England.
Contact us here or give us a call on 01733 902340 if you need help planning and implementing your CRM strategy.
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