Why Do People Need a CRM and Why You Should Have One, Too

Customer relationship management or CRM is a term used for a system or technology that allows businesses to keep track of their customers’ information and interaction with their business. Businesses can then use this data to gain insight into what their customers need or want. As a result, if businesses can effectively deliver services or create products that fill that need, it is more likely that customers will want what they are offering.

According to studies, having a CRM can increase sales by 54 percent and improve customer retention by 56 percent. Another statistic revealed that there was an 87 percent increase in the use of mobile CRM, especially among salespeople who are always on the go.

The figures above show how businesses have learned to appreciate the value of having such a system. However, the opposite is happening in reality. A report released by The Tas Group revealed that 67 percent of the sales force still miss their sales quota. A separate study conducted by Innoppl Technologies revealed an even higher number of missed quotas – 78 percent.

It turns out that a great number of the people, especially those in the sales team, still view CRM negatively – 78 percent said a sales CRM does not really provide the information they need to close higher-margin deals while 87 percent believe their companies use it to ‘police’ the sales team’s activities. This is sad news because by doing so, a lot of opportunities can slip through their fingers.

If you are one of those who does not believe how a CRM can help you increase those sales goals and improve your business, here are some reasons why you need one.

Why Do People Need a CRM?

Safe and Organized Storage

Having a sales CRM allows you to safely store all your customers’ data as well as any sales opportunities you have all in just one place. Aside from that, you can also use it to schedule your activities and plans seamlessly. But the best part of it is its accessibility – you can access your data anytime, anywhere you are in the world.

Improved Time Management

I’m already a master of time management, you might say. That might be true but in order for you to stay on top of your game is to continually find ways to improve yourself and your system and this is where a sales CRM comes in. By using one, you will be able to prioritize any task you have and make sure that no opportunity has been overlooked, no prospective customer has been kept waiting, and no customer has been ignored. If this happens, you will close more sales, have more opportunities, and have a stronger customer base.

Generate Activity Reports with Ease

No matter how good you are with spreadsheets, it is difficult to keep track of your activities much more create a weekly or monthly report of all of them. Using a CRM, however, makes this task much easier because it automates the process. The best part about it, though, is the transparency because it allows other collaborators to immediately see where the project is at the moment.

Easy Tracking Saves Time

Using a customer relationship management system not only makes it easy to collaborate but also to keep track of what others are doing. Thanks to the other tools that are integrated into the system, such as calendars, email integration, and document templates. Furthermore, the team can easily spot and determine which processes and methods work best. As a result, they can quickly remove the time wasters.

This allows the team to kill two birds with one stone. First, it saves you time and second, you can easily spot opportunities. This means each action becomes well-thought of resulting in more efficiency and productivity.

Determine What the Customers Want

Not only can your team spot opportunities but you will also know what your customers or clients really want. Such precision leads to satisfaction which, in turn, leads to customer loyalty. It can also speed up the conversion process because it gives you an idea what to use for each customer based on the data you gather.

Streamlines the Sales Process

Having a sales CRM in place makes the sales process easier because everything in the system is automated from the processing of orders to preparing quotes. Your sales team will also know when to when is the right time to contact the customer again for a re-order, a contract renewal, or upsell a new service or product. By making everything simple, understandable, and accessible to each member of the team, you can all focus on the most important aspects of the business – building your brand and increasing the profits.

Removes Unnecessary Admin Tasks

Because the management system automates the tasks, you can easily cut down repetitive and boring actions, such as copying and pasting data, that does not really make your business profitable. A CRM stores all the important data you have, automatically sets a reminder for each activity, and guides the sales team through the sales pipeline every step of the way.

Seamless Communication

Everybody can easily collaborate when a CRM is in place. By so doing, there is no excuse for a communication breakdown because everyone gets updated in real time what each member is doing. In other words, everyone knows what is going on just by looking at the data stored in the system.

Saves Money

The best news any business owner will have when they have a sales CRM in place is the amount of money they can save because of automation and streamlining. The system also saves your team from committing errors that can cost a lot of money.

In Conclusion

Having a CRM in place brings a lot of benefit to any business, especially when it comes to increasing productivity, efficiency, and profitability. On the other hand, it is not the panacea to every problem you might encounter in your business.

To be more specific, a CRM helps a business excel in four key areas:

• Improves quality leads search and categorization
• Prioritizes each task
• Systematically and promptly follows up sales opportunities
• Reaches a target much faster and more efficiently

It is also safe to say that these benefits do not happen overnight but it also requires team dedication and effort to fully take advantage of the CRM.