What is a CRM System and Do I Need One?

In today’s economy small and large you can’t rely on brute strength to maximize the value of their customer relationships; rather, they need enabling technologies and tools.

We all mostly start out with our old friends, a draw full of business cards picked up at networking events, a spreadsheet or a simple database of contacts or using Microsoft Outlook and it's basic contact folder to keep track of people.

It still amazes me how many mid and large businesses operate in this disconnected fashion.

What is a CRM system?

CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is one such enabler that allows organizations to track every customer interaction be it a phone call, an email, a web form enquiry, even a tweet(!) and then use this incredibly valuable information to get closer to and understand better their customers and prospects.

But CRM does much more than just track customer interactions. It also helps organizations streamline their operations by automating routine tasks and enforcing best practices with the result that individuals within your organisation spend more time on the interesting stuff like engaging with customers rather than dull, monotonous administrative tasks that add minimal value and increase frustration saving huge amounts of time and effort.

A well planned implementation of a CRM system makes it easier for everyone inside your company to work together efficiently and share understanding of critical customer and prospect information.
Ultimately, CRM allows organizations to better acquire, manage, serve, and extract value from their customers while improving operational efficiency—something that is critical in today’s economy.

The ultimate aim and goal of CRM being the true 360 degree view of a customer and every interaction. Never again having to ask, when did you call in and how do you spell your name again.

So, how do you decide if you really needs CRM software?

Surprisingly, there is no simple answer.

Experience and analysis shows that many companies have spent lots of time, effort and  money on CRM software and associated services  with minimal benefits.

The main observation is that the work has just gone on as before. The mistake that these companies have made is that they have just jumped on the bandwagon without really understanding their needs and evaluating what the CRM software really has to offer them.

There are questions you need to ask before making a decision to investigate any form of CRM software or solution:

1. Does everyone in your business who communicates with a customer or prospect know what their colleagues said to them or did for them?
2. Is all contact information kept in one area, accessible by everyone for ease of access and reference?
3. Do you have a single databases of product, pricing, quotes, competitive analysis, supplier information that can be accessed to benefit your sales efforts?
4. Do you know how many customer service issues each customer has had and why?
5. Do you know which customers consume most of your CSR Rep’s time?
6. Do you know how many interactions are required to close an opportunity?
7. Is your  marketing software integrated with your contact database?
8. Is all critical customer data stored centrally ensuring it’s security as it is the companies most valuable asset?

If your answers to some of these questions was "No" then a look at what CRM software can provide would be a strong recommendation.