So, you're asking yourself the question, do I need a CRM? Well, tell me if this sounds familiar:
Your company is growing and potential customers are hurling themselves into your sales pipeline at an astonishing rate. It's become a bit of a problem because your salespeople are so inundated with leads, they can't keep up.
Or maybe your top sales rep was just about to close a major deal, but was unable to locate a crucial piece of customer information at the right time. This irked the prospect, causing them to bid adieu to your company and sign a deal with your biggest competitor
How about this? Your sales team is consistently underperforming, but you don't know why. Do they need to make more cold calls on a daily basis? Do you need a new sales strategy? Maybe they just need regular training to sharpen their skills.
As a sales manager, it's your job to fix these problems. Luckily, the right CRM can help. With a sales-focused CRM, you and your team can keep track of leads, close more deals, and, ultimately, boost profitability for your organization. That sounds pretty good, doesn't it?
In this guide, we’ll answer important questions like:
- What is CRM software?
- How can a CRM benefit your business processes?
- Is a CRM worth it for small businesses?
- Do I need a CRM system? 11 reasons why you do
What is CRM Software? Customer Relationship Management Explained
CRM software, short for customer relationship management software, is a software program that helps businesses manage their relationships with customers including contact information, notes, and the last contact they had with a brand.
With the right CRM in your company's tech stack, your sales team can organize customer information in logical ways, access information at the drop of a hat, and improve your sales process, resulting in higher close rates.
But it gets better. Your CRM software can also provide the insights you need to move prospects through your sales pipeline faster. It can also track contact information, opportunities, notes, and even track calls.
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You'll never have to ask yourself, "How did I get in touch with this lead?" or "When was the last time I contacted this person?" You'll simply dig into your CRM system of choice and find the answers, which you can use to improve the buying experience for your customers.
Oh, and most CRMs are equipped with automation, which can take over many of the tedious aspects of sales (like data entry!) so your sales reps can focus on tasks that generate revenue.
Finally, CRM software provides access to crucial data you can use to make better business decisions. How many leads are in your company's pipeline? How many prospects do your reps contact on a daily basis? And what's their collective close rate?
Simply run a report to learn where your sales team stands.
How Can a CRM Benefit My Business Processes?
CRM software can do a lot, as we’ve covered above. The question is, will any of it actually benefit your business processes? Or is it just a nice-to-have tool for those fancy businesses?
Only you can answer that question. To help, we've listed the main benefits of implementing a CRM solution.
If the thought of implementing CRM seems daunting and you're not sure where to begin, don't worry! We've crafted a comprehensive guide with practical strategies that will help you navigate the CRM implementation process smoothly.
1. Better Organization
A CRM allows you to store and organize all of your company's customer data in one place. Why is this important? Because it ensures anyone in your company—be it a marketing, customer support, or sales representative—has easy access to the information they need when they need it.
Imagine how much more efficient your team will be when you don’t have to dig through scores of Google Docs or Excel sheets to find essential details.
But CRMs are more than just simple contact management tools. These apps can also track company communications. A quick look will tell you whether your reps have contacted a lead before, when they contacted them, what channel they used, and notes about the interaction.
Armed with this information, your reps can prevent leads from falling through the cracks and improve their communication strategies, allowing them to close more deals.
2. Less Busy Work
All sales reps can agree, manual data entry is a drag. Nobody wants to spend time logging emails and calls—especially when they could be selling instead.
A good CRM will automatically collect this information and file it away for you.
Furthermore, a solid CRM allows sales reps to easily adjust as leads move through your company's pipeline. Once this has been accomplished, your CRM of choice will handle other mundane tasks, such as qualifying leads and visualizing data. The end result is a more efficient sales process that leads to more sales for your organization.
3. On-Point Reporting
CRM software provides sales teams with a ton of functionality. One thing we haven't really dug into yet? Simple, powerful reporting capabilities.
With a CRM, you can organize customer data in usable ways. You'll then be able to use this information to evaluate your sales processes and make sure they're working.
For example, you'll be able to tell which communication channels your reps use most frequently and the close rates they achieve with each. You can then use this information to adjust your sales strategies and coach your reps to greater success.
The reporting information in your CRM can be used to track department-wide performance, too. Are you on track to reach your sales goals this quarter? Your CRM will tell you.
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CRMs can be used for sales forecasting, not just examining past results. By analyzing key metrics like monthly recurring revenue (MRR) and year over year (YOY) growth, you can craft more strategic plans to help achieve your goals.
Is a CRM Worth it for Small Businesses?
CRM software is a powerful tool. Some small business owners wonder if it's too powerful.
Do you really need an app to manage new leads, track communications like sending cold emails, making cold calls & following up via SMS with prospects, along with otherwise streamlining your business processes? In most cases, the answer is a resounding yes.
A proper CRM platform provides the tools your company needs to manage marketing campaigns, increase sales, and boost customer satisfaction. In fact, it's one of the few business tools that's designed to address multiple business needs, for multiple departments.
From sales prospecting to customer tracking and communication, your CRM will be an invaluable tool in the growth of your small business.
Do I Need a CRM? Uh, Yes (11 Reasons Why You Need a CRM Solution)
We've talked a lot about CRM tools and how they can benefit your business.
Now, we're going to synthesize all of the information we've shared. Here are 11 reasons your company needs to invest in a customer relationship management solution today:
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1. Build and Manage Your Sales Funnel
Every company needs to build and manage their sales funnel. If they don't, they won't have many customers, finances will be non-existent, and they'll have to close up shop.
The best CRM systems (like Close) simplify these tasks, for example:
- Track marketing campaigns and see what leads they generate.
- Engage prospects via in-app communication tools, then follow-up with them at appropriate times. You can even use drip campaigns to automate this!
- Analyze metrics to evaluate sales strategies and see what needs to be improved.
You can do each of these things (and more!) with the right CRM tool.
2. Central Storage for All Customer Data
Customer data is the lifeblood of your sales team. A CRM platform stores it all in one, easily accessible place, ensuring the information actually gets used.
Want to see which leads are hot? What campaigns they come from? When they last talked to your sales team and what they said? Even what assets they downloaded from your site? You can see all that (and alot more) in one dashboard.
What good is customer data if it's strewn across multiple computers, digital storage services, and/or sales software tools? The answer: not much because your reps won't be able to easily access it. Which means they probably won’t use it.
This is a recipe for disaster.
By giving your sales staff an easy way to store and access prospect data, you'll give them the power they need to shorten sales cycles, win bigger deals, and boost customer retention.
3. Keep Track of Your Sales Reps (Activity Tracking)
CRMs are great for tracking customers through the buyer's journey. But did you know that you can use this kind of tool to track your sales reps, too? It's true!
Login to your CRM tool to see which sales tasks your reps have completed today, this week, and this month. Are they contacting the required amount of leads? And are they using the right channels (the phone, email, text messaging, social media) to do so?
It doesn't matter how amazing your sales strategy is if your reps don't implement it. Make sure they do by tracking their activity in your CRM platform.
4. Automate Time-Consuming Tasks
Technology is a beautiful thing.
A couple of decades ago, sales reps had to manually enter customer information into spreadsheets. It was a time-consuming process that often led to inaccurate records.
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These days, CRM tools automatically log customer interactions so sales reps don't have to. This allows said reps to spend more time selling. It also guarantees that records remain accurate. After all, computer programs don't make typos like humans do.
CRMs can automate other tasks as well. Does your sales team use email marketing? Create a few templates, then program your CRM to send at opportune moments. Doing so will move prospects further down the funnel, while freeing up reps to complete other tasks.
5. Import Data from Marketing Tools
Sales and marketing are working closer together than ever. CRM software aids this process by importing data from marketing tools, ensuring customer records are always up-to-date and accurate.
What tools does your marketing team use? Email marketing software? A text messaging platform? How about a social media management app?
Many of the tools in your marketing department's tech stack can be integrated with your CRM so they automatically send over all that data. Then, your sales reps can use this information to inform outreach and close more deals.
6. Take Advantage of Marketing Automation
CRMs are often thought of as sales tools. But, they can be used by multiple departments, including marketing and customer support teams.
What does this mean? It means that your company's marketing team can take advantage of the marketing automation capabilities inside most CRM platforms. One of the most popular marketing automation tools involves email communications.
Use your CRM to create winning templates, then quickly customize these templates for each prospect in your pipeline and automatically send them to prospects.
This will help your company build better marketing campaigns, connect with potential customers on much deeper levels, and create more sales opportunities.
7. Manage Customer Needs and Improve Customer Support
Step aside marketing, customer support wants in on the action, too!
Studies show that a 5% bump in customer retention can boost company profits by as much as 95%. That's a lot of green. The question is, how do you actually accomplish this? Use a CRM.
CRMs help ensure all customer interactions are positive, leading to better customer experiences. Think about it: when sales reps use a CRM, they're more likely to remember each of their prospect's unique needs and contact history. When customer support reps use a CRM, they'll have access to each customer's purchase history and past complaint details.
Both of these things enable companies to offer better customer service at every stage of the buyer's journey. The result? Loyal customers who stick around for the long haul.
8. Build Smart Sales Workflows
What's a "smart sales workflow" you ask?
A workflow that shortens sales cycles, increases customer satisfaction, and inspires loyalty. Once you build one, you'll be able to lead your department to greater success.
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Fortunately, building smart sales workflows isn't rocket science. You simply have to analyze the data in your CRM software and look for trends. Learn what works and what doesn't. Then convert your findings into effective workflows that propel your company forward.
For example, a software company may set up a workflow in their CRM to pass qualified leads from SDRs to AEs. A real estate agency might set up a workflow to follow up with homebuyers who have visited a listing but haven't given a clear yes-or-no answer yet. It all depends on your specific needs.
Lacking the budget for a CRM purchase? Fear not! Our guide shows you how to craft your own CRM, enabling sales reps to embrace self-management.
9. Valuable Real-Time Reporting
Every sales team runs reports. (Or at least they should!)
Without a CRM, they'll have to run these reports manually. This is a tedious process that takes time away from what sales reps do best: sell.
With a CRM, reps can run reports in seconds because all of the important data they need will be at their fingertips. Even better, these reports can be viewed in real-time, which means you'll always know where your department stands and where to take it next.
10. Empower Sales Team Members
Your department is nothing without its hard working sales reps. So, why not empower them to become everything they can be? Doing so will lead to more success for everyone.
One of the best ways to empower your team is to give them the right tools. And there's no better tool for sales reps than a trustworthy CRM. With it, they'll be able to log customer data and interactions, automate tedious processes, and, ultimately, close more deals.
Don't force your sales reps to use old school solutions like spreadsheets. Give them access to top-of-the-line tools they can use to grow your customer base and boost your bottom line.
11. Scale Your Business Faster
Last, but certainly not least, CRM software makes it easier to scale your business.
CRMs collect a lot of data–that can then be used to design more effective marketing campaigns, increase your sales staff's chance of closing deals, shorten sales cycles, boost customer retention, and drive additional profit.
Nucleus Research found every dollar spent on CRM implementation returns as much as $8.71 in sales revenue. Not bad! Here's the bottom line: if your goal is to grow your customer base and scale your business, you need a CRM tool.
GET THE CRM IMPLEMENTATION PACK NOW →
Choosing the Right CRM (to Improve Your Customer Relationship Management)
We've told you why you need a CRM tool. Now we'll explain how to choose the right one. Don't worry, it's not difficult. Simply ask yourself these three questions.
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What Are My Sales Goals?
Before you do anything else, take time to understand your overall sales goals. Do you want to:
- Track leads more effectively?
- Take advantage of automation?
- Increase your upsell and cross sell opportunities?
- Invest in a tool that both marketing and sales teams can use?
- Help your sales reps optimize their productivity and increase profits?
A CRM will help you accomplish these goals. You just have to know which goals you're actually trying to accomplish. Then you can choose the right CRM for your needs.
What CRM Features Do I Need?
Now that you know what your goals are, you can look for a CRM tool that will help you accomplish them. That's right, it's time to evaluate features!
If, for example, you want your company's marketing and sales teams to use your CRM, make sure it's equipped with marketing automation features in addition to other sales-oriented features. If you want your CRM tool to help boost sales rep productivity, invest in one with call software to increase the number of phone calls your reps make every hour.
What's My Budget for CRM Software?
Finally, consider your budget.
How much money do you have to spend on a CRM tool? The bigger your budget, the more features you'll have access to. But not every company needs access to every feature under the sun.
Look for a CRM system that has the features you need to accomplish your goals, but won't break the bank. Once you find that tool, pull the trigger and buy it!
Close: Built for Sales Teams By Sales Teams
Can we make a suggestion? Take an in-depth look at Close.
Close is the CRM built for growth. You'll be able to easily track leads, design sales workflows with multiple touchpoints, automate communication and data entry processes, analyze metrics, and a whole lot more.
Want to learn more? Check out this free demo for more information.
