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Avoiding CRM Failure

If you’re evaluating a CRM suite in particular, you may have heard a lot of horror stories about CRM investments going to waste. Rest assured, it’s not the technology; cases of outright technology failure are rare in e-business, and their heyday was years ago, when a lot of applications were in their early generations.

Much more often, CRM failure has to do with the old saying, much beloved of coaches, that goes, Fail to plan, plan to fail. This is the point emphasized by Mike Murphy, executive director of Siebel Global Services. Addressing his company’s CRM audience some months ago, Murphy remarked, “If you focus on technology as the only aspect of a customer-facing solution, you’re going to have a fairly high-risk project.”

This truism of CRM has been out there for years, but it seems not all adopters have paid attention. “People frequently do not take into account the lessons of those that have gone before them,” Murphy tells Line56. “They will ignore some of the warnings.”

It’s part of a larger pattern in which CRM adopters haven’t conducted due diligence about the state of their own company, or of customers. Take the case of Cisco, which bought hosted CRM from Salesforce.com but subsequently came to realize that user behavior rejected the tool in favor of existing applications. That’s something that the company should have known from the CRM get-go, either causing it to pass up Salesforce.com altogether or else paying increased attention to the change management needed to embed Salesforce.com.

That’s a case of not knowing how CRM users behave, but Murphy knows of plenty of other cases in which a customer strategy has been missing. “When we do a post-mortem on these projects, we see that a customer strategy is lacking, or isn’t linked to a corporate strategy.”

For example, a manufacturer might be tasked to use CRM to do order management in order to improve cross-sell numbers, but might not have segmented the customer base properly. The customers might be craving cross-divisional solutions, not the discrete products currently offered by the manufacturer. But you’d never learn this by implementing order management.

Murphy offers a simple, three-step guide to avoiding CRM failure: 1. Align IT and business about what CRM-addressable problems are, and what to do about them; 2. Articulate a customer strategy, and how it links to corporate goals as well as to the proposed CRM system; and 3. Define goals in a measurable way so you can track your progress.

That’s what you should have on your mind when you think about a CRM suite, or even a component tool. Otherwise, as Murphy says, you might end up with “the technology piece working, but no results.”

David Cowgill is a Senior CRM Marketing Manager in San Francisco.

Article Source: http://www.crmblogger.com/crm/2005/09/avoiding_crm_fa.html

For further information contact: David Cowgill CRM Blog Founder http://www.crmblogger.com

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3 Steps to Successful CRM For Both Big and Small Companies

Regardless of your company’s size and the requirements for your CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solution, the goal remains the same: learn more about your customers and leverage that knowledge into increased customer loyalty and improved sales.

However, too often companies jump into their CRM initiatives without the proper thought and planning. The result? A CRM system that does not meet critical organizational needs and fails to provide the proper insights into their customer base. Or perhaps worse–a CRM system that is not used at all. The key to success for your CRM implementation is not just the technology driving your solution, but in the strategy itself.

To achieve CRM success, there are 3 steps every company must follow before starting to consider CRM technology:

1. Establish a commitment to organizational change. If your company already understands why it is essential to improve customer loyalty and agrees that a CRM initiative is a high priority, congratulations! If not, you’ll need to do the legwork necessary to achieve consensus with all teams. Don’t be overwhelmed. Use this as an opportunity to put the pieces of your CRM puzzle together–discovering where customer touch points interact, what information is important to whom and why, and to identify what current business processes seem inefficient to those tasked with executing them. Once each team feels heard, and their grievances documented, they will likely agree that change is a good thing. Then you not only have much of the critical information you need for your next step, you also have the capital to return to these folks for their buy-off when your CRM strategy is completed. Your next step?

2. Define specific adjustments to operations. This seems like a tall order, but it is the logical next step towards building a solid strategy that your entire organization can get behind and evangelize. We suggest creating a matrix of all the problems identified in the first step and the solutions that were discussed. Use this matrix to compare the challenges across departments and identify potential operational changes that would solve these issues. Do not think about how technology can support these solutions, just concentrate on the operational changes necessary–who needs to know what and when, what workflow will share critical information between departments, and what critical customer-facing actions should occur at the completion of each task. TIP: The biggest factor to building a solid CRM strategy is developing a standardized sales process that is based on best practices, can be implemented across your sales organization, and integrates tightly with marketing and operations. Armed with this information, you are ready to:

3. Document your CRM Strategy. Your strategy should identify the specific business problems that need to be addressed (based on your information gathering and prioritization exercises from the first 2 steps), define objectives whose results can be measured (to demonstrate the ROI of your implementation), and outline solid insight into how CRM will impact the company, current operations, and your customers. To ensure organizational buy-off, boil down your CRM strategy into these critical points: How will CRM improve the lives of its users? How will it increase productivity? How will it impact sales? It is this strategy you then take back to the key stakeholders for final buy-off. It is this strategy that you will arm yourself with when researching and evaluating all possible CRM solutions available to you.

Understanding what business problems you need to solve and how they impact your operations–while demonstrating company support for this initiative–will ensure a successful implementation of your CRM solution. Not only will you better understand the trade-offs that you will need to make with the technology you choose, you will be able to better evaluate customization requirements and recommendations made by your CRM partner. The time you spend planning and documenting your strategy will be well worth the results!

Go-To-Market Strategies is a resource center for sales and marketing professionals and business leaders. Our tools, templates, and services help companies achieve big aspirations with limited budgets.

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Free CRM Solutions

The term CRM is commonly used in the hospitality and customer service industry. CRM is an acronym for customer relationship management. It entails all the various aspects of the interaction and relationship of a particular company or organization with its customers. CRM in the industry terms means the methodologies and software that usually help the company to mange its customer relationships in a more organized way.

With the advent of the Internet and the development of computer technology, customer relations have undergone a drastic change. Many software companies have developed software dealing specifically with the proper management of customer relations. This CRM software is referred to as CRM solutions as it provides a solution for the complex task of maintaining and retrieving customer information.

CRM software solutions can either be purchased from software companies or can be ordered for the customized needs of different companies. Another exciting option is to download it free from the Internet. The Internet is a storehouse of innumerable useful resources. Several websites offer free registration and use of the CRM software developed by them. These websites normally belong to software-developing companies.

Customers availing free CRM software solutions need to access the software from the websites of these companies. Various options such as general edition and professional editions of the CRM software are available for the use of customers. General editions are usually free of any charge but professional editions may have a small monthly fee. These CRM solutions can provide all the information about the customer in an integrated format on a single page. The customer care associates can easily view and inform the customers about the various issues that they want information on by using this software.

However, it is advised to check the authenticity of these free CRM solutions. Many fraudulent companies extract the customer information stored in the software and use it for personal, unethical use. By studying all the options carefully, customers would be able to select a secure and reliable free CRM solution software.

CRM Solutions
provides detailed information on CRM Solutions, CRM Business Solutions, CRM Call Center Solutions, CRM Software Solutions and more. CRM Solutions is affiliated with Live Customer Support
.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Bailey

CRM Applications Are The Need Of Day For All Businesses

Why you need a CRM application to ensure the success of your business

Today, the world of business has its axis on CRM applications. CRM applications are the need of the day for all kinds of businesses, be it small or large.

They ensure better productivity and profit by bringing about a marked improvement in the performance of the business via customer centric services.

The fulcrum of every CRM application is the same. It aims at creating a better relationship with the customer with the help of carefully collected data. It is the higher interactivity provided via CRM applications that make them so effective.

With a CRM application in place, you can view a 360 degree view of the customers behavioral patterns with regards to the business.

Benefits

There are many benefits of a CRM application for any business.
You can easily collaborate them with your existing applications sharing data across applications.

You can collect, store and share data and access it from virtually anywhere in the world.

Every CRM application can be further customized according to the needs of a business.

Your marketing and sales program will never be the same again post CRM applications. It brings about a degree of precision in sales programs.

You can now track the customers? transactions with the help of real time updated data.

Most CRM applications are designed in an easy to use format and no extra training is required to impart or use the CRM tools.

Manage marketing, customers, sales and billing via one platform in which all that you need to do is click.

Get It today

If you are a business owner and you still have to try CRM applications, then stop procrastinating and act today. CRM applications will bring about a refreshing change from the norm and your business will become easier to manage, more customer centric and profitable.

For more info visit : CRM Application

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rama_Krishna

CRM Review

CRM web based solution is an easy and cost effective way to maintain a healthy relationship with your customer on the Internet. It is the latest trend in modern business organizations. With the wide use of the Internet, business organizations have become more reliant on web based CRM services.

Customer relationship management, abbreviated CRM, is a comprehensive business strategy planned to maximize profitability, revenue, retention, and customer satisfaction. However, CRM business strategies mainly focus on customer satisfaction only. With the coming of CRM web based solutions, the entrepreneurs are able to offer support to the customer through the Internet, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Depending on the needs, CRM web based solutions can be availed by any type of businesses. For example, specialized CRM web based solutions are available for client profiles, frequently ordered items, automatic replenishment systems, one-click ordering, and market basket analysis. Mostly, CRM web based solutions are built after systematically understanding the needs and demands.

In a CRM web based solution, the Web is used as the platform. The software is generally installed on a single server. Hence, a user from any remote location can access the facilities of the CRM web based solutions through the Internet. Any slight change in the software of the main server will be reflected throughout the system. CRM web based solutions are cost effective and easy to maintain. Apart from these, CRM web based solutions also provide accessibility through wireless devices such as PDAs and WAP-enabled mobile phones. Thus, CRM web based solutions overrun all the downsides of their counterpart, client-server CRM solutions.

In the past, CRM Web-based solutions were used mainly by medium sized business organizations. But in recent year, almost all small and big business organizations have started using the facilities of CRM Web-based solutions.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Bailey

Installing a good CRM software package is the cornerstone of any customer relationship management program. Without good software, gathering and storing the multitude of details gained about a customer from each interaction would be very difficult.

Small business CRM systems has gone ahead in leaps bounds in recent years, with several top quality packages now available to choose from. Prior to beginning the search for good CRM software technology however, there are a few basic features you should seek in a potential CRM package:

Business Process Mapping For CRM

Any business that is planning a change from the traditional way of doing business (delivering what is good for you) to a customer-centric way of doing business (delivering what is good for the customer and then you) will require a re-alignment of information flow and work flow by going through a business process mapping exercise. The purpose of this exercise is to expose the the fundamental inefficiencies and ineffectiveness of cross-functional work flows.

In the front office, the biggest problem is always in the hand off of information between functional units like Sales and Marketing, or Sales and Customer Service. And once you begin the business process mapping exercise you will also likely find redundant work processes from department to department. The goal of realigning processes for CRM is to look at how things flow from a customers perspective. Bottlenecks, delays or even asking the customer to bridge the gap between departments, only serves to lower their satisfaction with the process and ultimately leads to lower customer loyalty.

What to expect from realigning business process

The guru on realigning front office work flows for CRM is Dick Lee of High Yield Methods. He was writing about what CRM really is way back in the 1990’s. Back then, I was simply plowing forward in my standard VAR mode. I still can’t believe how long it took me to understand the fundamental changes that need to take place in a company in order for CRM to be a success. For a long time, I thought all the problems were technical in nature. I was really mistaken.

Dick has developed a business process mapping methodology called Visual Workflow designed specifically for the front office. He feels, and I agree, that there are fundamental differences between front and back office environments. Here are a few of his examples (see his white paper on Visual Workflow:)

Office – Manufacturing

Low Repetition – High Repetition
Decision-based Process – Fixed Process
Adaptability is critical – Consistency is critical
Defects at Workflow Level – Defects at Work Process Level
Invisible Defects – Visible Defects
Empowered Staff – Compliant Staff

Those area just a few examples of the differences. It’s important to keep these in mind because methodologies like Six Sigma were designed for manufacturing processes. Frankly, anything with a cottage industry attached to it scares me. So I like Dick’s more appropriate approach.

The Outcome

Probably the most important thing about realigning business processes are the outcomes.

Driving toward shared objectives across functional lines

Building a stronger relationship with your customer

Building stronger cross functional employee relationships

Eliminating workflow bottlenecks

etc.

The outcomes of your alignment need to address the specific challenges of front office work flow, especially those designed with the customer at the center. A process for forming sheet metal is difference than a work flow where people are empowered to make decisions. Business Process Mapping is a powerful and necessary tool in your CRM initiative, but choosing the wrong methodology could hurt your efforts.

Mike Boysen is an experienced CRM consultant and the creator of Effective CRM Consulting
You can read more about business process mapping
as well as other CRM related topics.

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How to Implement a CRM System

There is no doubt that in order to stay competitive companies have to invest in technology based solutions. When a small company has a limited number of buyers and suppliers, and the business is managed by one or two people, it is capable of delivering quality services. It is also able to keep its various business processes efficient enough. But for a company with several clearly identifiable departments, it is necessary to put extra efforts to keep productivity high. Naturally, in their pursuit of better performance companies at one point start to look at various technological solutions. Apart from accounting, which is by this time already fairly computerized, the question arise what is the next priority? Is it a Customer Relationship Management Solution?

What is CRM?

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. CRM is about better understanding of customer?s behavior and needs, and developing and implementing business strategies and supporting technologies that close the gaps between an enterprise?s current and potential performance in customer acquisition, growth, and retention. Its center of attention is managing and optimizing customer life cycle and building proper relationship among company departments, sales forces, and customers which in turn helps increasing company productivity.

Customer Relationship Management has increasingly started to become an important business approach. Its goal is to return to one-to-one personal marketing. The idea is to create a customer centric marketing and sales approach based on cumulative vital information about a customer such as her previous purchasing trend, preference and needs.

By implementing a CRM solution a company may expect to

Increase the company?s ability to retain and acquire customers

Maximize customer life cycle

Personalize and improve customer service without increasing cost of service

In order to receive these benefits from a CRM system a company has to clearly understand its need. CRM is not a technological miracle that will bring dramatic change in company productivity. CRM is about sweeping change of mindset across the company and make it a customer-oriented enterprise. That?s why before installing a CRM system the company should understand what it wants to achieve. Does the company want to make selling process more efficient? Is it trying to target and acquire the right customer segment or the goal is to improve customer service?

CRM includes following customer related applications:

Sales Force Automation

Contact Management: Helps maintaining, tracking and managing customer information and contact histories for present customers.

Activity Management: A combination of calendar, task and scheduling management solution for sales people.

Communication Management: Uses for eMails and messaging management

Sales forecasting: Helps analyzing and projecting future sales goals and targets

Lead Management: Helps managing leads and potential business opportunity

Document Management: Helps creating, storing and managing documents

Pipeline Management: Uses for managing and analyzing sales pipeline

Product eCatalog: Necessary for accurate product specification and prices

Customer Service

Call Center Management Provides automated, end-to-end call routing and tracking Captures customer feedback information for performance measurement, quality control, and product development

Field Service Management Allocates, schedules, and dispatches people, parts and time Tracks materials, expenses, and time associated with service orders

Help Desk Management Solves a problem by searching the existing knowledge base Keeps logs of problem reports

Why a company needs to adopt a CRM solution?

A CRM solution is capable of providing real-time access to the stored data about a customer and related matters. Sales force by analyzing the data can create sales forecast, manage interaction with the customer more effectively, develop and manage sales pipeline. Support team thanks to the information available at their fingertips manages to give personalized customer care. According to Pareto principle 20 percent of customers are responsible for 80 percent of company profit. It is absolutely necessary to do everything possible to retain loyalty of these customers. Why retaining an existing customer is so important?

It takes in average 7 to 8 calls in order to close a deal with a new customer and only two to three in the case of an existing customer.

According to Boston Consulting Group cost of selling to an existing web customer is around 6 US$ and cost of acquiring a new web customer is around 34 US$

A five percent increase in expenses in keeping existing customers translates into 25 percent or more increase in profitability.

Other clear advantages of a CMR solution include its ability to:

Provide improved customer service

Increase revenues per customer

Manage sales efficiently

Sell products more effectively

Help sales staff close deals faster

Make call centers more efficient

Streamline marketing and sales processes

What should a company know before adopting a CRM solution?

As mentioned earlier CRM is not a panacea to company productivity improvement. In order to get maximum result, the company must clearly understand its requirement and then only adopt a CRM system. No matter how good the CRM solution the company chooses if the solution does not correspondent to the staff mindset i.e. if they don?t receive required training and don?t clearly understand the changes in business processes, the risk of good technology going bad is pretty high!

Often, senior management due to natural fear towards new technology does not get involved in the process of CRM implementation. This is a big mistake! If management does not take advantage of the CRM, it?s very likely that common staff will not take the system seriously too.

The present customer related information that is going to be integrated with the CRM system also should be carefully analyzed, consolidated, structured and cleaned up prior to adoption. Bad data are capable of creating a mess even in the best CRM solution.

How should a company adopt a CRM system?

The best option is to adopt a CRM system phase by phase. The company needs to identify the areas where the return on investment would be highest and adopt CRM technology there. Another good approach is to automate one of the key departments with inexpensive CRM solution and if the project becomes successful adopt a cross-company CRM solution

Nowshade Kabir is the CEO of ( http://www.rusbiz.com
). Companies can optimize and handle some of their vital business processes such as supply chain management with the features available on http://ezine.rusbiz.com
.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nowshade_Kabir

Microsoft Dynamics AX-GP-NAV-CRM: Trends & International Recommendations

Microsoft Dynamics project ? or formerly referred as Project Green should unify and modulate all Microsoft Business Solutions ERP applications: Microsoft Great Plains/Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Navision (former Attain) Microsoft Dynamics NAV, Microsoft (Navision) Axapta/Microsoft Dynamics AX. The challenge of unification probably will result in quality change for the unified interface, such as Web/Business portal/Microsoft Outlook & MS Office integration, Deployment of new technologies, such as Microsoft Sharepoint with workflow automation. Plus the development platform for Microsoft Dynamics products should shift from proprietary tools, such as Microsoft Dexterity, C/SIDE, MorphX (no confirmation for Axapta yet ? but we guess it should follow) to C# and VB.Net with VisualStudio. In this small article we will try to orient IT managers in Microsoft Business Solutions MRP products selection for international and regional markets.

? Microsoft Dynamics GP. The regional markets for Great Plains 9.0 and following Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 version will narrow: United States, United Kingdom, Canada: both English and French speaking, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and other English speaking countries in Asia, Africa and Worldwide, plus Spanish Speaking Latin America. Microsoft Dynamics GP 10 will not be available for Germany, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland ? the last version localized for these European countries will be 9.0 ? June 2006

? Microsoft Dynamics NAV. Currently Navision has very good presence in Europe, including East Europe: Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Slovakia. Microsoft also localized Navision for new markets, where it just moved in: Brazil for example ? it was interesting development in Brazil ? first Microsoft probed Solomon, then Microsoft Great Plains 7.5 and in 2004 replaced it with localized Navision

? Microsoft Dynamics AX. Microsoft Axapta, opposite to Navision or Great Plains where market shares are gained/divided and competition is based on renovations and product improvements, Axapta has great potential yet to be deployed, coming from its modern and very futuristic system design and architecture. Being targeted to upper mid-market and corporate clients Axapta shows very good progress on emerging markets: in Russia for example the number of Axapta installation is similar and comparable with the number of Navision installations. Plus, in 2005 large number of Microsoft Business Solutions gold certified partners rushed into Axapta consulting arena ? this is seen in the USA, UK, Australia and continental Europe. In Brazil currently MBS in local Portuguese Axapta launching mode ? localized for Brazilian tax code

? Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Is planned as front CRM solution for the majority of Microsoft Dynamics ERP system: integration with Microsoft Dynamics GP is available for GP 7.5, 8.0, 9.0 and CRM 1.2 and 3.0, Microsoft Navision ? through third party integrations, Axapta integration is planned. Microsoft has Microsoft CRM as worldwide product, so you should not have any doubts regarding your regional market.

? Competition. Oracle is on the way with Oracle Fusion project, aiming on Oracle Financials/Applications/E-Business Suite, PeopleSoft, JDEdwards and potentially Siebel integration. SAP with the purchase of new mid and small market ERP: SAP Business One and Mendocino ? for SAP R/3 is catching up

Please do not hesitate to call or email us: USA 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918 help@albaspectrum.com

Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer at Alba Spectrum Technologies ( http://www.albaspectrum.com
http://www.greatplains.com.mx
http://www.enterlogix.com.br
) – Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains, Navision, Axapta MS CRM, Oracle Financials and IBM Lotus Domino Partner, serving corporate customers in the following industries: Aerospace & Defense, Medical & Healthcare, Distribution & Logistics, Hospitality, Banking & Finance, Wholesale & Retail, Chemicals, Oil & Gas, Placement & Recruiting, Advertising & Publishing, Textile, Pharmaceutical, Non-Profit, Beverages, Conglomerates, Apparels, Durables, Manufacturing and having locations in multiple states and internationally. We are serving USA Nationwide: CA, IL, NY, FL, AZ, CO, TX, WI, WA, MI, MA, MO, LA, NM, MN, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Francisco, Denver, Seattle, Boston, Atlanta, Miami, Houston, Dallas, San Diego, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Minneapolis, Washington, Baltimore, New Orleans, Austin, Kansas City.

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Well Managed CRM – Key to Profitable Growth For Your Business

The web has long been recognized as an enabler to radically redesign business processes. Thanks to the innovations like the internet which enables industrial businessmen to automate and generate functions as never before and they are achieving dramatic improvements in their businesses. Today’s business world is one of the intense competition field and you have to find creative new ideas and ways to reduce costs while improving product offerings. A major breakthrough concept in this field is that of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and this has gained a significant relevance for companies over the last few years. CRM focuses on a key element that is customers. It offers more than just a product and builds a relationship with customers who prove to be mutually rewarding and successful.

What it is?

CRM is a systematic business approach, which compiles a huge amount of customer data and helps a company to organize and manage its relationship with customers. Its main goal is to allow companies to handle their customers in a better way by means of customer service aided by software tools. It involves the integration of marketing, sales, customer service and helps your business achieve greater efficiencies and more effectiveness in delivering customer value.

Implementing Intelligence In the Business

Product, price, place and promotion- These are the four key areas that are important for the marketing of your business.

? Product is concerned with what your company offers.
? Price is influential for the customers to decide whether to buy or not.
? Place is essential when considering in what markets products should be offered.
? Promotion of a product is crucial for sale.

Synchronizing all these things with the overall company strategy is an extremely time consuming thing whereas very important. This can be easily accomplished with the implementation of a proper CRM system.

Enriching Collaboration

Developing your product is very important for your business to establish a sustainable competitive advantage. Be it a new product introduction or an additional feature on a product or correction on an existing product, change in proper time is required. CRM through customer feedback data and the product development will not only generate new ideas for product improvement but will also fulfill the deficiencies that exist. Scheduling resources is a key factor for any company success and CRM makes this consistency possible by analyzing past trends and using them properly to predict future requirements.

Customer service is crucial for every business. Out of sight out of mind will prove to be a detrimental philosophy for any company. However well a product is made, complaints are going to be made. A proper management of complaints, problem recognition, and service staff scheduling and appropriate responses all can be done in a timely and unbiased fashion by CRM system. It is very desirable for every company to focus on sales efforts, again with CRM you can manage this efficiently.

Industrial websites are facing global competitive pressures as manufacturing costs are rising while prices are decreasing. Enhancing and protecting their business through superior customer service and innovative product development is required. Building customer loyalty through excellent customer service will enable them to gain a competitive edge. They can realize the maximum potential from their business with a low cost. CRM solutions can solve everyday business problems and deliver tangible benefits for your business. The main objective of Customer Relationship Management solution
is to achieve repeat sales, managing a long selling cycle, winning new customers, keeping all data secure and accurate and auto generated reports from which you can control and grow your business. In today’s competitive world, industrial websites must meet ongoing demand of customers as well as to raise productivity and maintaining lower costs. The only solution for your business to achieve rapid ROI as well as to meet the ongoing demand of your customer is CRM.

Jennifer Salerno is a veteran in Internet marketing and a wordsmith par excellence with countless articles on a wide range of subjects to her credit. She is an expert on industrial website services

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Salerno

A Real CRM Strategy or Just Tracking Customers?

Exactly what is CRM

The idea itself is nothing new; its roots have been around since trading began. The principle of looking after your customers so that they come back regularly is, after all, merely the basis of good trading. In an increasingly competitive commercial world however, strong customer relationships take on an increasing importance. With the cost of selling to a new customer being five times the cost of selling to an existing one you can?t afford to lose established business.

Yes, you still want new markets, and yes, for various reasons customers will still disappear. The important thing is to minimise this loss and make sure the reasons behind it don?t stem from something you are doing ? or more significantly something you are not doing.

Which is why good Customer Relationship Management is vital ? and why the process has now been refined to make it more effective than ever.

What does CRM Involve?

In essence, making your customer feel special by understanding his needs and fulfilling those needs in a personal manner which will keep him coming back for more.

Going that extra mile and providing service beyond that which was expected takes your customer to the next stage, where he becomes a ?raving fan? of your business – and you can?t have too many of those. Achieve this and your customer suddenly becomes part of your sales force, telling everyone he meets how good you are.

This can actually be achieved without computers and software. A good memory and a card index can keep track of customer?s preferences and buying patterns. Newsletter campaigns, post sale follow-ups and special offer mailings can all be organised – given time; except that this is where it so often falls apart. For most companies time is the commodity in shortest supply.

Identifying the Challenge

This is where you find the first steps into CRM. Contact Management or Personal Information Manager software can provide substantial benefits. A database of customers for envelope labelling, simple word processing and calendar functions can save an enormous amount of time. The latest breed of contact manager software can do this quite efficiently across small groups of people, an office based sales team for example. So what?s the point of moving to a full CRM strategy? Why not stick with a simple address book style contact manager?

The real secret of selling has always been to ?Think Buying?
So consider for a moment, the things that annoy you as a customer:

? Promised return phone calls not made, and information not sent

? Not being informed of possible delays or problems

? That call to tell you when your order is ready ? promised but not made.

? One department in the company having no idea what another department said to you in the last call or letter.

? No one bothering to call to make sure the goods arrived, or are satisfactory. Probably no calls at all ? until of course they want to sell you something else

? No one knowing what they last sold to you ? or when

? No one knowing enough about you to offer you items or services that would enhance or compliment your purchase. Frequently only one person in the company seems to know anything about you! And if they?re not available??

Overcoming all this takes more than just contact management software.

The Answer

What is needed is a change in attitude that extends from shop floor to boardroom. Not easy! It takes something special to initiate such a major change, but once up and running the change will feed on its own success.

The CRM solution provides a sophisticated but (and this is important) ?easy to use? computer system which monitors all activity with customers, current or potential. Phone, mail, e-mail and fax all link in. Give everyone in your company who deals with your customers access to that system. Link it to word processors, accounts systems, stock control and manufacturing Now you?re starting down the right road to achieving your ultimate goal – customers who become Raving Fans.

Your Information Bonus

The additional benefit to a company implementing CRM, is far superior tracking of sales and marketing activities. Suddenly it becomes easier to identify the most effective sources of business.
i.e.

? which Mailshots worked best

? which sector provides your best business

? how many leads turn into actual sales

All this information makes running your company so much easier. Your Sales Manager will also benefit considerably from being able to see sales activity and ratios more clearly. He will probably produce the most accurate sales forecast you have ever seen!

Conclusion

So, should you try to implement CRM or just stick with contact management? That depends on what you want to achieve. If your aim is to look after your customers to the best of your ability, keep those customers, and tower head and shoulders over your competitors, it has to be CRM.

The alternative is to stay with the pack and lose, on average, 50% of your customers every 5 years. Can you afford to do that?

Roy Gough

Alloy CRM

Helping you keep your customers away from the competition

Roy Gough has run and managed businesses for over 30 years. He has experience in finance, automotive, retail, high tech and ecommerce. He uses this knowledge to help businesses to improve their sales and profitability. He currently also sells GoldMine business contact management software, QuoteWerks quotation management tool and Mind Manager the brainstorming and planning tool.

His web site can be found at http://www.alloycrm.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Roy_Gough

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