Today we bring you some tips, briefly explaining the benefits of a CRM. Let’s see what this vital business tool is all about.
A Software CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is one of the most valuable technological systems that a medium or small company can implement.
A CRM is as important as the people it hires, and it can have a much more significant impact in the long term than any employee.
It is a tool that allows us to learn more about the needs and behavior of customers so that we can build stronger relationships with them.
Having CRM Software allows us to address operational challenges such as decreased sales, customer defections, and misalignment between corporate revenue goals and sales commission policies.
For small companies, it is pretty helpful since it allows an adequate follow-up of the clients, improving their operation. Its success is based on technology, which is its competitive advantage with companies without it.
What are the benefits of CRM Software?
A CRM allows you to have a better knowledge of the customers and how is the management of the relationships with them, which will enable you to have more clarity about which actions to implement to improve the profitability in the long term and what to do to give more impulse to the company.
Since the software is associated with the administrative side, you can control revenues, expenses, discounts, and returns.
It also allows better accounting control, financial information of the company, and negotiations with customers.
This has a positive impact on the company’s value chain (tools that increase sales, efficient operations, and positive results at the end of the year).
With CRM, it is possible to automate processes. This makes it unnecessary to hire extra staff. Sometimes when you need to perform regulatory checks, there is no need for a team to do this; the software can be configured to warn if a customer is at risk and generate related documentation.
They provide information on long-term sales trends, allow adjustments to existing strategies and tactical results, improve projections, and focus sales on the segments worth targeting.
It is a tool that allows employees to respond more effectively and quickly to customers by tracking complaints, actions taken, and to be taken. This way, we can know what is not working well and what is correct.
Examples of CRM: success stories of companies that implemented it
Apple, CRM Success Stories
By creating identical stores, all dedicated exclusively to their products, and providing a space where those who enjoy Apple products can meet and play, they encourage current and new customers to become part of a community.
Apple ID, the real CRM
Users create an Apple ID that syncs with other devices, remembers selections, makes recommendations based on what is played/viewed and how often.
The ID database provides Apple with an up-to-date and constantly evolving set of data on all of its customers and their preferences. This way, they can effectively market without investing much effort.
This is one of the case studies with examples of CRM where the importance of such a solution and the benefits it generates are most clearly seen.
KFC – CRM Case Studies
KFC signed an agreement with The Cloud to deploy free Wi-Fi in 548 stores in the United Kingdom to attract more customers. The site’s in-store Wi-Fi access requires users to register, and this information is stored and used to send users special offers and promotions.
In addition to registration, they introduced a loyalty application to make greater use of their CRM system.
Colonel’s Club KFC:
Customers download the application and register their data.
Through the APP, they access special promotions and accumulate points with each order.
The application tracks the customer’s location and helps you locate the nearest store. It also offers location-based offers and promotions.
As the application tracks your customers’ shopping habits, KFC can launch personalized marketing campaigns.
You probably think that these case studies with CRM examples may clash with the user’s privacy, but it is the same customer who accesses the services who accepts the privacy terms.
McDonald’s – CRM Success Stories
As a global brand with massive marketing campaigns, it was important for McDonald’s to start segmenting that marketing and making sure it got the most out of every potential customer and every customer who returned to its stores.
To this end, McDonald’s launched a specific application for each region in which it operates;
Consumers download the mobile app to any smartphone.
It provides data on how often they visit a restaurant and what their purchasing patterns are.
McDonald’s can use this knowledge to launch promotions and send personalized loyalty rewards to the user’s smartphone.
CRM is a must for a company with such a vast and global reach as Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Enterprises uses multiple CRM systems, such as Salesforce and Sugar, to manage sales, marketing, and customers in the various regions.
Unilever
Unilever is a market leader and, as such, is expected to provide the best possible customer experience. Using SAP CRM, Unilever has become a success story by improving both the effectiveness and productivity of its customer service center.
CRM is used to monitor customer interactions across Unilever’s territories.
“It allows faster response time to questions and needs raised by consumers, provides effective maintenance of the customer database, and facilitates access to customer information for analysis and strategy development” – Efren Samonte (Commercial Director, Unilever Philippines)
Zara –
Zara uses its CRM system to track customer preferences and sales. They also record customer comments and opinions, which they send to the design department and often serve as a basis for creating new styles.
For Zara’s sales teams, CRM means dynamic access to large databases.
They use it to obtain information about each store’s inventory, sales, and warehouse inventory. This dramatically reduces decision-making time and allows users to be kept informed of item availability, improving the overall customer experience.
BMW –
BMW wanted to use its CRM to analyze existing customer data, as well as to try to capture potential customers.
The car company partnered with Legacy Lifestyle to create a luxury loyalty program called Owner’s Circle:
The Owner’s Circle allows BMW Owners to track the financing and maintenance of the car. In the process, it strengthens the relationship between the owner and the vehicle manufacturer.
The BMW CRM also provides a chat service between owners. Partnering with Legacy Lifestyle means that points earned can be spent on many other items.
Amazon –
Amazon is an excellent example of how a CRM can be used as part of a business model. Your CRM is essential to increase customer satisfaction and retention.
- Using a CRM provided by Oracle, Amazon
- Send emails to customers with recommended purchases.
- Introduce users to specific web pages promoting items that may be of interest to them.
- Allows users to make purchases without having to re-enter payment details.
- Offer promotions and incentives.
- Manages a loyalty program.
- Contacts customers to resolve any issues.
Note:
A CRM is not only for large companies; even SMEs and freelancers can and should benefit from a CRM system. Each of the companies in this article uses the CRM system that most benefits their specific needs. It is always best to compare until you find the one that best suits your budget and needs.
The most recent market studies show that, in Latin America, companies with a well-used CRM system can increase sales by 29%, but only 10% of companies claim to use one.
However, any system acquires more excellent value when you manage, in time and form, all the information it needs. How do you make everyone in the company provide data in real-time? How do you make this technology help to grow? Here are five tips:
-Make it as simple as possible
The biggest mistake most small businesses make is trying to implement CRM that is too complicated for their employees, as they are forced to get too much information, forcing them to deviate from their routines. An efficient CRM system only needs the following: basic information on prospects, when and what was discussed, last follow-up, reminders, dates, and actions to be assigned. This should be enough to see what each opportunity is worth.
-Ensures integration with other company systems
If a CRM is not complementary to what is already being used, it will be of little use. If the data cannot be easily imported and exported to and from the CRM, I guarantee that no one will want to use it. And if a CRM is an island, it will have minimal impact.
-Offer constant training
It is hard to believe, but today we can say that many companies do not know that a technological tool must be a priority to make it easy to use and allow employees to do their work with greater productivity and profitability. Today, you also have to train your team on how to use their smartphones or tablets.
Identify people who are considered “super users” (because of their easy adaptation and fast use of technologies) and transform them into internal system champions. And never forget to reward the vendors who use the tool most effectively.
-If something is not in the CRM… it did not happen.
Every company needs to treat its CRM as a historical archive of activity information. No one will measure anything or take credit from a new customer if it is not written down. Every executive must set an example and use it a lot; otherwise, no one will.
-Improve the decision-making process
Make sure that a CRM delivers as many reports as possible in real-time. You should answer in just two minutes such simple questions as: What did my salespeople do all last week? What are the sales opportunities closest to closing this week? Are we going to reach our sales goal this quarter?
In a diet or a nutrition plan to lose weight, the most important thing is not the system you use but the attitude of making a change in your life.
Never forget that CRM is not what matters: the main thing is to be convinced and determined to manage customers and prospects that generate results. CRM is only the system that facilitates this task.
We can’t forget to recommend what aspects to take into consideration before choosing your business management.
-Clearly define your objectives.
CRM systems have many features and services, and many are probably not relevant to you. That’s why, first of all, you should establish your company’s priorities
. This means knowing the goals of all the departments that will use the CRM and being able to meet them all.
It is possible that not all departments will use the CRM at first, but you should be aware that more departments may be added in the future, so the CRM needs to support different teams.
Once you have determined your goals, analyze the different functionalities of each CRM and compare them to your objectives. This way, you can choose the product that offers you precisely what you need.
-Price and implementation schedule.
Although it may seem obvious, you must prepare a line item in your budget to finance the CRM service, as well as its implementation, maintenance, and relevant training for your employees. Also, consider when you want to have the CRM up and running.
-Integrations.
Suppose you are already using a system or tool in your company that you want to integrate with the CRM. In that case, it is crucial that you analyze the compatibility you choose with these systems or, failing that, that you consider the possibility of using the CRM itself to carry out these tasks and thus unify everything in the same system. In addition, it is efficient that the CRM can be used comfortably from mobile devices.
-Alerts and automation.
It is likely that the most critical users in your organization will be your salespeople, and they don’t like to waste their time entering data into a computer, not to mention that you probably prefer them to be dedicated to capturing customers.
That is why it is vital that the system is intuitive, allows you to automate tasks as much as possible, and lets your salespeople know when they have to follow up on the opportunities they have open.
-Keep your team in mind.
This is the most crucial point. As we said before, many companies fail to implement their CRM because they can’t get their employees to use it properly. That’s why it’s essential to involve your team in the decision-making process from the very beginning:
- Listen to what they want.
- Get a free demo or trial.
- Of course, make sure they receive the necessary training to maximize the potential of the investment you are about to make.
CONCLUSIONS
It is necessary to emphasize that even if a company undertakes a strategy of does not guarantee that immediately or even in the long term, you will start getting greater returns from their customers, for this to happen, the software needs to be part of the organizational culture and, of course, the acceptance of the clients involved in the process.
This concept comprises the methodology, discipline, and technology that aims to automate and improve the business processes associated with the management
of the company’s relationship with the client, mainly in sales, marketing, customer services, and support, to increase company profits through optimization, personalization, and differentiation of the relationship with the client.
A List Of The Top 10 Best Programs
- monday.com
- Zoho CRM
- HoneyBook
- Agile CRM
- Salesmate CRM
- Freshworks
- Pipedrive
- Salesforce
- Ontraport
- HubSpot
Other Small Business Programs
Being a small business in search of the right program is difficult. If none of the above options are suitable for your needs, here’s more to consider:
Method – Highly customizable designed to work with QuickBooks
Insightly – workflow automation, custom fields, email templates, record linking, and more
Copper – is designed for G Suite that makes it easy for entrepreneurs, start-ups, and small businesses to implement without the administrative overhead
Neon – it is for non-profit organizations with a focus on donor, volunteer and event participation.
InStream – sales, contact management, relationship automation and social networking information.
Capsule – a complete view of your customers with customizable data fields.
Nimble – that works directly within your Office 365 or G Suite inbox.
Nutshell – sales automation and solution with reporting and progress tracking.
OnePage – minimizes data entry with a range of contact collectors from Gmail, Outlook, Xing, Facebook and Twitter.
Salesboom – customizable web-based software to unify sales, marketing and customer service initiatives.
Suti – a cloud-based customer relationship management software with marketing and sales tools.
Teamgate – features calling, collection tools, marketing, account management, geolocation and more.
We can’t forget to recommend what aspects to take into consideration before choosing your business management.
-Clearly define your objectives.
CRM systems have many features and services, and many are probably not relevant to you. That’s why, first of all, you should establish your company’s priorities
. This means knowing the goals of all the departments that will use the CRM and being able to meet them all.
It is possible that not all departments will use the CRM at first, but you should be aware that more departments may be added in the future, so the CRM needs to support different teams.
Once you have determined your goals, analyze the different functionalities of each CRM and compare them to your objectives. This way, you can choose the product that offers you precisely what you need.
-Price and implementation schedule.
Although it may seem obvious, you must prepare a line item in your budget to finance the CRM service, as well as its implementation, maintenance, and relevant training for your employees. Also, consider when you want to have the CRM up and running.
-Integrations.
Suppose you are already using a system or tool in your company that you want to integrate with the CRM. In that case, it is crucial that you analyze the compatibility you choose with these systems or, failing that, that you consider the possibility of using the CRM itself to carry out these tasks and thus unify everything in the same system. In addition, it is efficient that the CRM can be used comfortably from mobile devices.
-Alerts and automation.
It is likely that the most critical users in your organization will be your salespeople, and they don’t like to waste their time entering data into a computer, not to mention that you probably prefer them to be dedicated to capturing customers.
That is why it is vital that the system is intuitive, allows you to automate tasks as much as possible, and lets your salespeople know when they have to follow up on the opportunities they have open.
-Keep your team in mind.
This is the most crucial point. As we said before, many companies fail to implement their CRM because they can’t get their employees to use it properly. That’s why it’s essential to involve your team in the decision-making process from the very beginning:
- Listen to what they want.
- Get a free demo or trial.
- Of course, make sure they receive the necessary training to maximize the potential of the investment you are about to make.
CONCLUSIONS
It is necessary to emphasize that even if a company undertakes a strategy of
does not guarantee that immediately or even in the long term, you will start getting
greater returns from their customers, for this to happen, the software needs to be part
of the organizational culture and, of course, the acceptance of the
clients involved in the process.
This concept comprises the methodology, discipline, and technology that aims to automate and improve the business processes associated with the management
of the company’s relationship with the client, mainly in sales, marketing, customer services, and support, to increase company profits through optimization, personalization, and differentiation of the relationship with the client.
EN 
ES
this is such a nice blog
Thanks, Emma, for your comment. We appreciate your interest in our publications.
thank you very much emma for taking us into account.