03.06.21

Why Customer Relationship Management Software is a Game Changer

Every business, regardless of circumstance, has always got what feels like a million different things to take care of. The complexity and fast-paced nature of modern companies mean that you have to deliver excellence in every aspect of your operations in order to compete. This is especially the case in competitive markets where the level of efficiency that you can carve out in your organization is what is going to set you apart.

In order to do this scalably, you have to be leveraging the right technology. There’s just no way around that. When you get to a certain size, you are forced to hand off pieces of the process to software because you physically can’t keep track of everything as a team. You might not realize this yet, but the sooner you do this and the more effectively you implement great technology tools, the smoother your operations will be.

In this article, we’re going to look at customer relationship management software (CRM) in particular and discuss some of the key benefits that you unlock when you leverage it:

• One View of the Customer. Every business, regardless of circumstance, has always got what feels like a million different things to take care of. The complexity and fast-paced nature of modern companies mean that you have to deliver excellence in every aspect of your operations in order to compete. This is especially the case in competitive markets where the level of efficiency that you can carve out in your organization is what is going to set you apart.

• Data Analytics. Zooming out one level of abstraction, and you have one single view of your entire customer base when you use a CRM tool. This is incredibly valuable because you can take that data that you’ve collected and do a range of really interesting analytics on it, to derive insights about your business and your strategic direction. With a good CRM tool, you’ll be able to filter your customers in a myriad of different ways to identify which customer segments are most lucrative, which require more attention, which need a different value proposition, and much more. Without this data, you’re making guesses on the back of customer anecdotes. A CRM setup gives you the data that you need to make smart, informed decisions.

• Automation. In any sales cycle, it’s going to require a number of different steps along the journey to close on a sale. And when your sales team is interacting with lots of different customers at different stages in the funnel, it can easily lead to missed opportunities because there’s just too much going on. A good CRM tool helps to take some of that load off by providing powerful automation for marketing messaging, reminders, follow-ups, and much more. Your CRM tool can prompt your salespeople according to specific pre-set rules which helps to guide an efficient journey through your sales pipeline – ultimately leading to better conversions. All this while removing the dread of ‘Did I follow up with this person?’ Everything is neatly organized and structured within your software package.

• Leverage Company Knowledge. When everyone is using the same software system, you can accumulate the acquired knowledge of the organization so that everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet. Instead of every salesperson working in a silo, the CRM system becomes the single source of truth that can be leveraged by everyone. This eliminates any unnecessary duplication and gives your sales team everything they need to do their job well. It’s amazing how much efficiency you can unlock when you use a CRM well.

• Performance Management. When everyone is using the same software system, you can accumulate the acquired knowledge of the organization so that everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet. Instead of every salesperson working in a silo, the CRM system becomes the single source of truth that can be leveraged by everyone. This eliminates any unnecessary duplication and gives your sales team everything they need to do their job well. It’s amazing how much efficiency you can unlock when you use a CRM well.

Those are just a few of the key benefits of implementing a CRM tool in your business. It can be a complete game changer if you are willing to do the hard work of setting it up correctly. It’s these infrastructural layers on the back end that separate the good companies from the great. It’s a superpower.

And speaking of infrastructure, it becomes even more powerful when you start to plug in other tools such as:

• An inventory management system which gives you accurate, real-time data on the inventory that you’re holding so that you can make the right strategic decisions in terms of production, procurement, and logistics; or

• An enterprise resource planning system which acts a hub for all your business processes and workflows to flow through so that you team can collaborate effectively.

These infrastructural components are designed to make your life that much easier and the customer experience much smoother. It’s not something to shy away from, but rather a key component of a modern business that is digitally enabled.

It may sound a little overwhelming to start with, but that’s what we do here at Exem. That’s why we exist. We are passionate about helping our clients craft holistic software solutions that help them deliver on their value proposition in the best way possible. We’ve got the expertise and experience to bring to the table.

We’ve seen it all before – the good, the bad, and the ugly. And so we’re confident that we can assess your business and help you get set up with the best technology in the game that is going to maximize your productivity and help you leverage the impact your staff can have.

If that sounds of interest, be sure to get in touch today! We’d love to hear your story and see how we can help.