Implementation of CRM in business – customer relationship management
What is CRM? How does CRM help a business manage customers? How to implement a CRM system in the sales department? Julia Kushel, Quality Control Specialist of the TOPsharing.center Sales Department, will tell.
The current business is automated “from and to” and there is nothing strange in this phenomenon. This is because it is much easier and more productive to manage processes using a CRM system. Now it is difficult to imagine the work of a warehouse without a program for accounting for the inventory balance, and accountants will react ambiguously if the department is not equipped with 1C.
However, many modern sales managers and directors of small and medium-sized businesses do not introduce automated systems into their work. Needless to say, this leads to a decrease in the effectiveness of the sales department, and the company loses in profit. Sales managers work the way they like: data is not kept, information about agreements with clients is not recorded.
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The only right solution for modern business is automation through the implementation of a CRM system. But the choice of a “smart assistant” should be taken carefully.
In the article, we describe the types of CRM, system features, as well as the pros and cons of implementing this technology. And most importantly, we answer the question – how to set up the system so that it brings maximum benefit to the company.
Types of customer relationship management (CRM) systems
There are two main types of CRM: cloud and box:
- Cloud solutions are highly customizable yet versatile.
- But, if a company needs complex integration, complex implementation, adding functionality, then in this case they use a box. More often, those companies for which the issue of security is critical resort to using the box. Due to the fact that the boxed solution is located on the company’s server, therefore, any access is authorized or not authorized by the company itself, and not by the operator.
You can also divide solutions into heavy and simple CRM. The simple solution is Excel, which is not surprising, many companies continue to use it. Excel’s main problem is that it doesn’t have the necessary features for a company to run, such as separation of access rights. The situation becomes more complicated when there is more than one sales manager in the company, as they see each other’s customers. You can refer to the conscientiousness of employees as much as you like, but no one is immune. Using Excel is not an ideal option in this case, because one manager’s clients can suddenly go left. In addition, in Excel you can edit information “backdating” – this seriously violates the control of the work of sales managers.
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There are a number of simple solutions for implementing the system and configuring it for use by managers – this is a task manager level solution. There is an opportunity to keep a history of relationships with clients, separation of access rights and there is no way to edit information “backdating”. Thus, task managers do not complicate the work of sales managers and provide more opportunities for the company.
There are heavy solutions – large complex CRMs integrated with other systems, such as IRP, for example. As a rule, they are used by large companies.
There is also a type of CRM that can be both in the cloud and in the box – these are predictive CRMs. They have predictive ability. Previously, this possibility was severely limited by analytical tools, but now there are no such restrictions. For example, Salesforce, with the help of the people.ai project, which, by the way, has Russian roots, can advise a sales manager to call a specific client with specific questions. The productivity of a sales manager in this case increases many times over.
Exiterra.com Digital Agency helps businesses to systematize processes and attract customers through the implementation of CRM Bitrix24. Learn more → «CRM Bitrix24 — implementation, configuration».
Also, CRM systems can be divided into private and industry-specific. Often the owners of small companies pay attention to industry solutions and this decision is justified. Since industry specifics cannot be included in the basic functionality of CRM. But in the vast majority of cases, the issue can be solved by universal CRM.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of industry CRM
Industry CRMs take into account functions that simplify the work of a sales manager with a specific product, solve certain business processes in this industry. But at the same time, the number of users of industry CRM is less than the number of users of universal systems. This means less investment in the product and rare updates.
What CRM features will help grow your business
CRM is a sales manager’s way of managing customer relationships. The use of business process relationship management systems is a doubly successful methodology, because it allows not only managers to manage clients, but also a manager to manage personnel. If you correctly regulate the entry of information into CRM, then you will be able to “read” the thoughts of sellers.
Case on the topic: Promotion of accounting and legal services on the Internet on the example of the project of the outsourcing company “Accounting for You”
What does this mean: often in the scheduled task, the manager writes “phone the client”. An employee fixes such a plan without thinking. And if the plan says what he wants to get, he starts thinking, “What can I agree with the client about?” Thus, the manager can “read the thoughts” of the sales manager, analyze weaknesses and bottlenecks.
The CRM system also helps in setting up the sales funnel. And, as you know, they cannot be counted on the fingers of one hand: there are marketing funnels that, based on past experience, help to analyze where you need to reduce the cost of a lead – this is a retrospective funnel.
And in sales, you need a funnel that looks ahead, that is, prospective. Thanks to her, in the middle of the month, the manager understands whether the company will fulfill the plan or not. Such a funnel must be factual, that is, there must be a condition for the transaction to move from stage to stage. It is difficult for a manager to make a mistake in this case. So, for example, agreeing on technical specifications, conducting an audit, signing an agreement is a fact. Thus, if the funnel is prospective and factual, then the company will easily reach the plan.
Another CRM feature allows you to distribute and transfer clients from manager to manager. From practice, I can say that there are up to 500 clients with one manager. The question arises of how an employee can communicate with such a large number of clients. Obviously, making even three hundred calls a day is an impossible task. The manager should contact someone in six months, and call someone several times a day. In this case, it is important that only those clients with whom close work is being carried out are in CRM. The rest should be sent to the archive with the task “to call in six months.”
CRM allows you to automate your routine. Processes such as invoicing, briefing, preparation of a commercial offer can be configured in CRM.
How to customize CRM for effective use
A mandatory feature for comfortable use of the CRM system is the separation of access rights: the manager should see only his clients, and the head of the sales department should see only the clients of the department.
Setting up a prospective factual funnel is easy. It is only necessary to rename the names of the stages, they should answer the question: “What am I doing now in this transaction?”. And if the name of the stage is not a status, but an action, it will become much easier for the sales manager to navigate.
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A funnel should have between 4 and 7 stages. Less than 4 is too coarse division, and more than 7 the funnel will become too branched. In the latter case, it will be more comfortable to use a checklist.
Minimum regulations for setting up CRM in the TOP.sharing.center company – “CRM is a mirror of reality”. This means the following meaning: if something is not in the CRM system, it means that it does not exist at all. In this case, if the sales manager decided not to add the client to the CRM system, then this client does not exist for the manager. Even despite how long the collaboration lasted. This rule requires an adult position from managers.
Accounting for key indicators for CRM – these can be intensity indicators (calls, meetings), performance indicators (sales plan), intermediate or leading indicators (the client signed the terms of reference). The manager must first of all set these indicators, and the manager must enter information on them into CRM.
Author: Julia Kushel, Quality Control Specialist of the Sales Department of TOPsharing.center
