Every operational aspect of your sales team involves a lot of information being generated. And it all needs to be tracked somewhere. That’s where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system comes into its element.
A CRM system is specifically designed to add value to your business efficiency. It helps improve customer retention, sales productivity, customer satisfaction, forecasting and reporting, and information visibility.
So, how do you take advantage of the benefits?
The business benefits of a CRM
In the data-driven eta, your salespeople need information at their fingertips. When there is so much information being generated, from personal information to financial information, call recordings to customer communications, it’s vital to have a way of managing this. From a business point of view, a CRM system keeps all this in one place. It enables the business to make better decisions, based on key performance metrics.
Particularly when it comes to customers, this is vital. Modern-day prospects expect you to know about previous interactions your company may have had with them, or their likes and dislikes.
Why your CRM can be a competitive advantage
Given the uptake in CRM adoption, it’s not necessarily about it being a competitive advantage. More so, if you don’t have a CRM you are losing your edge – falling behind the competition.
Why? Because a CRM system connects the silos in your organisation in one place to ensure your entire business is organised. From Sales to Marketing, CRM systems provide valuable insights across the teams to drive successful activities.
The best CRM systems integrate with a range of tools, making the functionality pretty endless. Plus, many CRM providers offer onboarding and set up as part of the process, removing the IT barrier for adoption.
Three key benefits for your sales team
Here are three key ways a CRM system can benefit your sales team.
1. Less admin
No salesperson likes spending time on manual data entry. Plus, from a management point of view, it’s less reliable. Every salesperson should be spending most of their time doing what they are hired to do – sell. Your CRM will automate the collection of data to improve productivity, also improving the accuracy of the data. The best CRM systems integrate with things like your inbox and calendar, so you spend even less time syncing the two. Less time spent on repetitive admin tasks, more time making revenue.
2. Better pipeline processes
Managing your processes and pipelines manually can be difficult and time-consuming. Using a CRM system will provide real-time, customisable pipelines and dashboards to help you (and your team) visualise performance. That makes it easier to keep on top of performance, on a more regular basis. Plus, CRMs give you a load of visual, easy-to-use visual data insights that quickly improve processes. Examples are sales calls made each day by a salesperson, the amount of revenue generated each week, how many deals and so on.
3. More quality conversations
If your prospect has previously spoken to your business and your salesperson calls them, the prospect expects you to know what was previously discussed. Having the prospects’ information visible before you speak with them is a no-brainer in today’s competitive markets. It promotes improved customer experience and quality conversations.
Utilising the power of a CRM
One of the best things about a CRM system is they are extremely scalable. Most often have a freemium model to get you going. So, no matter what size business you are, you can benefit straight away – especially if you want to grow (who doesn’t?).
Apart from the three benefits above, a CRM system will streamline your entire process to make your Sales team more effective. Neat features like setting up reminders for key activities, using filters to segment and target specific leads, and being able to see your leads that you haven’t spoken to recently, all provide your salespeople with the ability to do more.
Some CRMs can be clunky, expensive and require extensive training. Fortunately, there are plenty of CRMs readily available that are easy to use, scalable, adaptable to your needs, and more. Do your research and find the system that best suits your business.
