As web based CRM (also called Hosted CRM or CRM on demand) adoption increases we look at the main issues.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is not a new concept, after all businesses have been managing customer relationships since the dawn of commerce. Yet the problems of systematically collecting and analyzing ever increasing volumes of data and ever more complicated relationships between organizations presents a huge challenge to businesses. On the face of it, CRM software should have been welcomed with open arms by every forward thinking, agile business on the planet. Yet that has not proved to be so: many of the early implementations failed (as many as 80% according to some analysts) and it rapidly became clear that for every $ spent on software, a further $5 was needed for implementation: not a ratio that the average businessman likes and certainly not one they were used to even with the bloated ERP implementation budgets of the late 90s.
Yet the lure of CRM as a solution remains and is a compelling one. If you struggle to find a valid financial case for CRM as an affordable solution...this article is aimed squarely at you...
The basic arguments:
From the initial contact with a customer (be that a new customer or an existing one) to after-sales and service and managing complex projects and implementations, a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution should help you build profitable customer interaction at every stage. The argument now is whether you need that data stored on your internal network or can it work just as well on a web server, perhaps stored thousands of miles away, and accessible through the web via a third party provider. The key to the decision hinges on whether you need close integration with internal systems such as Finance/ERP software. If there is no requirement for that then web based CRM becomes a hugely viable proposition. After all, the idea of selecting, purchasing, testing and implementing an in-house CRM product is a daunting one. Most web based CRM solutions offer free trials and there is no overhead of installation or implementation – it’s all been done for you already. What price a stress-free life?
If your basic goal is to identify, acquire and retain the most valuable and most growable customers to your business, why spend time implementing costly software? Why not simply sign up and use the service thereby freeing up your time to do the core tasks of your business?
Similarly, over-stretched IT departments often have CRM somewhere around the bottom of their most-important list; principally because they are not normally customer-facing people and so don’t often understand the importance or the concepts of a well run CRM system. Furthermore their focus is on buying technologically compatible systems with what they already have: common sense in terms of network management but hardly a bold strategy aimed at propelling the organization forward on a wave of customer satisfaction!
The complete Web-enabled CRM solution
Web based CRM solutions are also known as Extranets and also CRM Portals – but the outcome is the same: a unified interface used by your sales team, customer service staff and customers alike to record leads, contacts and all interactions. With current web based CRM developments you can even have your CRM system customized to look like an extension of your web site.
It is important to select a solution that goes beyond basic contact management and sales lead tracking. Most forward-thinking businesses take a “cradle-to-grave” approach to customer management so the ability to track post-sales transactions (such as service calls etc) is vital. Documentation capability is also a must: the ability to link, say, a sales quotation to the specific sales opportunity can be a deal clincher as it demonstrates control and efficiency whilst in front of customers. Similarly the availability of service information to sales teams and sales information to service staff makes your organization look “joined up” to your prospects.
It all goes to set the bar that little bit higher for your competition – surely a good thing.
What you can expect to gain from a web based CRM solution:
- The ability to maintain a secure sales and customer service operation which enable employees to share information between each other and even with customers so that sales success and service satisfaction improves.
- Fewer employees will be needed in managing processes due to automated processing freeing them up to be more proactive in the sales cycle.
- Uniform handling of all customers, and shared resources for sales and service team operations, means that every contact will be structured and tracked. This obviously reduces management requirements
- Reduction of direct costs of ownership because there is no software or hardware purchase: costs are better controlled.
- Reduction in training costs; typically web based CRM solutions are set up so that they are intuitive and easy to use with excellent help.
- An increase in morale and motivation: this is hard to put a $ value on but you can be certain that it is a huge factor in the success of the system. Give your front-line people the right tools to do their job and watch the sales improve, the customer retention rates increase and the staff attitudes soar.
Web based CRM solutions are now a well established fact of the IT landscape and every analyst seems to point to an exponential growth in their adoption in the next few years. The arguments are compelling and the model proven: organizations who are not exploring these options will surely lag behind their competitors.
Chic McSherry
CEO
iport4business.com
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