Warning Signs Your Company Needs a CRM

As humans, we often become complacent with how things currently operate and assume that everything is alright simply because it’s functioning. However, it’s important to evaluate whether there is room for improvement.

For businesses, this is especially crucial since any changes they make can carry the risk of losing revenue. But despite this risk, implementing a CRM system can be a risk worth taking because of the potential benefits it can bring.

This article is designed to assist you in recognizing warning signals that suggest your company may require a CRM system.

Low Rates of Productivity and Efficiency

Manual processes like spreadsheets and data entry are tedious and waste a lot of time. However, with a CRM, those manual processes are automated and therefore eliminated from the day-to-day to-do list. CRM can automate any repetitive tasks, data entry and display email chains and other communications all in one place to increase efficiency.

Poor Interdepartmental Communication and Collaboration

If working in a silo, your departments can often lose track of what the others are doing resulting in a breakdown of interdepartmental communication and collaboration. This can have the worst impact on your customers who may find themselves being bounced around from department to department receiving misinformation and getting confused. Worst yet, they will then have to explain their issues every time they speak to a different department frustrating the customer. But with a CRM the entire company will have access to each customer’s profile and lifecycle allowing every department to stay on top of customer needs.

Lack of Individual Accountability

Without a system of accountability, things can fall through the cracks. Salespeople can claim “it wasn’t their job” when there is a missed customer opportunity but the fact of the matter is that no one took the initiative to contact the prospect. With a CRM everyone can see all of the assigned prospects and every single customer interaction is logged. This way you have a clear picture of where things went wrong and who was responsible.

Little To No Data Analysis

The more you know about your clients and prospects the better. However, to know more, you need more data. Oftentimes, businesses already have this data ready and available but they just don’t know what to do with it. A comprehensive CRM can analyze your data for you creating reports and pointing you in the right direction. These analyzed insights are invaluable when trying to fulfill customer needs.

Low Customer Satisfaction

Low customer satisfaction is a big red flag and an opportunity for your competition to swoop in and poach your clients. If you have noticed a trend of low customer satisfaction it may be time for a change and that change can be a CRM. CRM’s allow you to manage customer experiences. For example, you can identify the way each of your customers prefers to communicate i.e. by call, email, or chat, and it will keep a log of such communications so that each new representative your customers interact with will be abreast of any current or past issues they have. Staying a step ahead of your customer can result in quick resolution and shows that you care about them individually.

Missing Leads and Sales Opportunities

With manual tracking, it is harder to track prospects through the sales funnel which may result in dropped leads, especially if your sales process isn’t clear and concise. With your CRM you can automate several of your sales process steps like follow up emails etc. Also, your CRM will store all information and communications on the lead’s profile so that you can always easily pick up wherever you left off.

Slow Business Growth

If your business is growing at a much slower rate than anticipated it may be time to look into your processes and consider investing in software that will make you more efficient. The answer may be to invest in an intuitive CRM system. However, you may not know which platform to pick considering the size of your business and the number of clients. The good news is that most CRMs not only have pricing models that account for business size and customer load but they also grow with you as your business grows. If you start with 10 customers and grow to 1000 your CRM will be growing right alongside you.

While change is hard, sometimes it can be good and even necessary. If you are seeing any of the warning signs mentioned above it may be time to consider adopting CRM software into your business to streamline your workflows and propel your company toward success.

Need help getting started? Reach out to our certified CRM experts today!