| CRM software solutions have progressed | | | | specific campaigns, improve conversion rates and |
| considerably in recent times. While the key ingredient in | | | | measure ROI on that campaign. |
| a successful system is always the design and planning, | | | | - Sales force and sales management productivity will |
| the software solution can also make or break your | | | | increase with a more simplified and easier access to |
| CRM. The first step is to plan your system based on | | | | greater information on each client/prospect to give a |
| your needs - and then match a best of breed solution | | | | view of the end to end sales process. |
| that best fits those requirements. | | | | - Customer information is shared and easily used |
| Obtaining expert knowledge of the market leading | | | | across your sales, marketing and customer-service |
| CRM platforms is critical if you want a truly tailored | | | | divisions. |
| CRM system - designed to improve your business | | | | HostedCRM or SaaS (Software as a Service) |
| from day one, and be robust enough to grow as your | | | | - Web based CRM is a simple customer relationship |
| business grows. | | | | management solution for growing businesses. |
| What is CRM?CRM stands for Customer Relationship | | | | - In a hosted environment, all the software, hardware, |
| Management. You can find a number of different | | | | and technical support and administration are made |
| definitions for CRM. CRM does not stand still; it evolves | | | | available by the CRM hosting provider via the internet. |
| as "CRM solutions" and is used in a greater number of | | | | Some of the advantages of hostedCRM include: |
| ways. This has now been termed xRM - Anything | | | | - You gain all the benefits of a more traditional CRM |
| Relationship Management. | | | | solution, but the maintenance and support of the |
| CRM is a process or methodology used to learn more | | | | infrastructure is managed by your web based CRM |
| about customers' needs and behaviours in order to | | | | provider. |
| develop stronger relationships with them. There are | | | | - A distributed workforce is able to work more |
| many technological components to CRM, but thinking | | | | effectively satisfying customers with the most up to |
| about CRM in primarily technological terms is a | | | | date client information. This works particularly well for a |
| mistake. Traditionally, the more useful way to think | | | | mobile sales team needed to keep track of orders. |
| about CRM is as a process that will help bring together | | | | - HostedCRM solution is a cost effective solution as |
| lots of pieces of information about customers, sales, | | | | you pay a monthly subscription. |
| marketing effectiveness, responsiveness and market | | | | Customer Service |
| trends. | | | | - Call Centre Software allows you to manage a large |
| CRM helps businesses use technology and human | | | | number of calls. By queuing calls and processing them |
| resources to gain insight into the behaviour of | | | | as quickly as possible you can maintain high levels of |
| customers and the value of those customers. | | | | service. |
| Using CRM, a business can: | | | | - Help Desk Software helps you manage problems |
| - Provide better customer service | | | | and enables a quick response to your customers or |
| - Increase customer revenues | | | | employees. By having a repository of problems and |
| - Discover new customers | | | | resolutions, you create a knowledgebase for faster |
| - Cross sell/Up Sell products more effectively | | | | issue resolution. Additionally, you can create problem |
| - Help sales staff close deals faster | | | | escalation processes and service level agreements |
| - Make call centres more efficient | | | | (SLA) and report on them. |
| - Simplify marketing and sales processes CRM | | | | - Service Desk Software is the evolution of Help Desk |
| software traditionally has a number of 'out-of-the-box' | | | | Software. By incorporating ITIL best practices with |
| modules that can be turned on and off. Each vendor | | | | management best practice, Service Desk Software |
| application has different features. | | | | now does more than resolve a 'Case' or 'Incident'. |
| Sales Force AutomationMost companies today look to | | | | Partner Relationship Management |
| achieving the highest levels of efficiency. With CRM, | | | | Contract management software automates the |
| they are able to automate various tasks that can be | | | | contracting process from contract creation, through |
| made available to anyone involved in customer service. | | | | tracking, managing, compliance and renewal. |
| This includes direct sales staff, management, | | | | Distribution Management Software enables you to |
| accounting, ordering and customer service. Automating | | | | work more effectively with your partners by creating, |
| your sales force means you can free up time spent | | | | tracking and managing your distributorships and |
| on repetitive tasks, and use that time more effectively. | | | | partnerships.xRMxRM (Anything Relationship |
| Considering sales force automation, you need to | | | | Management) has evolved from CRM. Today, |
| answer of a few basic questions: | | | | companies require a more integrated approach to |
| - What tasks are my staff doing repeatedly | | | | managing their business and a key component of this |
| - How much time is spent on this task | | | | is the access to mission-critical applications and |
| - Can the "thinking" be easily defined? | | | | information. As such they are managing anything (X) in |
| - Does the human element make the task more | | | | their organisation going beyond just the customer |
| correct or more likely to contain errors? There are a | | | | relationships. |
| number of primary benefits of sales force automation: | | | | Essentially xRM does not distinguish between the |
| - Storing contacts allows you to track and manage | | | | traditional customer view and your "internal" customers. |
| your clients and prospects with an up to the minute | | | | Having uniformity in the entire process, regarding all |
| view of where they are in the sales cycle. | | | | those in your company involved in satisfying your |
| - Managing sales leads is often difficult, but essential to | | | | clients requirements requires uniformity of data, |
| the health of a company. Being able to forecast and | | | | applications and processes accessible at all times from |
| track leads in your sales pipeline enables you to have | | | | a single place.xRM is a strategic approach to |
| a clear understanding of predicting your revenue and | | | | systemizing how your business runs in the most |
| profit. | | | | cost-effective and customer oriented manner. |
| - Lead management can assist you to manage | | | | |