Third in a series…
CRM is based on a philosophy of building deep, meaningful relationships with customers to capture lifetime value. We’ve discussed how successful CRM really begins with strategy not software. We’ve also discussed that when we define what makes a “good customer,” we can develop marketing plans to solicit more of them and grow more business from existing customers. An effective sales lead manage (SLM) program enables us to 
distribute, follow-up, track and capitalize on leads generated from our marketing efforts and better engage customers and prospects. SLM programs address a critical function under the larger CRM umbrella, so how do we choose the right SLM/CRM tools?
Google “CRM” you will get over 35,000,000 results. The list of CRM vendors is long and growing and includes the large companies like Salesforce.com, Siebel, Oracle, SAP, SalesLogix, MicrosoftCRM, and others. Smaller vendors include Avenue, ACT, Goldmine, and Landslide to name a few. A handful of companies, like SugarCRM, offer “open source” CRM program code that enable companies to install and customize a CRM program on their own servers. Our company, Ultimate Lead Systems, provides a customizable, hosted, sales lead management and CRM as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) or “CLOUD” solution and customer service team for set-up, backend processing, programming, and support.
CRM/SLM vendors offer everything from highly complex, enterprise level apps integrated with ERP programs to simpler, stand-alone applications for smaller companies with a smaller number of users. Prices range from less than $10/user/month to well over $100/user/month. Some programs are complex and require sophisticated IT staffs for installation and to maintain and include everything plus the “kitchen sink”. It is easy to become overwhelmed with the choices and costs will vary widely. So let’s revisit your CRM strategy and some of the things you hope to accomplish and want to consider:
Let’s start with the basics. You will want to implement a SLM/CRM program that provides for following:
- Capturing all customer and related profile data.
- Capturing contacts for each account.
- Capturing sales call history for each customer and contact.
- Capturing, managing and tracking sales leads and follow-up results.
- Ranking customers for value and potential
- Basic sales forecasting
- Tracking sales projections and activity by sales rep, geography, product, and market.
- Tracking results from promotion activities
You may also want to consider more sophisticated functionality like:
- Managing and tracking email and other promotion campaigns.
- Linking to internal databases like ERP for customer information.
- Linking to external databases like Blue Book, UCC, Hoovers, etc.
- RFQ tracking
- Social media activity
- Tracking of user activity
Two additional considerations that should be emphasized are:
- Ease-of-use (If the program is too complicated to use it won’t be used.)
- Training support (Not just on how to use the program, but the benefits of using it. Proper training is a mjor factor in SLM/CRM program success and failure rates.)
Forming a team to evaluate available SLM/CRM programs is wise. Include marketing, sales, and other stakeholders on the team to foster later “buy-in” and commitment. What questions should you ask in your investigation? Here are some suggestions:
First, does the application enable us to meet our strategic needs? Is it easy to use? What are the pros and cons of purchasing software vs. subscribing to a hosted service? Who will your CRM administrator be? Who will perform the data entry and file maintenance? Who will install or set-up your program? Can the system be customized? If yes, by whom and for how much? Who will oversee the daily data entry and quality assurance? Who will train your staff? Who do you call when you need support? Would it be simpler or more cost effective to build your own system in-house?
A cost/benefit analysis should be performed after identifying the program that appears to best meet your needs. There are more questions to ask here than first meets the eye. Cost per user is the most obvious, but, in addition, what are the costs for administration and management oversight, daily data processing, customization, programming and ongoing IT support? To look only at cost/user is to overlook the internal administrative and other overhead costs. (and headaches!)
There are some very sophisticated CRM applications on the market and many are tailored to specific industries like finance, healthcare, hospitality, and manufacturing. Many provide far more than most companies need or will likely use. You may find programs that nearly fit your company’s requirements, but are missing an essential component like email campaign management, perhaps. Email campaign management is an important SLM/CRM function today and few applications include their own email tools.
Enhancing our customer relationships requires engaging our customers in the ways they prefer. Email campaign management is a standard tool for providing targeted, meaningful information, special offers, newsletters, product bulletins, and technical information. The information must be relevant to the customers’ interests or be prepared to receive “unsubscribe” requests, or worse yet plan on being ignored (unopened). Don’t forget, by law, your recipients must have “opted-in”. Email campaign management requires a strategy of its own and a dedicated effort for generating regular content and overseeing effective execution.
Big benefits can result from email marketing. Significant savings result from reductions in printing literature, fulfillment, and other mailings. (Consider the savings in time and money that can be realized by simply emailing invoices) Email marketing makes it easier to deliver customer specific content. Good email campaign management programs today make it easy to keep track of what you are sending and to whom, as well as the deliveries, opens, click-throughs, the links recipients are visiting, who is “opting-out” of your list, and who is taking advantage of your offers. More sophisticated apps provide dynamic content based on user profiles and surveys embedded in the emails.
When evaluating your SLM/CRM application options determine if an email campaign management program is included. While you may not use it initially, it can make your life much easier down the road and it beats trying to add one later, or linking to a third party program with an API.
When all is said and done, even with a clear strategy, evaluating available SLM/CRM programs and options is daunting. (Choosing the wrong one can be a career killer.) It makes sense to keep things simple. Buy only what you need and be prepared to make a full commitment. By asking the right questions, some of which have nothing to do with software but administrative issues, you can move more confidently toward your CRM solution. Successful SLM/CRM initiatives require sound strategy, the right tools, effective lead management tools and a clear commitment on the part of management. There are enough things to consider that you may even want to hire an experienced SLM/CRM consultant. If you didn’t already figure it out, we do that, too!
