I have some VERY exciting news and I wanted to share it right away here on our blog. In the coming weeks Jian Software is going to be rolling out a CRM software (Customer Relationship Management) to compliment our other business planning and productivity tools. We will have plenty more details to release soon. Stay tuned!
As we have been developing this solution with our development partner, we have spent quite a bit of time wrapping our arms around the reasons why entrepreneurs and small business owners should use a CRM solution and how they actually use it on a day to day basis. Over the coming weeks we will tackle much of what we have uncovered.
Today, I wanted to briefly touch upon the power of CRM as a customer service tool. A small business creates and builds loyal customers or clients by providing excellent customer service. If a company’s products are comparable to that of the competition, and the features are essentially the same, then the difference often comes down to customer service. CRM software is a key tool for any small business that wants to maintain and expand their link to customers and increase client satisfaction.
The right CRM software will help you keep your clients/customers organized in a logical manner that seamlessly integrates into how you do more business. For example, if a company wants to keep closer track of its larger customers then the software can help separate them out by volume and create a report for follow-up calls.
CRM software can be used to catalog customer product requests. Customers always have ideas and suggestions for changes to products. Rather than discarding or losing these suggestions, a business can now catalog them and use them in future product upgrades.
A personal touch always helps to make a customer feel like he or she is buying from a person rather than just a voice over the phone. Using CRM software to keep track of personal information about clients can help a company personalize the relationship and subsequently develop a stronger sense of loyalty from the client/customer.
The larger a client is, the more complicated its structure. Without CRM software it could be extremely difficult to tie the different divisions or locations of a client together into one unit. Multiple locations can each have their own detailed contact and sales information, while still being grouped under the main company account. The ability to keep contact information for companies with multiple locations organized can help to save money on shipping costs and create a more efficient customer service response to that customer’s needs.
The use of customer management software can help to make sales people more productive. Customer trends can be marked and calls can be scheduled when it is time to sell a customer a new item or a consumable for something they have purchased. Customer preferences can be noted and used each time the sales person talks to a client. Sales people can also put in important notes about specific details that customers prefer so that anyone who talks to that customer can sell based on what the customer needs as opposed to selling blindly.
In a small business you normally have a select group of people wearing many hats. Sales people may be asked to do customer service and product return tasks, and logistics people may be ask to process returned product requests and keep the client informed of any changes. With good CRM software, the process of doing multiple tasks becomes easier for the all staff. All of the notes regarding any customer service or returned product activity is kept with the single client account. The data can easily be accessed when needed, and updated for future use.
One of the ways a small business stays competitive is to find ways to stay organized. Using CRM software not only helps to keep a small business organized, it also helps to make the company run more efficiently.
Let us know how you use your CRM software to better manage your business. Please leave a comment below and we will do our best to integrate your insights and suggestions into our CRM software solution.
