Using CRM solutions can decrease time spent on analysing data and get your business back to delivering what your customer wants Source: Shutterstock.com

Put the CRM back into your SMB and see your business grow

SALESFORCE’S recent Small and Medium Business Trends Report revealed customer relationship management (CRM) solutions need to be utilized to see growth of small and medium businesses (SMBs).

A survey of 490 small and midsized business owners and leaders in the US, conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Salesforce, revealed that growing businesses are 36 percent more likely to make CRM a priority, than businesses that are seeing a decline in customer growth and revenue.

CRM solutions are predicted to grow to over US$44 billion in sales over the next eight years, so this is the perfect opportunity for you to get rid of archaic spreadsheets and utilize the systems on offer, to see customer loyalty and revenue growth, because after all, the customers pay the bills.

The report acknowledges that 95 percent of the SMBs polled track customer data. However, 62 percent are using email, and 53 percent use spreadsheets, to collate and attempt to understand customer data. Whilst these methods aren’t entirely futile, they don’t maximize the potential of lucrative customer experience that will see revenues grow.

“Customers today have high expectations and are 78 percent more likely to switch brands when those expectations aren’t met. While tracking customer information in email and spreadsheets might work in the beginning, it simply isn’t scalable,” said Marie Rosecrans, senior vice president of SMB marketing at Salesforce.

“The time it takes to manually input data takes away from time that could be spent building strong customer relationships and delivering customer success.”

Through cultivating lasting relationships with customers, you can eliminate the main reason clients leave businesses – because of poor attitude and indifference on the part of the service provider. Knowing your customers’ needs is imperative.

“With a CRM, small businesses can automate basic tasks, such as capturing contact information and activities, and quickly surface insights, such as which deals they should prioritize or customers need attention, enabling them to work smarter and focus more time on what matters most—delivering great customer experiences,” Rosecrans added.

While evaluating technology products, 95 percent of SMBs said ease of use was important. Price was also a major consideration, along with straightforward setup, and easy maintenance, according to the report.

There is an inexpensive variety of CRM solutions specifically designed for SMBs. Highly recommended is BPM’Online. The CRM solutions company is a powerful, multi-award-winning software solution provider for marketing, sales, and service automation, available both as a cloud solution and on-premise.

However, this may not be economically viable for smaller businesses. But fear not, as there are plenty angled at helping the smaller end of the SMB category.

amoCRM for example, is more than just a traditional CRM, as it has been designed for eliminating lost leads and increasing sales conversions. This cloud-based solution helps you in managing your sales pipeline, coordinating your sales team, analyzing sales patterns, or creating custom analytics and reports.

CRM is not a one-off installation, and like anything related to product and business growth, CRM needs to be worked-at and maintained. With 62 percent of respondents saying CRM system training would help them improve operations, it is imperative that you implement a CRM solution that works for you.