Odds are, even if your company is not a business, you have heard about Customer Relation Management software. If you haven’t heard of Customer Relation Management software, or more commonly known as CRM, it is a powerful technology for managing and supporting customer relationships. But what if you don’t have customers because you're a B2B business, or perhaps you're a non-profit? Fret not, CRM is still for you. Just because you do not have the traditional customer, or you have no customers at all, a CRM can still work wonders for you and your team.
Lots of people view CRM through the point of view of sales, and when an organization’s operation does not include sales, they believe that they do not need a CRM. This is false because a CRM is so much more important than sales. Deals and clients who need to be pushed through some sort of process, need automation, tracking, and logging just as much as a potential sales customer.
Reason 1: Spreadsheets are hurting your operations.
Google Sheets, Excel Sheets, etc. should not be used in replacement of a CRM for any business! It almost goes without saying, but running your business on google sheets will almost certainly lead to disasters, even if your organization is small. CRM’s do more than track a prospective lead’s journey to closing a deal, they keep a central hub of truth and knowledge about all of your contacts that your team can access. Outside of the business world, it is very important to keep consistent conversation with clients across different teams.
When contacts are only being communicated with by one team, it creates an opportunity for that contact to repeatedly get the same information over and over again. This causes frustration and could lead to the loss of a business deal. With a central source of truth, your team and other teams will be able to see what information has been given out, and what still needs to be communicated.
Reason 2: Email logging
Email logging is something that even the best spreadsheets cannot do for you. Say your organization is a non-profit, looking for donors. It is best that anyone who attempts to contact a prospect for donation is still following the best practices, even though those best practices were created for sales strategies. At the end of the day people want to be treated consistently and not have to explain to the organization what they have already spoken about.
Reason 3: Deals
Tracking and creating deals is a CRM tool that can be used to any organization’s advantage. A deal is created when you have spoken to a contact, via email or otherwise, and there is potential for revenue. This could be a multitude of things, not just the traditional sales customer. Deals can be created between two businesses or organizations. Deals could also be a potential donation from a philanthropic foundation. They are versatile, and useful to any type of org. They let your entire team know that there is potential for revenue, and that a deal is in the making. This can prevent miscommunications or communication failures between your team and the prospective lead.
Reason 4: Data Loss Protection.
Turnover does not mean disappeared data. If you have been operating for a while without a CRM, then you are probably already familiar with this misfortunate happening. When an employee leaves, a lot of the time, they take important files with them. Leaving the person who is replacing them to start for scratch. With CRM, all of that data will remain on the software, serving as your organization’s central source of truth.
Contacts can either be available to an entire team or to specific members of your team. If contacts are owned by one person, and that person left the company or organization, you can easily transfer that contact over to another member of your team. This makes transitioning a relationship a lot less painful. The member of your team will be able to see emails, notes, and deals made with the contact and quickly be up to speed on the progress of that relationship. This will greatly improve your customer service and satisfaction.
Reason 5: Analyzing data.
It doesn’t matter if you are a business or any other type of organization, you have data that needs to be analyzed. The good news is that CRM does this for you, saving you and your team hundreds of work hours per year. Analyzed data, as I am sure you already know, is a powerful tool that will guide your operations. CRM makes this easy, so any member of your team can understand.
Whether it is email open rates for a newsletter launched by your organization, or search engine optimization, CRM can enable you to figure out a best practices strategy. When you have a central source of truth, you can rest assured that the data is accurate because all communications are being logged. CRMs are not only convenient, they are powerful reporting and analyzing tools. This is not just essential for businesses, it is essential for non-profits, charities, and other institutions.
If you put CRM into your budget, the return on investment will be soon to follow. A CRM such as HubSpot allows you to choose which “hubs” you need. This way you will not be paying for features that you do not need or use. If you find that you need more “hubs” that you originally intended, then upgrading your plan is simple. If you think you will need CRM help, whether you are thinking about investing in CRM or expanding it, we offer our expert help. Get started today by signing up for a free portal audit. We can evaluate your CRM to see if you are getting the most out of your investment, and give you our help if you are not.
