Tag Archive for: Customer Relationship Management

How to Save Customer Relationships in COVID-19 and Beyond

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced businesses to maintain and build relationships with consumers from a distance. With “the new normal”, businesses are now facing a challenge of generating sales during a period of extreme economic hardship while keeping the threats to life and livelihood that have altered consumer priorities and preferences in mind.

Businesses that cannot supply the demand of their stakeholders are struggling, some might even be closing their doors, while some are learning how to adapt and pushing past this crisis. The rapidly spreading of businesses shutting down has proven the advantage of digital technology and readiness also shown how software platforms enable work to be done remotely. Whether for telecommuting, product fulfillment, or service delivery, modern technology systems have helped optimized operations in the face of limited person-to-person contact to comply with social distancing.

Here are four ways to manage your customer relationships during and post a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic:

  1. Help Your Customers by Guiding Them Through the Changes: Stay ahead of the information curve. Set up robust media monitoring systems to stay educated on the outbreak. Offer your customers online learning opportunities. To keep your customer relationships strong during COVID-19, provide your customers with intelligence, guidance, and direction that makes your value delivery a seamless interaction. Stay on top of and ahead of all shifts, and provide regular updates on closings, delays, product changes, and promotions to keep your clientele informed and appeased. Learn what your audience needs and help them discover how your service will best help in these trying times.
  • Run webinars
  • Use media monitoring software
  1. Empathize and Communicate Like a Human: Provide employees with messaging to share with customers and partners. Be truthful about what you don’t know and avoid statements that may prove to be false in the coming weeks, whatever you say to your customers right now has to come from an honest place while still respecting their boundaries. Be mindful of how your service affects your clients, and how COVID-19 is affecting their lives and their own business.
  • Create a landing page dedicated to your clients during these trying times with FAQ’s, You can easily take a news plugin for this function.
  • I recommend enabling external comment functionality for improved feedback from customers.
  • Allow your customer service and sales teams to offer reduced prices or increased services during this time to customers.
  1. Keep What Works But Adapt Quickly: Some companies may have advanced their digitalization capabilities in the past few years. These companies are likely experiencing, only a moderate impact due to the global coronavirus pandemic. Shifting your operations to remote work via online conferencing and communication tools like Zoom and Slack, most projects can continue. 

During the disruption, operational challenges need solutions, cash management and liquidity need to be adjusted for the changes in demand. Communications and leadership must also be expanded into the digital space. If your company was not online before, it’s likely online now. In a fast-paced marketplace, shopping for new technology solutions may help some companies. Most companies’ issues resulting from the disruption due to worldwide efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 will need quick fixes and solutions, but for some, it might be the beginning of new problems.

  1. Leverage Technology to Generate Value for Your Customers:  In collaboration with marketing automation tools, you need to ensure they are integrated with channels where data can be pulled from. Once you have your data, it needs to be analyzed and segmented to an individual level and then utilized for personalized customer communication via marketing automation. Every part of this process should be talking to all the other parts for maximum efficiency, information, and results. Depending on your business your data collection channels can be CRM, Website, Email marketing platform, Mobile app, Event management tool, Social media, Online Store, or an ERP system.

Conclusion

During the pandemic having accurate data is key, it helps in making decisions based on your business’s day to day operations. Your goal as a business leader during this time should be to increase customer engagement and position yourself as a reliable, value-add partner who goes above and beyond during difficult times.

With an app like Commercient SYNCyou can grow your business from anywhere in the world using cloud software, automate sales, and become a fully digital business. Commercient’s SYNC’s application makes it possible to see your ERP data in your CRM and vice-versa since it can be used on any device. In addition to this, you will need a way to ensure that you have access to accurate, complete, and up to date data in your ERP and CRM.

Talk to us now to get on the digital business train!

7 CRM Best Practices That Every Business Needs To Know

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems can still be a mystery to new companies big or small. New businesses may not be aware of the importance of a CRM integration, which allows companies to make the most out of their data and investment. 

In this era of digital information, real-time data is your most important asset. The relationship between you and your customers is at the heart of your business, it’s important to keep it alive. CRM software is changing the way businesses interact with customers since it gives you a 360-degree view of the sales cycle. Many companies are already investing in CRM technology, which include Salesforce or Microsoft Dynamics 365. CRM software is essential to assure a successful engagement with clients. You can keep track of contact information, buying preferences, sales patterns and much more. 

Improved customer service and a well-managed relationship leads to a personalization of the customer experience. The clients feel as if they are much more than simply buyers of a product or service. This generates a feeling of genuine connection with the company and promotes loyalty.

While 81% of organizations agree that data should be at the heart of all decision-making, at the same, 32% of businesses admit being overwhelmed by data (EY and Nimbus Ninety). That’s why a CRM system is a huge asset for your company, which allows you to be more efficient and get more insights towards a data-driven and profitable business. 

How to choose the right Customer Relationship Management software for your business?

The decision to invest in a software solution shouldn’t be taken lightly. It’s important to put some extra time and effort into research. There are steps you can take to ensure that you are choosing the best CRM software for your company:

– Know your business goals and requirements. First answer some important questions. Every business is different and every issue needs a unique solution. Therefore, you should identify the problems you want to solve, understand your sales process and how it can be improved. The more questions you ask yourself, your co-workers and your employees the closer you are to choosing the ideal CRM that fits your company’s needs. 

– On-premise or cloud-based? Be aware that one of the most important decisions you need to make when it comes to investing in a software solution is choosing between a CRM on-premises system, or a cloud-based (SaaS) system. The hardware-based option needs to be installed and operated from an in-house server and computing infrastructure. It utilizes a company’s native resources and you will also need in-house IT support staff if you experience technical issues. However, this option doesn’t fit the need of having easy access to real-time data. Meanwhile, the Cloud-based (SaaS) option gives you a little more freedom as it doesn’t require physical installation. It is enabled remotely and you won’t need in-house technicians to solve issues. One of the advantages of this option is that you can go fully mobile. It allows your sales team to have instant access to information anytime and anywhere. 

How to get as much value of your data as possible

Using your CRM wisely can do wonders to improve your sales pipeline. Be careful to not embark on this technology unprepared. Any new software you bring into your company will require proper setup and training. 

Here are some CRM best practices you should consider when implementing a new system.

  1. Help your team embrace the new system. Yes, we know: old habits die hard. CRM adoption can be tricky as it often involves a change in organizational culture. According to reports, 40% of employees don’t know what a CRM solution is or how to use it. In the beginning, your team might be skeptical about change, but you need to make sure that all your team members are on board and have the necessary training to use it effectively. It takes time and requires reinforcement until it becomes a habit. The benefits are for the long term.

  1. Automate as many tasks as possible. Make sure that your CRM technology is indeed fulfilling the purpose of making your life easier. Automate as many tasks as possible. Take advantage of the workflow automation features of a CRM. Eliminate repetitive data entry, avoid human errors and help your team become more efficient. Ensure well-designed reporting and data-driven decisions from day one.
  1. Always keep customer information updated. You and your team probably have practices in place to optimize data entry, get reports and use data to improve sales metrics. It is important to update your customer data as soon as new information has been collected. The data provided by your CRM system is valuable customer insight. But it’s only useful if it’s stored and understood in an efficient way. 
  1. Define goals and KPIs. Clear goals and objectives are crucial for CRM adoption. A CRM strategy will only be successful if companies have clarity about what they want to achieve. Therefore it’s important to set goals and KPIs to evaluate them. Once these are set up, you’ll be able to track your progress, customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.
  1. Go big! Integrate CRM with other business software. Incorporating your current CRM to other programs makes it an even more powerful tool. Why not integrate your ERP and CRM software together? Commercient SYNC, the #1 data integration platform for sales, is the right solution to do so. CRM integration is one of the best ways to gain a competitive advantage nowadays. 
  1. Learn from analytics. Use data to understand your sales cycle. A salesperson that already knows a client’s profile has a better chance of closing a deal. One of the greatest advantages of having a CRM system is to analyze customer behavior. Why spend time and resources on a campaign that is not connecting with the customer? A business can learn from a successful strategy and also from a failed one.
  1. Keep an eye on the latest trends that could improve your own CRM setup. Constantly update your CRM software to the latest versions and don’t miss out on the new trends such as artificial intelligence. If possible make your software mobile. It is very important to implement a CRM that can be accessed across multiple devices.

So no matter if it is a big or a small business, a CRM system is a great asset. It’s vital to use the right software that allows you to strengthen the relationship with your customers. Get rid of tedious workflows and let technology help your business thrive.  Make the most out of your investment by choosing a powerful CRM. Integrate your sales and accounting software in order to boost profitability and increase efficiency. Let Commercient SYNC guide you through it and start enjoying the benefits of a long and happy relationship with your clients. Contact us now.

Tips To Increase CRM Adoption Rates

One of the biggest challenges businesses face in implementing CRM is getting users to actually use the system. In fact, less than 40% of CRM projects have full scale end-user adoption, per CSO Insights. So, what can you do to ensure a higher end-user adoption rate for your next CRM project? Here are a few ways you can increase CRM adoption rates for successful implementation.

Make Sure It’s Easy To Use

If you want your users to embrace your CRM software, you must make sure it’s easy to use. According to Salesforce, about 72% of CRM users say they would trade functional complexity for a simple CRM that is easier to use. The truth is, a complex and confusing CRM system will steal valuable time from your salespeople and will only cause frustration. So, you should make every effort to choose a system that doesn’t have too much of a learning curve. In essence, your CRM system should be as easy to use as Commercient’s out-of-the-box SYNC Data Integration App; it’s so easy to use, your grandmother could do it.

Get Buy-In From User

Another way you can increase CRM adoption rates is get your users actively involved. You should get feedback from them to determine what features and functions they would like to see in your CRM system. By allowing your end-users to have a voice in the CRM implementation planning process, they will be more encouraged to invest time and extra effort in making your CRM a success.

Get Buy-In From Management

Not only should you get buy-in from your users, but you should ensure that you have 100% buy-in from your executive team. Senior level management should be engaged at every step of the process, making sure the project stays on course. Studies show that a lack of senior management support is one of the biggest reasons why CRM projects fail.

Integrate Your CRM

To increase CRM end-user adoption rates, you should also consider integrating your CRM system. You’ll be glad to know that CRM software works with all types of third-party solutions, so that all your data is streamlined throughout different areas of your business. It means that you don’t have to manually export or import data between, for instance, your CRM and ERP systems. Our SYNC data integration App allows you to integrate your ERP data with your CRM, and helps your business become more efficient. By integrating your CRM system, you will save time that you would have spent performing repetitive tasks.

Train Your Employees

According to Todd Wickens, engagement manager at SWC Technology Partners, an IT consulting firm, “Employees will be more inclined to adopt this system if they are eased into it.” If you want your customer relationship management project to be successful, and you want a higher rate of end-user CRM adoption, you should provide adequate training so that all your team is up to speed before they use the system. You should provide ongoing training to new employees, or those who may need a refresher course, as well as to introduce new features.

Want to know more about our SYNC App and how you can integrate your CRM to increase end-user adoption rates? Check out our Commercient SYNC page.

Datos de servicio al cliente que te sorprenderán

Estamos viviendo la era del consumidor, y en este artículo hablaremos de algunos datos de servicio al cliente que quizá no conocías, y te sorprenderán.

Dato #1: Las malas experiencias del cliente se difunden más rápido que las buenas.

Según un estudio de American Express, “las personas hablan con un promedio de 9 personas sobre una buena experiencia de cliente, pero hablan con otras 16 si la experiencia ha sido mala”. Casi el doble de personas. La buena noticia es que puedes evitarlo aprovechando recursos como las aplicaciones de integración de datos SYNC y IoT Pulse. Tu staff podrá acceder a la información de los clientes en tiempo real, por lo cual los clientes no tendrán que esperar horas o días para recibir las respuestas que necesitan.

Dato #2: Clientes leales son más rentables que los nuevos.

Marketing Metrics encontró que la probabilidad de convertir a un nuevo prospecto en cliente es de 5% a 20%, mientras que la probabilidad de venderle a clientes actuales es de un 60% a 70%. Por esta razón es tan importante interactuar de manera efectiva con esos clientes, ya que pueden ayudarte a traer más clientes gracias a la publicidad de boca en boca y referidos. Así que mientras más satisfechos estén, más motivados estarán de hablar con otros acerca de sus experiencias trabajando contigo.

Dato #3: Los clientes están dispuestos a invertir más por una mejor experiencia.

Un estudio de American Express señala que el 70% de los estadounidenses están dispuestos a invertir más en compañías que ellos consideran que proveen un excelente servicio al cliente. Cuando les demuestras que los valoras, los clientes naturalmente se sienten apreciados y tienen una conexión más fuerte con tu negocio. Como resultado, estarán dispuestos a pagar más por tus productos y servicios.

Para Commercient, la satisfacción del cliente es prioridad #1 y valoramos a todos y cada uno de nuestros clientes. Sea que necesiten información sobre SYNC, IoT Pulse, Sync2Pay o  nuestros Partnership Programs, estamos a una llamada, chat, or email de distancia.

Dato #4: Más y más clientes usan chat en vivo.

Según un estudio de Forrester, el porcentaje de clientes que han utilizado chat en vivo para contactar a servicio al cliente ha crecido de un 38% en 2009 a un 58% en 2014, y esta tendencia se mantiene al alza. Así que si aún no tienes una opción de chat en vivo en tu sitio web, deberías considerar invertir en ello. En Commercient, tratamos de que nuestros actuales y potenciales clientes utilicen la opción de chat en vivo porque es conveniente para ellos y además nos ayuda a ofrecer algo que muchos competidores aún no hacen.