Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software is more important than ever. It has become the age of the customer, at least according to Forrester Research. Customers, now more than ever, have a way of communicating their happiness or their displeasure with your company’s products/services. Consumers, essentially, are able to dictate how they can communicate with you (phone, email, social media, etc) and also choose how they wish to receive information (flyers, mailers, email, etc). That makes the relationship you have with your customers all the more important now compared to years past.
With this great shift, your business needs a way to be able to track all this information. Hence the reason CRM software is necessary. There are three topics to observe: data analytics, customer engagement, and the customer experience.
Analyzing Data
Your decisions have to be made on the results of the data you receive. You can have the best idea in the world, but if the results aren’t there, then you need to move on. Ultimately, the results have to drive you in the right direction. That being said, there is a lot of data out there to analyze. There is no way one individual will be able to take it all on. You’ll want to have a team to collaborate, and eventually come up with suggestions. The answers won’t always be clear. It’s important to be able to manipulate or play with the data until it’s showing you how best to proceed with an action plan. Don’t get discouraged. It will take time.
Customer Engagement
It’s important to engage customers on their preferred platform, whether it is by phone, email, social media, etc. You have to engage them on whatever makes them comfortable. That could be a big factor for some customers. Consumers bounce around from company to company a lot. Think about it. How many times have you changed car insurance companies because you were getting a better rate? I’m willing to bet you’ve changed at least a few times. Everything can be a factor, but if you give outstanding customer service and engage them how they prefer, then you will make it hard for them to leave you. Otherwise, it won’t matter how great your CRM and data analytics are if you don’t have any customers.
Customer Experience
Obviously, the customer experience will always be a critical component of success. This will never change. You must be able to create and manage expectations for customers in a realistic manner. Setting expectations too high will lead to disappointment and alienating customers. People seem to have a lot less patience these days and a very short attention span. It is crucial to give them the most accurate information as possible in the most condensed way. Never over promise and under deliver!
To summarize, the three focus points are: data analytics, customer engagement, and the customer experience. Hitting the mark on each of these three topics is important to your success, and therefore utilizing proper CRM software is important. Make sure you log the proper information needed to make your business a successful one.