CRM Adoption: What makes for long term CRM success?
CRM adoption is a topic that has been around from day one and has seen many iterations of the good, bad and ugly when it comes to what adoption factors work.
The reality is that people still sell to people so it goes that the human interaction with CRM can’t be ignored or swept under the rug. So rather than focusing on what the technology will do, let’s look at how to make CRM more in sync to how people sell, and what they need to sell, to improve adoption success.
Sales Personnel:
The job of modern selling now demands a number of practical skills, CRM is one of them. If sales personnel are resistant to CRM, they are simply not a good fit for the organization.
- They must like to use and are comfortable with selling in a technology enabled environment and the efficiencies CRM brings
- They are wholly invested in the value of and the work needed to maintain the customer relationship, and not just a sale
- The CRM is designed so that they learn from the data, make a profit with it and not just input data
The Company:
From a company perspective, it has to wring out the inefficiencies and excuses with not using CRM.
- Insist that CRM is essential to meet their objectives, no exceptions
- Company must be focused top down on maximizing the customer relationship, not spreadsheets or historical transactional data
- Have a definitive plan and objective with each part of CRM and how it benefits the sales personnel
- Make CRM clear, concise and profitable e.g. what will be gained at every stage
MosaicCRM Experts Corner
We have learned that if the sales personnel and company are doing their part, it is essential that the CRM be designed to compliment that business process and structure.What this means is that each CRM program must exemplify usability and value:
- Apply only the tools that make the result more effective
- Ignore anything that doesn’t improve sales/profit
- Eliminate, table and squash any distractions
- Make pipeline design and management clear, concise, easy
- Design CRM to cultivate the customer relationship e.g. focus on the individual
- Automate everything that assists in customer buying cycle and sales cycle management
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Written by
Bill Noonan, CEO MosaicCRM
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Pre-CRM Planning Tips for SMB’s
I’ve put together this slide presentation that covers a number of key elements that can help in your CRM Plan or Re-Start program. Some of the topics include Beware of ‘Quick and Easy’ CRM promotions, The Human Factors, Competition Applications, Abilities, Resources and Sales Process Design, Budgeting and more.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
CRM right begins with asking the right questions.
I have written this comprehensive discussion points guide that covers topics that no CRM vendor wants to ask mainly because they can’t pass you off to a junior menu list type techie. That’s because with this guide you will know a lot more about what it takes to meet your CRM objectives and be able to clearly demonstrate how to get there. Far too many CRM vendors won’t put in that sort of time. We do.
What this worksheet creates is the right atmosphere for discussion and strategy building your CRM. Let me know if it would help you on your CRM journey. Use the ‘Contact Us’ form and I would be pleased to email it to you.
Bill
______________________________________________________________________________________________
