What heads of IT need to know about CRM
CRM often isn’t the right solution for sales and marketing teams. But sometimes it is…
It is unlikely that you will know whether it is…. and it’s unlikely your sales and marketing people will know either.
It’s very likely CRM vendors will tell you that CRM is the right choice.
Be skeptical.
Why?
There are many processes in sales and marketing and many processes in CRM. More so than ever thanks to the growing number of sales and market channels. You need to establish which processes apply to your sales and marketing teams and then match those processes with software. Different CRMs also have subtly different process architecture, however configurable they may be (and that’s another blog… coming soon).
In these scenarios Mayfield Solutions CRM Venn
A is when sales and marketing and CRM processes are aligned and CRM is the right solution. Happy CRM users, who evangelise what it does.
B is when some of the processes are aligned. We all hear about the CRMs that sales use, but they only use 10% of the functionality. But what about all the other activity that isn’t being supported by CRM? Is that being done effectively and efficiently? That’s when you get asked for even more software… and wonder why CRM isn’t helping. Get to the bottom of your processes in the first place and you should get software that covers more bases. It may be a CRM combined with other things but at least you can plan and budget for what you need and not have to dig deeper unexpectedly.
C is the disaster zone. CRM where CRM isn’t what’s needed. This happens. It can be a moneypit or at best a big waste of time. Don’t let it happen to you.
CRM is essential for growing businesses, but it is important to carefully select your CRM partner. This blog article “Don’t Make a CRM Buying Mistake : 7 Points to Consider Before Selecting Your CRM Solution” has advice on selecting a CRM solution. » Commence CRM Blog http://bit.ly/8d8LU6