The ideal CRM: completely user-friendly
When you get a new CRM installed and implemented, your IT guys or implementation partner will most probably no configure the application to the needs of each user. From C-level to a sales executive or a marketeer, each CRM user will require a different configuration depending of their position in the organization and their CRM related tasks. Adapting the configuration of a standard implemented CRM is a simple thing to an IT level, however what is complex indeed is understanding the requirements of each user and align with the available functionalities.
“Because today’s CRM systems are mature. And most are excellent. Whether you go higher end (Salesforce.com, Oracle, SAP), mid-range (Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Sage CRM, GoldMine) or lower end (Zoho, Nimble, Highrise, Insight.ly) you’ll find that these products, and a hundred others that I’m not even mentioning here, are robust, well designed and easy to use. They are in the cloud. They are on-premise. They have features for sales and opportunity management, marketing, calendaring and email. They can be integrated with other systems. They can talk to social media outlets. They can be accessed from your smartphone. They can all be powerful tools. So why the problem? Why do so many companies struggle to find value from their CRM system? There’s something that Salesforce.com CRM and the other industry leaders can’t tell you. It’s this: the problem with your CRM system isn’t usually about your CRM system. It’s about you. It’s the way it’s been set-up. It’s the way it’s been implemented. It’s the way it’s managed.”
Indeed, using and administrating properly a CRM application can mean success or failure in more than one commercial operation. The implementation part comes from the IT guys, they must not only install the application on the cloud, but also install small components to ensure data migration and integration with other application on the cloud or online perform correctly.
IT implementation partners also may offer user trainings, however, most of the IT consultants at that level fail to understand and empathize with each user needs. Their training courses will be standard so only the most IT literates of your department may take good profit of it. You will need a trainer or coacher that will guide you and your team to optimize the use of your CRM application, configure reporting specifics on each level and even include some BI that will provide you with all the visibility you need to do smooth and successful decision-making.
If you are about to buy a new CRM, in an organization where it has never been used before, or scarcely used, you will need to go one step further: you will need to embrace the chosen CRM within your company philosophy. All levels involved in commercial processes must embrace the CRM as a main tool for their work. In the case of a sales department, it should be easier to align the business processes with the CRM capabilities, since most CRMs already allow you to work adapting to each sales cycle per industry.
In the case of marketing, CRM is merely a database they need to nurture with new leads coming from everywhere (web, events, newsletters, group discussions, etc.). It is highly probable CRM is used at this level for reporting to marketing management. But that will be all.
Finally, for C-level, CRM must be completely aligned with their decision making process. Of course you need to take into account when data is updated periodically, whether syncing applications and databases or entering information manually (sales people must update on each commercial transaction, usually per qualified opportunity). Once data updates are working properly, C-level reporting and CRM BI can be then configured to the exact management requirements.
In further articles we will explain in more detail which requirements must be met at each level and which CRMs functionalities go with it. But I would be happy to hear your comments on your CRM experience. Which CRM do you use? Why? From which position in the company? Does your CRM follow you throughout all your sales cycle? Please feel free to share and discuss... the more we learn with you, the more we will know to help you further.
