Do you really need CRM Software

Knowing your customers, their needs, likes/dislikes etcetera is essential to many businesses today, particularly those that provide a service as opposed to tangible products. CRM, or Customer Relationship Software is often touted as the prime tool for increasing customer spend.
CRM software is generally highly configurable and can capture almost endless information about clients including sales data, meetings, telephone calls and much more.
So how can you tell whether you need to purchase a CRM system?
There are several pointers that may help steer your decision;
How different are your customers? Are they spread over a large geographic area, do they fall into vastly different backgrounds, are their age ranges similar and many other factors? If your customers are similar to each other, you may not need CRM software because there is not a large range of demographic information that requires organisation. If, however, they differ then CRM may help you organise them and target promotions according to demographic parameters.How often do your customers make a purchase, and what do they purchase? If your business only sells a small range of items, then tracking purchases may not present too much of a problem. But if customers buy on a frequent basis or buy a vast range of products, then CRM may help you spot buying patterns and trends.Do customers complain about duplication of sales calls/follow up calls? If you have a number of staff working for you with a shared pool of customers, then this can and will happen. CRM software will permit staff to track activity with specific customers to avoid this duplication. If your sales team are each responsible for a sub-set of your customers, then this is less likely to happen.Is your customer base manageable? For some organisations, keeping track of 10,000 customers is easy without the need for specialist CRM software, others as few as 20 can cause problems, for example missed follow-up calls.
If you have decided to embark on the CRM route, bear in mind that getting the system to work with you and your business is a complex task. Whilst there are numerous CRM systems available at a wide range of prices, you may find that only one really meets your needs. Purchasing the other systems could prove a costly mistake.
Some of the factors to be considered when choosing a CRM system are as follows;
Sales management. All CRM systems should have a strong customer component; that is, they should be able to match the information you have on your customers to their transactions, providing a meaningful analysis for your sales force to use in retaining those customers in the future. With a simple click, you should be able to see the entire history of your transactions with a given customer. Fulfillment. Good CRM software systems should also quickly update your inventory or project databases so that each customer's latest orders can be fulfilled and shipped (if applicable) quickly and easily. After making a sale, your sales professional should be able, through CRM software, to place an order and have those products in the works within seconds. Customer service. Good CRM systems will be able to record service calls, customer comments and other service notes. That way you can quickly respond to a customer who calls with a problem. Miscellaneous add-ons. How flexible is the system? Will it integrate with your accounting system and many other possibilities.

One thing to consider with off-the-shelf CRM software products like GoldMine and ACT! is that the support offered is dependant on where these products are purchased. The integration of customer data between various devices such as a PDA and a cell phone can be more complicated than your technical support contact might want to get into.
If you are going to invest in CRM software, you want everything to work, so make sure good technical support and training is available if needed. You also want to make sure you know what you want. Although these products are off-the-shelf, they are by no means limited, and some offer really sophisticated features for future growth. For example, FrontRange's GoldMine has many features available that instruct and support you in expanding your customer service energy and possibly any sales efforts.
A few final things to consider: CRM software is a very personal tool just as a to-do list can be. It manages data that is close to the heart and sometimes very private. It tracks how you interact with your customers and associates. Anyone considering CRM software must weigh how changing this tool will impact productivity.
Source: http://www.roypenfold.co.uk/