We’re all moving fast and trying to accomplish as much as we can within a limited amount of time. You might not realize that your CRM database is actually slowing you down and costing you money.
There are many things you can do to improve your CRM. Here are three simple fixes that can make all the difference when it comes to having a successful CRM deployment:
Segment your CRM Contacts
Try to avoid the urge to just add contacts to your CRM as quickly as possible. Although this may save you time now it will cost you time later, Your contacts need to be classified in such a way so that they can be easily found again later. Typically we segment contacts in at least two ways:
By status: Is this contact a lead, a customer or a dead end?
By Qualification: How many times and in what ways have we reached out to the contact? Are they a good fit for our company? Have we identified a dollar value for the contact and moved them into our sales pipeline or have they been clearly designated to receive further systematic contact?
These status markers should be built into your CRM system and their usage should be required. The typical CRM database is 25% “deadwood” which generally means that one-fourth of your contacts are outdated or have not received consistent follow ups. This can be easily prevented by applying categorizing each and every contact that you add to your database.
Avoid Duplicates in Your CRM
Every CRM database has duplicates; it goes with the territory. The best way to eliminate duplicates is to avoid creating them in the first place. CRM users often ask me how to create new contacts and are surprised to learn that the first step should be to see if the contact already exists in the database. In addition, most CRM systems have easy ways to either clone contacts or add new contacts to an existing Account/Company record which is much easier than creating an entirely new contact from scratch.
I also stress that users need to apply a bit of common sense when adding contacts. if you are adding the name of one of your existing customers to your database something is wrong!
Ask For an Email Address
Obviously an email address can be used for future marketing opportunities; however an email address is also a great way to avoid duplicating contacts in the future. Most CRMs aren’t bright enough to understand that William, Bill and Billy are all the same person, and that ABC Co and ABC Company are one and the same. Email addresses are unique to an individual and are the one piece of information that most of us enter very carefully to avoid mistakes. In addition, routinely emailing your CRM contacts using your CRM’s eMarketing capabilities is a great way to keep up with your contacts as you will be able to find all the contacts who have either opted out, bounced or shown interest in your mailing.
Is your database in need of a little TLC? Then you need to reach out to the CRM Experts at Tech Benders, the Act Consultants and Zoho Consultants.