Customers’ trust is the essence of any business. If earlier, stocking piles of documents or using simple spreadsheets was enough, modern business requires something automated and scalable. For keeping all the records organized at hand, having a CRM is inevitable now.
In this article, you will find out how to create a customer management relationship system, but before that, SapientPro developers can help you clear out why your business needs a custom CRM and what it should be like.
Why custom CRM development?
Sure, you can find so many ready CRM solutions available that you may ask why bother and create a custom CRM? The answer is pretty simple – to maintain the uniqueness of your business, one-size-fits-all solutions won’t do. Customized according to all the business’ needs means not only ease of use but also specific functionality.
To find out what specifically you need to add to the CRM and define your business targets. Your goals can be various depending on the areas your business and industry deals with. Here are some of the most widely-spread options:
- Fostering relationships with the customers.
- Organizing a workflow.
- Ensuring information security and confidentiality.
- Storing and managing customer data all in one place.
- Improving customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Optimizing marketing and sales processes.
- Improving internal communication.
- Getting valuable and detailed insights into customer behavior.
- Managing leads.
- Managing the customer base.
- Optimizing customer service.
- Easily navigating lots of customer data.
- Generating reports to evaluate sales and marketing performance.
Types of CRM systems
Having finally decided what specifically you need your custom CRM to contain, it’s time to choose the right type of system. Yes, there are several of them, three to be more specific: operational, analytical, and collaborative. Each of them has its peculiarities and various targets.
Operational
The aim of an operational CRM system is to automate processes of advertising, sales, and service. You can close more deals with an integrated CRM, efficiently create leads and turn them into new clients Besides, operational CRMs enable comfortable accessing customer data such as contact details, history of purchases, and history of interaction.
Analytical
Analytical CRM systems help businesses handle customer data efficiently, as well as processes to attract and retain customers. An interactive CRM gives you insights into consumer data from different sources so you can see common problems encountered by your consumers and uncover the efficacy of your marketing and sales strategies.
Collaborative
Collaborative CRM is often called strategic. This one is aimed at enhancing teamwork, boosting customer satisfaction and building working customer service. Various communication channels such as email, phone, and social networking platforms are used.
Features to include in your CRM
Besides the specific additives you may include, there is a set of basic features SapientPro strongly advises you to implement:
Dashboards – they are essential for monitoring the performance of your team. A visualized to-do list and tasks overview can definitely make your life easier. You can add here everything your imagination enables you to – from simple diagrams to complex charts and tables.
Don’t forget to add mobile access to CRM, you may not allow all the functions on the mobile device, however, some of them are really necessary. For easier progress and tracking, include lead and customer management.
Now, having all these features, you are free to add more. Here are some ideas you may use:
- Simple Calendar – from estimating and monitoring time and deadlines easily.
- Sales forecasting – provide yourself with the opportunity to predict the events in the marketplace.
- Pipeline Views – easily accessible and understandable data is what your business definitely needs.
- Invoicing – make the sending and status tracking of any invoice an easy job.
- Third-Party Integrations – make it possible for various tools to be usable in your CRM.
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Interesting related article: “What is Customer Loyalty?“