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C.R.M. Benefits for Midsize Businesses
Customer relationship management (C.R.M.) applications can deliver significant value to today’s midsize businesses.
With a C.R.M. system in place, midsize companies can improve employee productivity, shorten sales cycles and increase revenues, minimize sales and support-related expenses, and build stronger and more profitable relationships with customers.
Yet, according to leading industry analyst firm Gartner, only a fraction of the estimated 90,000 midsize businesses in North America have adopted, or are in the process of adopting, C.R.M. technology.
There are currently many C.R.M. solutions on the market that are designed specifically to address needs of midsize businesses, or independently-operated departments within larger, global enterprises.
These systems, which are best suited for companies that have between 50 and 300 C.R.M. users, can help enhance processes and functions across multiple customer-facing departments, including accounting, marketing, sales, call centers, and service and support.
With a thorough and effective C.R.M. strategy, as well as the right enabling technologies, midsize businesses can:
* Consolidate and Centralize Critical Customer Data
A C.R.M. solution can provide staff across multiple teams and divisions with direct, instant access to accurate, consistent, and timely customer information, without replication or errors. This kind of comprehensive, centralized customer knowledgebase can make vital intelligence readily available to all employees in customer-facing roles, so they can better perform their jobs. Additionally, C.R.M. can help companies minimize the risk of information loss in the event of staff turnover.
* Improve Collaboration and Information Flow
With a C.R.M. solution in place, sales, marketing, and service staff can work together, coordinate activities, and eliminate redundant procedures by sharing detailed, up-to-the-minute lead, prospect, and customer data, as well as product, pricing, and competitive information, in real-time. So, every employee, in every customer-facing department, always has complete visibility into all customer activities and interactions.
* Develop and Enforce Best Practices
A C.R.M. solution can help midsize companies understand which customer-facing procedures are working, and which ones are in need of improvement. This insight can then be used to streamline and standardize processes across the business, to optimize resources, increase productivity, and enhance service delivery.
* Increase Customer Satisfaction and Retention
When customer-facing processes are efficient and effective, customer service thrives. C.R.M. makes highly-quality, tightly-coordinated, and well-executed customer service a reality for midsize businesses. This, in turn, can lead to happier, more loyal, and more profitable clients, and give companies a competitive edge.
* Reduce Sales and Support Costs
C.R.M. can streamline and automate manual or inefficient processes, which can help to minimize waste and expenses. By making the entire customer lifecycle more productive – from initial contact, through purchase and post-sale service – C.R.M. can help midsize companies dramatically reduce the costs associated with acquiring, retaining, and supporting their customer base.
And, most importantly, C.R.M. empowers midsize companies to gain vital, relevant, and timely insight into customer needs and preferences. Armed with this knowledge, they can launch more targeted and successful marketing campaigns, accelerate sales cycles and close more deals, and deliver improved services that boost customer satisfaction.
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