More and more The Best Way Business have begun using customer relationship management software in the last decade. In fact, in the CRM era, CRM solutions are used to manage numerous aspects of every business. However, the adoption of CRM software is still a challenge for many companies.
Initially, large enterprises adopted CRM; however, over the years, with its user-friendly interface and accessibility, businesses of all sizes have started using one. A research study conducted by Buyerzone highlights that about 91% of businesses with 11+ employees are now leveraging small business CRM software to enhance their productivity, automate tasks and increase business growth. CRM software came out a long time ago and now, most businesses enjoy using them as it helps them win through the competition.
Small business CRM streamline processes to drive companies to grow and remain profitable. They act as a solution to align internal teams, hike up collaborative efforts, enhance efficiency and productivity, and even build stronger relationships with customers. But when it comes to adoption, businesses are left confused. Some find their employees being averse to using them despite implementation while others feel that the adoption of this new technology is an uphill struggle. Inputting data manually and analyzing it on spreadsheets comes easy to most employees. They may feel uncomfortable with the change and even think that there is something wrong with it.
In the competitive landscape of today, businesses must strive for improvement regularly. There is a strong need to embrace emerging trends and adopt new technology. Hence, we need best practices to encourage employees to use this solution for their benefit. Here are ten ways to help you maximize small business CRM adoption and generate a high return on investment:
- Plan strategies with the involvement of employees: If the team is made a part of the hunt for an excellent small business CRM software, they are likely to invest in the effort and feel the interest in adopting what’s purchased. You could do this in different ways. The first way could be through surveys. Begin with understanding their pain points- ask them about the most time-consuming tasks or the ones they think could be automated. You should also ask them what would help them amp up their productivity and make their jobs easier. Gain feedback from each team- whether sales, marketing, or finance to make a decision on what the company needs. You should also involve the executives and directors as they maintain a constant insight into how each team’s performance. CRM software with easily accessible dashboards and metrics allow them to keep track of the company on-the-go.
So, the decision to make the purchase should be driven by the team as a whole and this will definitely increase the rate of adoption. - Indulge in thorough research before you buy: There are numerous small business CRM software providers out there but it is essential to find the one that meets your needs. Every business is unique and so are its pain points, needs, and business goals. Here are some questions that could help you make an informed decision:
Is the software user-friendly? Old-age CRM software were complicated and clunky. However, today, they can be intuitive, user-friendly, and easy to master. With navigation tools and drag and drop functions, they can be easy to pick up by non-tech-savvy individuals as well. They make it easy for all to learn the functions, further increasing the rate of CRM adoption.
Does it meet all the present requirements? The small business CRM software you pick should meet the goals you are trying to reach. Making a checklist and ensuring all your needs are met is the way to go.
What do the reviews say about your choice? Spend time looking through the reviews as they can be extremely helpful. These reviews could tell you about bugs, poor customer support, or all other things you should be aware of. - Seek strong implementation and onboarding: While implementing a new small business CRM software, you must make sure your vendor gives your extensive training and onboarding session for employees. This is a very crucial time to make your employees comfortable and access the quality of the onboarding program. Personalized attention from onboarding specialists speak volumes of the vendor support. This motivates the employees to take over and learn something new as well.
- Make sure the small business CRM software is mobile-friendly: Adapting to this ‘new normal’, there is a great need to ensure comfort to those working remotely or the ones often on-the-go. This feature helps your users access the CRM software for real-time data and analysis anywhere in the world.
- Implement the necessary workflow: Make it mandatory for employees to complete specific tasks to ensure a higher adoption rate. For instance, make certain fields mandatory for them to fill out while adding a new lead to the database. Completion of these steps will create efficiency and consistency in the management process. Otherwise, many sales representatives would skip these steps to quickly skim through the traditional process.
- Build internal competition: Keeping the total value of every sales representative’s pipeline transparent can naturally drive the team through competition. The team would be motivated to reach higher targets and be the highest on the list. Hence, periodically distributing reports across the team can drive higher CRM adoption rates.
- Give your team tools to enrich data: Small business CRM software are not really self-contained. Often the need to refer to external data sources arises inorder to record enriched prospect data. For instance, contact information like email and phone numbers can be updated via social media or crowd-sources databases can be accessed too.
- The process of data entry should be smooth and simple: Keep the data fields to the minimum and ask for what’s essential. This helps them efficiently automate the process and save time in adding redundant information. They could automate data from email signature and even websites. For instance, a sales representative could use speech-to-text software to record calls for reporting.
- Reward active users: There are numerous ways to track usage per user. You can look at the number of calls logged by a sales representative, the data accuracy, or even monitor their sales pipeline. An excellent small business CRM software includes project management tools for efficient management of tasks across the sales team. This can be further seen as a great way to motivate those who are most active in the team. This could be in the form of a monetary benefit, a day off, or any other reward. This approach could add a sense of healthy competition where the sales representatives would work harder to get better results at work.
- Regular training: Most sales representatives need to be adequately trained with the adoption of new technology. But the training process doesn’t end with initial onboarding. It is essential to conduct regular training sessions to keep the team up-to-date with new updates, additions, and features. You should also help them gain access to online training modules which help them get instant solutions to their queries, anywhere, anytime.
CRM software is ohere to stay and with the staggering competition, it is essential for you to adopt technology that will drive efficiency to sustain higher revenue growth. Using CRM is no more limited to bigger companies. Even small and growing businesses can acquire suitable software. Adoption of an all-in-one small business CRM software enables automation, sales enablement, and help desk support to provide you with solutions.
Further, usage of CRM software significantly increases productivity by reducing manual effort and time-consuming tasks. This time and energy can be assigned to higher-value tasks like strategy and planning, measuring the quality of prospects, and nurturing relationships with customers. This is exactly why CRM adoption is an important step for small business CRM usage.
