Many high-paying endeavors in life don’t need strategic customer management. Take betting, for example. You can jump on some of the best betting odds on liontips.com, stake on your team, win, and don’t have to break a sweat about customer management.
But it is way different if you were a business. You can’t be haphazardly communicating with customers. You need a system for this. Specifically, you need a customer relationship management system (CRM) for this.
Across the years, there has been a massive adoption of CRMs in the corporate world. CRM systems are no longer restricted to big businesses. Smaller businesses are beginning to leverage the automation, organization, and fluidity that come with these systems.
However, it is quite unfortunate that many small entrepreneurs hastily jump on CRMs without ascertaining if they are dedicated to small businesses.
We have seen several scenarios where small businesses implement enterprise CRMs which were scaled down for small businesses but lacking that perfect befittingness for these businesses. Most times, this unsurprisingly ends up a catastrophe.
Before we go on to pick the core factors that should guide your selection of a CRM system for your small business, how about we distinguish between enterprise CRMs and small business CRMs? Let us go then.
What is Enterprise CRM?
Allow us to say enterprise CRMs are for the big boys in a specific industry. These are the large players – the predominant businesses in a vertical which are mostly multinationals.
These enterprise CRMs are encompassing solutions built to take on a plethora of responsibilities like marketing automation, sales tracking, even as far as assembly management.
We admit managing these CRMs require a threshold technical expertise based on their comprehensiveness. Implementation of enterprise CRMs can take months and is usually handled by a specialized team of programmers or consultants.
Of course, once implemented successfully, they are a wonder to behold in view of their vast spectrum of functionalities. An enterprise CRM can integrate hundreds of add-ons.
What is a small business CRM?
A small business CRM is much more streamlined and simplified than enterprise CRMs. They can yet handle basics like tracking customer relationships, profit tracking, even up to social CRM capacities. The beauty of small CRMs is that you don't need a dedicated developer to handle it. You can readily set it up in no time.
The learning curve for small business CRMs is fluid with rapid implementation. Most small business CRMs are intuitive, so newbies wouldn't struggle grasping its workings.
Agreed, they don't integrate as many add-ons as enterprise CRMs nor do they boast the versatility and robustness that are characteristic of enterprise CRMs.
Yes, most small business CRMs are built to accommodate scaling. This means you can upgrade it as your business grows. Certain factors should guide your choice of CRM as a small business. Would you like to learn about them?
How to choose the perfect CRM for your small business
What are your business needs?
CRMs are not just ceremonial; they must be able to meet your business needs. There is an overwhelming range of options for you to pick from. Would you need your CRM to generate targeted leads for you? If yes, it is worth considering a CRM equipped with robust lead generation software.
If you have a scenario where you need enhanced accessibility of your contact data, consider a system with a 360-degree contact view. If your sales funnels are not converting, then you need a CRM with enhanced sales reportage so you can have more accurate monitoring of the sales process to identify those potholes where prospects are falling off.
Going for CRMs with customizable dashboards would be an excellent choice if you want more insights into the customer process. You may also need lead scoring features from your CRM if you need to filter performing leads from non-performing or stale leads.
Should you be keener on boosting the efficiency of your team, go for a CRM that extensively automates your routine.
What integrations does your small business need?
This is a big question, isn't it? Well, you need a CRM with diversified sophistication that can take on many responsibilities. This means your CRM should be able to integrate the fundamental third-party applications you need. Such extensive integration capacity is typical for small business CRMs with open API.
A CRM with an open API saves you the horror of regularly having to jump out of your CRM (hectically switching between multiple screens) for external solutions. With the right add-on, your CRM can give you a universal destination to get it all done merrily from one place.
Such CRM should be able to sync data from these apps so you can make critical business decisions from one source. You don't like such erraticness of running from one app to another, do you?
How easy is it to use and set up?
Setting up a small business CRM shouldn't be as difficult as getting a Ph.D. from MIT (News - Alert). The process should be intuitive with a seamless learning curve. This is because, as a small business, you may not enjoy being saddled with the additional expense of hiring a technical team to implement and maintain your CRM.
Your small business CRM should be easy to navigate with impressive efficiency. According to Inside CRM, 65% of prospective CRM shoppers are more particular about ease of use, while barely 27% say schedule management is paramount.
Also, the CRM vendor shouldn't just abandon you with the CRM. They should be a commendable level of correspondence between you and the support team, especially in the implementation process. The provider should prioritize your education with the CRM so you can fluidly use it.
If your CRM provider has apathetic customer support, your vocabulary of swear words is sure to expand as you use the software. No doubt, such dissatisfaction will substantially slash the return on your investment in the CRM.
What is the cost?
Talk about money, and everyone that is dozing becomes super attentive! It is only natural that the cost is the primary determinant of which CRM you go for.
As a small business, your bank account isn't as obese as that of Bill Gates (News - Alert) and Jeff Bezos. In most cases, you would be running on a very tight budget.
Being that you can't blow up to $3,000 on monthly CRM subscriptions, your choice CRM needs to be very effective, and approximately cater to all of your needs.
Therefore going with all-in-one CRMs may be your best deal. Such all-in-one CRM compensates for their lack of specialization with versatility.
This means they can do a bit of the major functions like marketing automation, run multichannel marketing campaigns, run email marketing campaigns, score and qualify leads, and more. There is so much more your small business can achieve when furnished with the right CRM.
Author: The Pen Lord
I love technology and enjoy exploring the frontiers of innovation. I am always enthusiastic about how tech can improve society, make life better, and make governments across the world more transparent. On the sideline, I am a fanatic football lover.
