Whether we like it or not, many things have changed over the past month. Some of our daily activities, otherwise part of our lives, are now just a dream and everybody misses simple things, like hanging out with friends or going for a walk in the park.
The coronavirus has affected our small businesses and us and this is not a secret anymore. Many companies are struggling to survive, as the demand for their products or services, as well as the interaction with clients, is close to zero during the lockdown, while others are performing better than ever.
If your business falls into the first category, we understand that the situation can be difficult but there is still hope, at least when it comes to maintaining the relationship with your clients simply and efficiently.
Yes, today we are going to talk about CRM solutions and how implementing one can help your small business stay above the floating line during these difficult times.
Over the past years, CRM platforms, as well as their features and capabilities, have evolved nicely, addressing various scenarios, including that of a pandemic. But how do they actually work and can boost a small business? Let’s find out together.
It empowers customers
Technically speaking, any organization deals with three types of customers, on a day-to-day basis. Specifically, we are talking about internal customers, external, as well as prospective ones.
Internal customers are groups of people that rely on each other, while external customers can be considered as distribution or sales channels. However, it is the retail and business customers who pay the bills and keep the business running. Still, it really does not matter what kind of customers you are responsible for, as you need to serve them all.
And guess what? You can do it significantly better by using a CRM Solution.
A CRM provides internal customers all the needed infrastructure to enable collaboration, as well as the workflows needed to make sure everything runs smoothly.
Now, when most people have been forced to work remotely, such capabilities are more valuable than ever. That is why we believe that a CRM solution could turn out to be incredibly valuable for any company during the lockdown and after as well.
It helps with developing new relationships
One of the core ideas of the concept of customer relationship management is to better understand company’s relationships, but also leverage them and discover new business opportunities.
Nowadays, when face-to-face interactions are rarer than ever, companies are analyzing their CRM platform, considering them mission-critical applications. And the conclusions aren’t surprising!
For example, many organizations that have been using CRM solutions for some time have finally realized that the accuracy, as well as the depth of their contact data, has been seriously affected. But this isn’t the worst part, as they’re also discovering that contacts are also missing from CRM systems, thus making it difficult to develop on the existing relationships.
We know, it sounds challenging, especially for those who are trying to find out more about CRM solutions. But trust us, it’s going to be worth it.
It makes managing a business easier
Let’s get straight to the point: management is effective only when it has visibility into operations. When this is not happening, managers are tempted or even forced to allocate new resources and/or create strategies without actually seeing the effects of their decisions.
This is where a CRM system comes in, providing abilities like being able to integrate information, being accessed from anywhere in the world, and allowing managers to adapt to any changing business conditions. And this is something any business needs nowadays.
Such possibilities make managers’ work easier, not to mention the amount of transparency it adds, the ways it can drive new business, or improve customer service.
The way we are working and engaging have changed over the past month and executives had to change their ways of operating, taking actions to help their small businesses overcome all the challenges. CRM solutions can turn up to be some of the most valuable tools in such situations!
If you are still not using one, the IB Systems USA’s CRM solutions can be just what your small business needs. Using a customizable, cloud-based platform, it can help your team take its productivity to the next level, while also developing sales.