6 Best Practices in Using Your Online CRM Tool

You’ve read everything there is on strengthening your relationship with customers using an online

CRM. You purchased an online CRM tool to assist you — but nothing happened. Your sales stayed

the same, productivity stayed the same and your customer relationships are still not improving. What

happened to all the promises that came along with this online CRM tool?

There are some practices you must follow in order to reap the full benefits of these online CRM

tools. These practices will not only give you the results you were expecting, but they’ll also benefit

your business as a whole.

1 – Embrace Mobile TechnologyAccording to a survey conducted by Intel, more than 82% of the businesses said they would

welcome the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) trend, and over 74% believed it would make their

employees more productive. The proof is in the numbers. Sales agents using cloud based online

CRM tools can access their work from any device. This allows them to conduct important follow-ups,

close sales and obtain new leads while on the go.

2 – Make CRM a Team EffortSales people who work in the field need a way to book appointments, chase leads and schedule

follow-ups on-demand. By allowing them to use online CRM tools, they can be more efficient and are

less likely to misplace important sales information.

3 – Organize Your DataA tool can only do so much without human assistance. With online CRM tools, you can import data

directly into the allocated tabs or fields, but you have to make sure the information is clean. This

means it should be free from errors and displayed in an easy to read manner.

4 – Train Your Employees to Use ItNow this may seem like a very obvious practice, but it is often overlooked. Just because a tool looks

simple to use, it doesn’t mean that everyone will understand how to use it correctly. To shorten the

learning curve, train your employees on how to use the online CRM tool. This ensures that they’ll get

the most benefit out of it and be able to use it much quicker. With proper use, online CRM tools can

boost your customer retention by 27%.

5 – Make Use of the FeaturesStepping outside of the norm can be a scary transition for businesses, but it must be done. To save

time and boost progress, you have to make the most of your online CRM tool and utilize all of its

functions. Write emails in it, schedule appointments in it and make use of its integration features.

Imagine all the time you’d save by utilizing one program for all of these different tasks.

6 – Start Using Your Online CRMNow that you know what it does, your employees know how to navigate it and everyone is all trained

— start using it. Process all new leads using the online CRM tool instead of putting it off. The quicker

you use the new system, the easier the transition will be.

As eager as you are to get started using your online CRM tool, it’s best to have full knowledge of its

functions and uses before you do. Train your staff on how to use it correctly and allow them to take it

mobile. Not only will this work to increase your sales immediately, but you’ll have a more productive

and organized sales team.

the seven best practices I’ve learned over the years to maximize adoption and usage.

Make it a productivity carrot.The CRM needs to be positioned as a tool that will help the sales organization sell more goods and services so they earn larger commissions. Sounds simple. I see many management teams however, using their CRM as simply a reporting stick for their sale teams.

Tools such as presentation templates, proposal documents, personal reporting tools, task lists, Outlook integration and sales process checklists will improve the efficiency and productivity of the sales team. Very quickly, you need to demonstrate to the sales team WIFM (“what’s in it for me”).

Use it to manage your organization.If you’re the sales VP, run your meetings and reviews from the CRM, including forecast meetings, pipeline reviews and exception reporting. Establish dashboards which you share with your sales leaders to show them you personally are leveraging and using the system. Also ensure senior management is using and benefiting from the system. Bottom-line, you should lead by example.

Get the data right.A CRM works only if the underlying data is correct. You need to have best practices to make sure data is consistent, clean and maintained. Establish drop down fields where appropriate to

ensure data integrity. Each person who using the CRM must take personal ownership of the integrity of the data.

Train the team.It should go without saying, if the sales staff is not trained on how to benefit from using the CRM, it will not get used. Many CRM vendors like CampaignerCRM have comprehensive end-user training sessions that can be leveraged so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.

The training should reinforce the sales process, organizational terminology, custom fields and other tools to make it contextually relevant. A role-based training may make sense depending on the size of the organization. Ideally the training is done as close as possible to the go-live date for the CRM. Many vendors will customize this training for your organization.

Sounds simple, but many companies do not have proper training plans to support the rollout of the system.

Integrate Your Sales ToolsMany CRM’s include libraries to maintain customer engagement letters, product presentations, price lists, catalogs, contracts, etc. Make sure the CRM is populated with the current version of all the documents and collateral at launch.

Flow All New Leads to the CRMThe lifeblood of any sales organization is new leads. Make the CRM the single source of all new leads for the sales team.

Spread the word.Here’s several ways to reinforce adoption. When appropriate distribute “success stories” of those that have used the CRM effectively to close business. You may also want to consider contests and spiffs to reinforce adoption. I’d suggest every job description and performance appraisal within the sales team should include reference to using the CRM.

The ultimate adoption strategy for any CRM is the sales team realizing higher bookings and commissions from using the system. The seven best practices above will help the sales team realize the CRM is a tool that can truly help increase customer loyalty and help them sell more, which is the ultimate way to deal with the top 10 excuses!