Everything you need to know when choosing your CRM

According to a SkyQuest survey of the global customer relationship management market, CRM is the top technology priority for companies in 2021. 47% of respondents declared they would increase their investment in CRM software this year. But how to know which is the right software for your business?

In this article, we will answer your most important questions. We will give you hints about how to reduce your expenses and increase productivity, by choosing a reliable CRM system for your company.

The first thing you must do when selecting a CRM system is identifying your company's needs:

• What you need to improve or automate with the CRM
• The operational processes you need to add
• The number of users needed
• If you need another software to be integrated 
• The budget you have 

Once the requirements have been determined, you must carefully examine the CRM functionalities so that all your company's specific needs are met. A CRM with the right features drives sales actions more effectively and improves customer engagement. 

92% of businesses say CRM software played an important role in achieving their revenue goals

The 5 key features that your customer relationship management solution must have are: 

1. Contact Management
2. Document management
3. Workflow automation
4. Client interaction tracking
5. Sales pipeline management

Now that you have checked that the CRM has these features, you should look at the integration it offers with other apps, as no single CRM can do everything well. 66% of businesses switch to a new CRM because their current platform lacks the features they need. But why change an entire software package when you can simply integrate a new app into the existing platform? As long as your CRM is easily connectable to other applications, it will be adaptable.

Today, many CRM lack analytical capabilities, which is why complementing your existing CRM with other software is a good decision. 

SkyQuest survey shows that 71% of marketing managers use a CRM, but only 38% say their platform is providing them with optimal performance. 

Thus, the 4 extra functionalities that you should search these days to be able to boost customer engagement and maximize revenue are the following ones: 

1. Sales forecasting: This function is nowadays the key to avoiding losing customers. It provides you with a sales forecast based on past and present buying behavior. This data is really useful to decide where you should focus your efforts and creating personalized marketing campaigns. 
2. Customer analytics: This functionality provides real-time customer data. With this information, sales and marketing teams can make data-driven decisions about the type of products, services, and marketing they should offer to their customers. 
3. Employee performance tracking: If managers have access to employee performance data, they can set individual goals, see the tasks they are completing, and, analyze productivity metrics. This way, they can create incentives and engage employees by rewarding them or offering training when necessary.
4. Marketing Automation: By integrating marketing automation, you will be able to run automated and personalized marketing campaigns directly from your CRM and then track your performance. This functionality will help you save time, increase productivity and efficiency, boost customer engagement, and convert leads into customers. 

80% of marketers see an increase in leads, and 77% report an increase in conversion from automation. 

Finally, you should ensure that the software offers customization and training. Having the ability to add or modify CRM features according to your needs is key when it comes to setting it up for easy adaptability and gaining efficiency. Beyond that, it goes without saying that CRM is only beneficial if users know how to use it. That's why training is an important part when choosing the right CRM. Make sure that this "service" brick is included in your subscription!