In this era of personal service, customers have come to expect you to anticipate their needs and know their history when they call. CRM is the tool that allows you to form personal relationships with people you’ve never seen face-to-face. The data and information you collect gives you insights you could never access before.
In the past, the first impression a potential customer had from your business was either initiated by a salesperson or delivered via one-way advertising. Things have changed. Today, their first impression might be delivered via marketing channels, search results, or social media contacts. You have the unique opportunity to do more than make the sale. You can start a relationship that lasts a long time and leads to a lot of sales opportunities.
- Capture and Use Information in Real Time
Your CRM offers you a glimpse into your customer’s lives as they happen. When a customer calls, a quick peek at their social media profile can tell you if they recently suffered a loss, are planning a trip, expecting a baby, or celebrating a new job…information that can help you anticipate what they need and help you find a solution to meet their needs.
Before you call your customer, you can check to see when he’s most active and upbeat on social media. Look for a pattern—it’ll show you when he’s most alert and least busy, a great time to reach out. Calling at the time most convenient for your customer is courteous and they’re sure to appreciate it.
- Take It to the Streets
You’re no longer restricted to contact via phone, mail, or even email. Your options are wide open. You can engage your customers where they hang out. Use your CRM data to figure out where the largest number of your customers hang out, and join the conversation there. Stay away from private communications unless you’re invited, but do respond to comments and share what they post when appropriate.
Most importantly, take notes. That’s where a lot of CRM users miss out on some of the benefits. By making personal observations on your customer records, you can add intuitive data to your store of knowledge. The true value comes when you aggregate your data—perhaps you’ll find out you have lots of customers who need a good or service you do not yet provide.
- Answer the Negative
One of the most important bits of information a company can gather is what’s bugging their customers. CRM coupled with social media is prime listening ground for complaints. Pay attention to find out what you’re doing wrong, why you didn’t make the sale, how a customer service interaction went wrong, and why your product isn’t quite up to par. You can also find out how you stack up to your competition by listening for keywords as well as brand mentions.
It may sound like a lot of work, but integrations can augment social listening. For example, you can set up a Zap in Zapier to alert a social media rep whenever your brand is mentioned on Twitter or Facebook and write the comment to the CRM record.
Negative information shows you exactly where your weaknesses are and what’s holding you back. You’ll be able to spot trends and use the information to develop new products and services. Take the guesswork out of a new launch and release upgrades your customers actually ask for.
- Better Understand Buyer Behavior
This is where the data magic really happens. Data offers buying insights marketers could only dream of until now. Paying close attention to your customers and their buying patterns gives you hands-on knowledge of what works, what converts, and what customers ignore.
You’ll be able to spot brand fatigue—that moment when they are so sick of endless emails they send them straight to the trash without so much as a glance. When they stop paying attention, it’s time to change tactics. Target better, reduce the frequency of your emails, and consider what they did open. Figure out what went wrong and make a plan to get it back on track. Integrate your CRM with your email campaigns to keep track of it all…and to better understand what went wrong.
Existing customers are the most valuable component of your marketing. They’re more likely to buy and to spend more money than first-timers. If you pay attention and treat them right throughout your relationship, they’ll reward you by purchasing from you every time, and by telling their friends on social media. They are your street team, your army of volunteer brand evangelists, and your number one source of revenue.
At Insightly, we have a CRM for all kinds of businesses and all kinds of users. Learn about all of Insightly’s features and plans on our pricing page or sign up for a free trial.
