My company has implemented hundreds of CRM systems at clients all across the country and this is what I’ve learned: a CRM system is only as good as the company using it. Today’s CRM systems are mature, work well and can be a very productive tool. Just like higher education. The better your education, the more opportunities you have. So where do you fall?
Are you a High School CRM company? We all know by now that, in many cases, graduating from high school just isn’t enough nowadays to truly succeed in the real world. And the same goes with CRM. Is your CRM use at the high school level only? A high school degree provides the most rudimentary of skills. A High School CRM system is a similar. Even after great amounts effort, some companies never rise above the high school level. They’re using their CRM system as a mail list at best. There is contact data only and even that data is made up of mostly just names and addresses. Sure, users can look up phone numbers and send out holiday cards. But not a lot more. High school CRM systems are not successful CRM systems. They are the equivalent of a glorified rolodex at best. If this is your system, try using a spreadsheet instead.
Or (hopefully) a University CRM? College degrees are good. And so are University CRM systems. These are the companies that getting a good deal of productivity from their CRM system and represent the bulk of our client base. Like today’s college education, it’s respectable, valuable and opens doors/creates opportunities. A University CRM system is more than just a database of contacts. It’s a good database of contacts, where the information is accurate, complete and controlled so that it can be relied on. Not only that but there are more than just the basic address fields – there are fields for census and profile data. And the system is being used beyond just storing contact data. Activities are scheduled and completed. Emails are stored. Opportunities and forecasts are entered and updated and there are even a few good reports that managers are using to supervise their team and measure success. A University CRM is a respectable, productive and valuable system. Sure, you’re only using about 30% of what the system does – but then again how much of what you learned in college are you using in the real world anyway?
But maybe, just maybe, you’re a PhD CRM. The PhD CRMs are truly the smartest systems of the bunch – just like in real life. These are people that take their CRM to a whole new level. Because there is a level of CRM that goes well beyond the basic contact, activity and opportunity management that the University CRM user is doing. This involves workflows, alerts and integration. A PhD CRM system utilizes workflows to make sure that nothing falls through the cracks and opportunities are following an agreed on process. A workflow means that once one thing is done, another thing is triggered. And if it’s not triggered…someone gets alerted about it, usually by email or text. Companies with bona fide sales processes rely on their CRM workflows to manage and maximize their pipeline. The PhD CRM is also big on integrating, particularly with other systems and online. Accounting, inventory and website data is brought or displayed in the system to avoid duplicate data entry or additional work. Web forms are created so that employees and customers can enter data from any device and that data can automatically update the company’s CRM system (and trigger a workflow or alert!). The University CRM system really is just advanced contact management. But a PhD? That’s a true CRM system. And that’s where you want to be.
Three types of CRM systems. Which one do you have?
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About the Author: Gene Marks is a small business owner, technology expert, author and columnist. He writes regularly for leading US media outlets such as The New York Times, Forbes, Inc. Magazine and Entrepreneur. He has authored five books on business management and appears regularly on Fox News, Fox Business, MSNBC and CNBC. Gene runs a ten-person CRM and technology consulting firm outside of Philadelphia. Learn more at genemarks.com
