Customer Relationships Management software (CRM) lets a business collect, store, manage and analyze their lead and customer information. This information will greatly help a company build better relationships with its customers and ensure that more leads will be converted into loyal customers.
Cloud-based CRM solutions are rising in popularity and allow you to buy CRM product that is hosted on the vendor’s servers. This will help you buy CRM that is very low maintenance and with more security features than before. For companies that are weary of cybersecurity breaches, it would make sense to buy CRM that is hosted on-premise. You can buy CRM product that is customized to your needs, and you will be in charge of all security measures yourself.
When your IT department is considering a buy CRM option, it is important to have all of the CRM objectives in hand with input from all of the staff that will have to use the CRM product. Without this consideration, do not forge ahead and buy CRM software for the company. Your CRM solution will go ignored and without the desired ROI, you would wish that you didn’t buy CRM solution at all.
Pros When You Buy CRM
Following are some key benefits you get to enjoy when you buy CRM:
- Centralized data: with all of your customer data in one place, you are able to make more informed decisions when it comes to your sales and marketing efforts.
- Structured customer data: when you buy CRM, you will access to features such as customer segmentation and demography information to streamline your marketing approaches better.
- Improved quality of data: when you buy CRM, you buy the lead management system with it. With access to quality leads that come from your sales campaigns, your sales staff can take more strategic approaches to close sales and in turn, improve efficiency.
- Increased data security: with the wealth of knowledge about your customers you get access to when you buy CRM, it is important to ensure that all data is safe. When you buy CRM from a reputable vendor, you can be assured that your data will be in good hands.
- Better customer service and support: when you buy CRM, you are able to track all customer interactions. This will allow your customer support teams to provide better and more personalized service to your loyal customers. You can also nurture customer loyalty by giving more incentives and discounts to your most lucrative customers with the information you have gathered about them.
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Tips to Buy CRM with Ease
Shortlist your Vendors
Creating a shortlist of vendors to buy CRM is surprisingly easy. Once you have decided whether to go for a hosted or on-site solution, create a list of possible vendors. Cross-check the vendors with the features you require and the budget you have allotted, and poof you have your shortlist. To explore the best CRM vendors before you buy CRM, check out our CRM buyer’s guide to make the choice easier.
Ask CRM Questions
Before you buy CRM solutions you should prepare a thorough list of questions for your shortlisted vendors. Your questions should give you a good overall idea of their history and services. Here are a few examples:
- Tell me about your background, including what vertical(s) you have experience in.
- Do you have a road map for the future regarding upgrades and enhancements to your CRM product?
- Do you offer references?
- Can I see a demo?
- Would it be possible to do a trial of the software before I buy it?
Do a Demo of CRM Software Trial
You wouldn't buy a car without a test drive, so why would you buy your software with one? A trial will give you an idea of the product's capabilities, what sort of learning curve your users might have, and an overall impression of the software. Most vendors would be happy to provide a demo and give share customer reviews with you. These should be considered important factors in your decision to buy CRM software.
Determine How the Software will be Received
The key to any CRM implementation success is how many users use it and how quickly they pick it up. Survey some of your departments and users to find out what the likelihood is that they will use it. It is important to get input from all relevant team members before you buy CRM. Without adequate input, you may buy CRM products that would be too hard for some teams to adopt. Thus, reducing the ROI. Also, this will help you figure out how much training you might need to do alongside the roll-out.
Try to Negotiate a Deal
It is very expensive to buy CRM solutions and going back to the car analogy, you wouldn't buy a car without negotiating a deal, right? While you are still in the information gathering phase is the best time to try and negotiate a deal because the vendor knows that they will have to earn your business. Be aware that buy CRM the standard list price is just that—a list price and this price usually has some wiggle room factored into it. In addition to the price, you can negotiate on extras, like additional modules, a reduction in consulting costs, free training, or lower maintenance costs.
To ensure that you buy CRM software solutions that are right for your business, refer to our CRM buyer’s guide and also check out the best CRM vendors on the market.
