Sales CRMs play an integral role in business growth. More businesses are learning to place value on building lasting customer relations. Thus, many are spending top dollar for quality CRM services.
According to research, the average CRM software ROI was $8.71 per dollar spent in 2014. Experts estimate that the ROI has grown to $30.48 per dollar spent.
In this article, we answer your question on what is a sales CRM process, and how companies can leverage them for maximum gains.
Understanding CRM Systems
A Customer Relationship Management System, CRM is a technological innovation that helps companies better connect with potential and past customers. It is a personal repository for customer data.
Companies connect multiple channels to collect valuable data on customer interactions. The data captured includes customer information such as past purchases and preferences.
It also records contact information and any prior engagements with the company.
Other primary functions of a CRM include:
- Marketing integration. The function facilitates marketing campaigns. CRMs help segment customers according to their preferences, behavior, and purchase history.
- Sales management. Keeps track of every sale activity, from lead generation to closing a sale. The function helps teams focus on the sales process.
- Contact management. Keeping customer contact information helps build customer relations. The tools centralize information to aid relationship management.
- Customer support. Makes customer service efficient by utilizing available customer data to provide timely and personalized responses.
The Role of CRM in Sales Growth
Sales data from your CRM can help with strategic implementation. With it you can identify sales opportunities, track sales activities and predict sales trends. Analyzing customer data can help note patterns and insights that bring out new sales opportunities.
CRMs can easily track sales processes. They are sophisticated and guide sales teams to nurture sales processes from leads all the way through the sales funnel. CRMs go beyond sales by introducing sales forecasting.
The process involves analyzing historical sales data and previous customer interactions. In addition, the tools can give insights of future sales trends.Companies can utilize future sales trends predictions to make informed decisions.
They can work out resource allocation, sales strategy planning, and inventory management contributing to overall business growth.
The sales CRM process
The sales CRM process follows a sales funnel. Below is a breakdown of a sales CRM process.
Awareness and Customer Acquisition
The first part of sales is creating awareness and customer acquisition. The lead generation stage is all about finding prospects and wooing them. Companies can use sales history data to build buyer personas and ideal customer profiles.
Through data, sales teams can understand their ideal buyers and why they buy from them. Awareness is where teams create platforms that showcase a brand and its products. Here are a few places to build prospects:
- Social media
- Cold emails
- Cold calling
- Events and webinars
Engagement
The second stage is engaging the potential customers. They are ready for a cold call to discuss the offers. Further, it is to help unearth challenges a customer could be facing and offer them a suitable solution.
Engaging the customer helps understand them better and their expectations of you. You create a forum where you show them a better solution to the challenge they are currently facing.
Conversion
Conversion is where you close a lead. You turn a potential into a buyer. Getting conversions is the most valuable part of the whole sales process. Poor prospecting and engagement often lead to low or no conversions.
Cold leads can still be nurtured for conversion. These are people who have shown interest in doing business with you but at some point changed their minds. Constant engagement can reach out to them and woo them into buyers.
Personalized messaging and content are the best ways to increase conversions. 80% of buyers are likely to buy when they receive personalized content. Lastly, present your brand as a knowledgeable and reliable partner to linger in your prospect’s mind.
Retention
Once you acquire new customers, you have to plan for retention. Customer turnover can be demoralizing. Your customer support team should handle retention. It is the only way to build lasting customer relations.
Customer support must act promptly to help customers when needed. It helps keep away negative reviews and prevents customers from seeking other alternatives. A great support team has a professional and personalized approach to customer queries.
Customer Advocacy
Customer advocacy helps build loyalty. Your brand saves money it would have spent to acquire customers if they retained existing ones. Offering customers personalized perks helps keep them interested in your brand.
A CRM can help you create personalized offers and targeted email marketing campaigns to increase brand loyalty.
Conclusion
A great CRM process sets you apart from the competition. Your customers are happy and satisfied with the personalized sales experiences and offers that match their preferences. A well-crafted CRM process is all you need to create a memorable buyer journey.