I remember the first time I launched my own online business. It was a few months before Christmas, a time when people would start buying gifts. I was making novelty products — figurines, personalized fridge magnets, wall decors — and all went well because these products started selling.
One of my customers was a 17-year-old who bought a lot of fridge magnets with inspirational quotes printed on it. I started to make more of those magnets, thinking that I would sell more.
To my confusion, the sales started to dwindle on these fridge magnets, even though these were the same magnets that gave me my first sale.
Was it the designs? Did my customers think I wasn’t giving them the products they expected?
I was lost in thought, knowing I made a good impression with my products, yet none of my customers stayed. They all came and went, even though I kept making new products.
As a business owner, it’s my job to search for practical options that’ll help make my business relevant to my customer’s needs. After setting an appointment with a business consultant, I learned about using CRM system for small business, which later turned out to be just what I needed to raise my business revenue.
As the famous saying goes, “business begins with a handshake.” This quote emphasizes the importance of making a good impression with customers —an invaluable part of every business deal. Every handshake should therefore be treated like the start of a new relationship.
The ever-growing industry of small and large-scale businesses requires owners to stay on top of their craft. This means going for practical options that will help keep track of the company’s accounts, leads, opportunities, users, contacts, and many more.
Businesses are always on the lookout for new strategies and tactics that would help raise their revenue and improve business operations. The strategies themselves should not only promote the brand, but should also play a part in improving overall workflow and productivity.
Long-time Proven Strategies for Businesses
When running your own business, it’s essential to consider the following strategies:
#1. Personalized Customer Service
Successful businesses have perfected the art of finding solutions for their clients’ problems and meeting their expectations. It’s important to value customer feedback because it plays a part in user-focused services.
To do this, most businesses would recommend actively engaging and interacting with customers.
#2. Social Media
Nowadays, companies are becoming visible on Facebook, Google+. Twitter, Instagram, and many more social media platforms.
Aside from brand promotion and visibility, social media is also a great way to communicate with customers. It may not sound important, but social media presence is actually a proven business strategy.
Being present in social media helps raise customer loyalty, and also makes it easier for potential customers to find the business.
#3. Data
Decision-making in businesses should be largely based on data, which includes information on a business’ ROI, KPI, as well as on their clients.
Client data helps companies personalize their services, ensuring that their services cater to each of their clients’ individual needs. For this reason, data should be updated regularly so that it remains relevant, therefore guiding the business towards the right customer-centric decisions.
What is a CRM System?
A customer relationship management (CRM) system allows businesses to become more advanced by taking into account the expectations of their current and potential customers. It helps business owners keep track of customer information, and also makes transfer of information from one department to another easier.
This saves more effort and time while maximizing customer-centric operations.
By application, CRM software collects data and puts them in a single CRM database to make it more accessible and easily manageable. Here are five advantages of using CRM software for entrepreneurs:
#1. Automation of Marketing Strategies
Some CRM software has marketing automation features, allowing business owners to repeat effective marketing strategies to customers at different points in time.
One example is if a potential customer registers on a business’ website; the CRM system automatically sends marketing materials to the customer, usually via email.
The marketing materials are designed in a way that would encourage that potential customer to purchase from the business, therefore raising the possibility of gaining a full-fledged customer for the business.
#2. Social Media Presence
Companies find that establishing a presence in social media platforms raises their business revenue.
Wells Fargo, a company that provides banking, financing, investment options, and many more to millions of clients, shares that CRM social media connectivity helped them stay on top of their industry.
They were able to stay connected to their social media followers, allowing them to respond to the concerns of their clients immediately.
#3. Sales Force Management
This feature of CRM systems helps prevent repetition of efforts between clients and salespersons.
The CRM system automatically tracks conversations made via phone calls and emails, and also tracks the follow-ups done on both sides to ensure that no effort will be duplicated.
Activision is a company that’s been delivering gaming and entertainment to its customers for years. By using CRM software, they are able to monitor conversations on social media, particularly those relevant to their products.
This way, they learn about what their customer wants and direct their operations towards meeting their customer expectations.
#4. Automation of Contact Center
Responding to clients individually can be tiring, which is why companies make use of CRM software to pre-record and pre-write their email and phone responses.
Using these tools, customer service agents are able to cut down the time of calls from clients, therefore simplifying the process of handling customer service concerns.
Munchery, a small business that provides food delivery alternatives, lets their drivers use a CRM-integrated app to easily adapt to last-minute changes in customers’ orders.
This way, they are able to maintain relationships with their existing customers while efficiently catering to new ones.
#5. Value on Customer Interaction
CRM software for small business makes it easier to maintain a good relationship with their customers by providing time-efficient alternatives to handling concerns.
Bespoke Collection, a small organization that offers top-tier memberships, artisanal wines, and elegant art to their customers, found that their growing number of customers proved a real challenge, especially in managing customer data.
Upon using CRM software, customers who purchase from them receive an email at 10 AM the next day, and this has been a consistent process for year.
This way, they were able to maintain the relationship and provide their customers with a sense of value and appreciation.
Now It’s Your Turn
Now it’s time to generate revenue for your small business.
The first step?
Leave a comment to let me know how you’ll implement CRM system in your business.
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