The benefits of a CRM system are not always obvious. SMEs, in particular, often shy away from investing because the benefits are not entirely clear to them.
What are the benefits of a CRM system
First, a brief explanation of what a CRM system is. The term stands for “Customer Relationship Management” – it’s about customer relationship management . Tip: Read our article with the CRM Dictionary for more information on the definition and meaning of the term.
There are of course primary goals behind it, such as: retaining existing customers in the long term and quickly attracting new customers. So basically what every company wants and needs to do if it wants to survive and grow. A CRM system contributes to these goals in a variety of ways. By documenting customer-specific data can be obtained measures and objectives to support customer , sales and marketing .
And: thanks to the interdepartmental transparency one hand can always understand what the other is doing. In the end, it can also just be a professional look in front of existing and new customers .
Benefits of CRM for small and medium-sized businesses
These days, every company, regardless of size or industry, knows: data is the greatest asset. The benefits of a CRM system is that data isn’t just collected and compiled, for example, to deliver goods to the right address. Rather, it’s about taking proper care of customers and taking a personal, individualized approach to new customers that helps convert them to existing customers.
Thus, modern CRM systems are more than just digital catalog cards for customers and business contacts. Rather, they collect all available information about the contact and record, for example, what is known as the “customer journey.” Means: The system documents what individual steps the customer takes before a contract or purchase is made. The latter is, above all, important information for all companies running an online store, no matter how small.
In the end, the real benefits of a CRM system lie primarily in the fact that it automatically links or relates individual data to one another. This, in turn, can not only help better win and retain customers, but also relieve employees.
Digital customer management – companies benefit from it
CRM systems are suitable for companies of all sizes to get the most out of existing data and use information that relates to each other in a meaningful way. Thus, the benefits of a CRM system are as follows:
- No loss of information : important information about (new) customers is often lost due to natural turnover, changes within the department, or unintentional forgetfulness. With CRM there is no such thing.
- Transparency and time saving: all information and data is in one central repository. This creates clarity and transparency, and saves valuable time in your daily work.
- Fast response time: if a customer contacts us by phone or e-mail, each employee can immediately update the information and respond directly.
- Temporal and local independence . Modern CRM systems are offline, so data can also be used when traveling or when internet availability is poor.
- Analysis : Key figures and estimates can be performed using automated analysis tools (partly using AI ). These, in turn, can be used to improve customer relationships, determine marketing measures or your own offering, to name a few.
- Optimization potential : By evaluating the data, you can quickly see what you need to improve. For example, gain insight into the effectiveness of your marketing and use your budget more intentionally and wisely in the future. This then saves money and improves the basis for future decisions.
- Employee motivation : Companies that work with modern software and digital tools (instead of relying on outdated documents) find it easier to attract new talent and retain good employees.
- As a result, CRM systems (as described in the beginning) improve customer relations in the first place. This in turn positively affects the image and in the best case automatically leads to the acquisition of new customers by referrals . As a result, sales and profits are automatically maximized in this way .