Consolidate, Capture & Nurture Client Info: A Simple Guide To CRM

Learn what CRM is, why every business needs it, and how to get a cost-effective CRM set-up for your small business.

Is your workstation beginning to look like Hurricane Sticky Notes? Do you find yourself frowning, digging through piles of paper and scrambling to look for client information that conveniently disappears when you need it most? Or even worse… have you forgotten about clients that contacted you weeks ago and lost out on a potential business deal? There is a modern-day solution to these common business problems and it comes in the form of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools or software. If you’ve heard this term being used before but never knew what it meant, this is going to be your ‘aha’ moment, because we’re going to explain exactly what CRM is and why it’s crucial for every small business.

WHAT IS CRM & WHY DO I NEED IT?

CRM stands for customer relationship management, which refers to the act of managing your leads (potential customers) and existing customers, keeping their information stored safely in one place and organising that information so you can easily refer back to it when you need to. Just as our cellphones allow us to store contacts in the form of names, numbers, email addresses and physical addresses, a CRM tool can do this and so much more for your business contacts. With CRM software, anyone who makes an inquiry about your business or services has their details captured and stored in one place and you can automate follow ups so you never lose a lead or miss a sale. Fantastic right? Keep reading, it gets better!

DIFFERENT KINDS OF CRM

There are several different kinds of CRM tools and apps out there, so it may seem a little daunting at first. If you’re new to all this and prefer to focus on your business operations, it may be a good idea to hire a local website agency that can sift through the options available and help you select the best CRM tool for your business. In a nutshell, you can choose between a CRM that’s geared towards marketing or one that helps with back-end operations. Some CRM providers offer an all-in-one package.

WHY EVERY BUSINESS NEEDS A WEB FORM

For every business, your contacts are like gold. You’ve worked hard to get them, so maintaining them is vital. The best way to collect contacts is from web enquiries, but how do you go about doing this? Once people have been directed to your website, they’re actively engaged in your product or service, they’re interested, and it’s the perfect time to capture their contact details. A web form that appears on your website is the ideal way to do this. You could ask visitors to your site to leave their email address and be added to your newsletter mailing list or receive a free gift. A web form is your one-way ticket to an ever-growing email list that will give you valuable contacts that can convert into actual sales. This is especially useful for small business owners who don’t have huge advertising budgets and can only rely on cost-effective methods such as email lists to build and grow a clientele.

So, to summarise, a CRM is the best way to manage your relationships with your customers. CRM apps can help you remember client names before you go into a meeting, when you last spoke to them, what you spoke about and where to pick up the conversation. They also allow the whole team to see updates related to which clients have been pitched, followed up and which deals have been closed so everyone’s on the same page. And the best part is that it’s all automated, saving you hours of laborious data entry and the embarrassment of forgetting an important piece of information related to a client.

Contact 2Brownies today for a leading CRM solution that will help you organise and optimise your small business so it can reach its full potential in a shorter space of time. Never miss a lead, never lose a contact! Get a CRM set-up with us and save on time, money and stress. Our friendly team is standing by to respond to your queries and to guide you on your way to business success.

Call us at 1300 608 114 or email us at hello@2brownies.com.au for assistance.