Why do small and medium sized businesses need CRM?
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems are no longer the domain of large corporations. They are increasingly being used by small and medium sized business to help them grow, become more efficient and improve the way they function.

Properly implemented, a CRM system will bring significant benefits to your business. It will help prevent your business from losing customers to your competition, and help you avoid missing out on new opportunities. It will make it easier for your sales people to sell, help your marketing, improve your customer service and a whole range of business processes in between.

So, CRM should be part of your strategy - whatever the size of your company. But often getting started with CRM can be the hardest step.


What to do first
Before starting a CRM project, it's important to identify the specific problems, in each area of your business, you are looking to address. For example, you may want your customer service department to solve issues more quickly, or for marketing to improve the way they track leads, or for your sales department to increase the accuracy of their forecasting.

When you've decided what you want from the system, talk to the people who will be using it. What day to day issues do they have that the system should address?

Once you've identified what you want the system to achieve, set some measurable objectives and KPI's.


Choose the right software
There are many different CRM products available, each with varying functions, technical specifications, hardware requirements and so on.

If you're working with an independent CRM provider, they will be able to perform an assessment of your business and recommend a system most suited to your requirements. If you choose to perform the business assessment yourself, key factors to take into account include:

  • The level of functionality required to meet your defined objectives
  • The degree of configuration necessary
  • If there is a need for customisation
  • The number of users (leave room for future growth - CRM systems soon become popular)
  • If any users will require remote access, and how (e.g PDA's, laptops or PC's)
  • If integration with other systems, such as accounts or email, is required
  • Security levels
  • Do you want an on-premise solution, or will you make do with a hosted solution?
  • Whether you will use your existing data, and the extent of cleansing
  • Levels of staff training
  • Existing hardware and network infrastructure
  • Future functionality (is there a clear upgrade path?)
  • And of course costs - overall cost of ownership will include software licences, hardware, support, maintenance, and (if you choose a hosted solution) a tie in to monthly fees.


Choose the right business partner
It's highly unlikely that you will achieve the CRM functionality you require, from any CRM software solution, straight ‘out of the box'. For this you'll need an
Properly implemented, a CRM system will bring significant benefits to your business.
accredited or certified CRM software reseller (often referred to as a business partner).

Ideally choose a business partner that specialises in CRM, or at least one that can provide references of successful CRM projects. Preferably they'll offer different systems so they can recommend the software most suited to your business needs. Make sure they don't see CRM as an aside to their core business. Also check they offer a full range of services, not just software supply and installation.


Plan the implementation
Whatever the size of your project, it's worth appointing a project manager. If you've chosen a CRM specialist as a business partner, they will probably include project planning and management as part of the package.

Make sure your staff will be available during project implementation. They'll be needed for input at various stages, and to be trained to use the system.

A good business partner will use a defined CRM project methodology, certainly for larger projects. However for a business with say five users and straightforward requirements, a typical plan will include:

  • Business process and requirements analysis
  • Software configuration
  • Installation and commissioning
  • Data preparation and import
  • User training
  • Report development
  • System review

Make sure a full support and maintenance structure is in place early on in the project, and for at least two months after the system has gone live.

Watch out for the pitfalls
When CRM systems are properly implemented, the results can be outstanding. However,

  • Don't see CRM as just software. Even for small implementations it is a strategic shift involving staff, processes and procedures.
  • Don't be ruled by software specifications - make sure you know what you want your system to do, and then look for the software to do it.
  • Get buy-in from your staff - make sure they clearly see the advantages, have provided input, understand the system and are trained to use it properly.
  • Choose the right business partner. Make sure they are experienced: check their references, technical accreditations and ask for case studies of previous work.
  • Make sure your business partner provides a full range of services, has more than one option of CRM software, and will implement your system quickly and with minimal disruption to your business.


Get Started with CRM!
CRM systems are increasingly becoming essential components of successful small and medium sized businesses. In fact, CRM software such as Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Sage CRM and GoldMine Premium Edition has been developed specifically with the needs of SME's in mind.

CRM providers are responding to this demand. For example, leading UK independent CRM specialist Concentrix has developed a range of Easy-Start CRM packages. These offer comprehensive, rapid implementation of a choice of proprietary, on-premise CRM software, and are specifically designed to help small and medium sized businesses get started with CRM.

 

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