CRM Software

Title:	CRM Software
URL:	http://www.commence.com
Discription:	What should you be looking for when selecting CRM software? Well it depends on what is important to you, but let me offer a few tips that may help you in the selection process. While it seems almost impossible to differentiate one CRM solution from another other than by price, all CRM systems are not alike. The first thing you need to do is determine what problem you are trying to address. Most CRM systems address three specific business requirements. One Central Database of All Customer Information First is data consolidation. This enables you to capture, track, manage and share vital customer information with the people and departments that require it to efficiently do their jobs. Previously known as contact management, this functionality is traditionally found in even the most basic CRM systems and is fine for those companies simply looking to get away from managing their business using an Excel spreadsheet. But what if you need more? Drive More Business and Close More deals The next core functionality requirement most businesses have is how to get the telephone to ring more. Most businesses need more leads and may not have a structured sales process in place to ensure that both new leads and the sales cycle are properly managed to closure. While lower cost CRM systems offer some basic sales management and reporting, you need to consider a mid-market offering that offers the work flow processes for creating marketing campaigns that generate new leads, qualifying or scoring the leads and automating the entire sales process. Lastly, providing world class customer service may be the difference between earning new and recurring business and losing to your competition. More robust CRM systems offer a customer support application that provides service representatives with access to a complete customer profile. This enables them to react immediately to customer inquiries or complaints. Higher end CRM systems may also include a customer portal that allows the customer to check the status of their order or service ticket or edit their profile right within the CRM system. This new self-service component provides customers with a better buying experience and gives your business a leg up on the competition. The analytics identify how many leads were generated each month or quarter, what the source of the leads were, how many of the leads turned into sales opportunities, how many of the opportunities turned into new business and what was the value of that new business.