6 Key processes that a CRM must automate

We are no longer in an economy of products, we are in an economy of experiences, increasingly accelerated by a digital and technological revolution, where interactions and transactions with customers occur at high speed. From a customer's click on a website to their feedback on a product, every interaction carries the potential to build (or break) a relationship. Here lies the challenge of efficiently leveraging these interactions to nurture strong relationships, and the answer to this challenge is a CRM.

A CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, is not just a tool or software, it is a strategic approach to managing a company's interactions with its customers. By centralizing customer information, automating marketing and sales processes, tracking customer interactions and analyzing data, a CRM system turns raw data into valuable information.

A well-implemented CRM system provides a centralized platform where all customer-related data and interactions are stored. This centralization, or omni-channeling, ensures that all channels and touch points of a customer with a company are visible to all departments and operate from a unified understanding of each customer.

In economic terms, acquiring a new customer can be five times more expensive than retaining an existing one, so it is important to understand that loyal customers not only generate recurring revenue; they also act as brand advocates, generating new customers through referrals. A CRM can also identify potential up-sell or cross-sell opportunities, helping companies maximize the value of each customer. Automated processes, centralized data and streamlined workflows (hallmarks of a good CRM) significantly reduce operating costs.

Learn how a CRM significantly shapes business strategies in both B2B and B2C, and how it impacts the business' operational-commercial processes.

>>Read more: CRM: the ideal platform for customer management<<

INDEX:

• Define whether your company's strategy is B2B or
• Define your processes before implementing a CRM
• 6 key processes that a CRM should automate
• Recommendations

Define whether your company's strategy is B2B or

Effective communication with customers has become a top priority. Regardless of whether a company operates in a B2B (business-to-business) or B2C (business-to-consumer) model, the challenges of maintaining clear, consistent and impactful communication remain significant.

The first thing a company should analyze before adopting a CRM is to define the type of customer and segments they want to serve, this will define whether your company needs to build B2B business processes or B2C consumer processes.

>> Read more: 4 key factors in creating a successful Buyer Persona <<

For example, imagine a food or beverage company like Coca Cola, which has a diversified portfolio of B2B customers, ranging from large supermarkets to small convenience stores. While Coca Cola may have access to a large amount of billing data, order histories and transaction records, etc., the truth is that in their sales process they have billing data, but not detailed data on the key decision makers within their customers' organizations, which is where a CRM comes in to provide intelligence and business process improvement.

Why a company with B2B customers should consider a CRM:

• Lack of personal touch points: Without data about your B2B customers, personalized outreach becomes an impossible task, and generic messages, which might appeal to a larger group, lack the specificity to engage these critical people effectively.
• Communicate assertively by segment and customer type: Different individuals within an organization may have different pain points, needs and priorities. A CEO may be more interested in long-term strategic partnerships, while a procurement manager may prioritize profitability and immediate delivery schedules. Without the ability to segment your communication, company messages run the risk of becoming too broad or, worse, completely misguided.
• Missed opportunities for cross-selling or up-selling: by not knowing the key stakeholders and their needs, the company may miss opportunities to offer complementary services or products that could meet specific needs or challenges faced by those individuals.
• Inefficient allocation of resources: without a clear view of who the decision makers are, sales and marketing teams can waste resources chasing leads that don't materialize. This can lead to higher costs and reduced ROI on marketing campaigns.
• Difficulty building long-term relationships: B2B relationships are not just between companies but, more importantly, between the people who run them. Without personalized interactions, building long-lasting, trust-based relationships with key stakeholders can be challenging.
  

Now, let's look at the challenges of a B2C company, for example, a department store like Target. Shoppers regularly buy their products in their stores, but these transactions often occur without collecting shopper data, so the retailer finds itself in a dynamic of lots of customer traffic, but little or no customer data, resulting in a reliance on paid advertising rather than one-to-one strategies that are more personalized and cost-effective.

Why a B2C company should consider a CRM:

• End-consumer anonymity: When products are sold through third-party retail outlets, manufacturers often have no knowledge of the end consumer. Unlike direct-to-consumer sales, this lack of information means that the company cannot understand or interact directly with its audience.
• Over-reliance on paid advertising: without direct access to customer data, a company will have very little chance of creating hyper-personalized strategies with their customers. This forces them to allocate a significant budget to platforms such as Google Ads, constantly bidding for visibility among their target audience.
• Lack of personalized marketing: no data means no understanding of individual customer preferences. Companies with a B2C approach are often unable to segment their audience to deliver personalized messages or offers. Every marketing message becomes a shot in the dark, hoping to resonate with the widest possible audience.
• Difficulty in generating loyalty: without a direct line of communication, fostering brand loyalty becomes a challenge. The company cannot offer loyalty programs, exclusive offers or personalized recommendations to encourage repeat purchases.
• Inability to measure marketing effectiveness: since companies do not have access to customer data or to perform personalized strategies, it becomes dependent on metrics provided by advertising platforms. These metrics may not always provide a complete picture of customer behavior or the effectiveness of marketing efforts.

Define your processes before implementing a CRM

Defining business processes before implementing a CRM is fundamental to guarantee the adoption and successful use of the system. A CRM should be understood as a set of business and service processes, it should not be seen simply as "software" as it will not deliver business results if the processes are not automated.

Without a clear understanding of existing and desired business processes, a CRM cannot be effectively tailored to meet specific business needs. Instead of acting as a solution that integrates seamlessly into business operations, CRM can become a tool that can create inefficiencies. For example, when processes are clear, in CRM you can automate business rules, checkpoints, action/inaction notifications and thus automate the role of people by automated processes; without a process your CRM will record customer data, but it will be more like a very expensive Excel rather than a customer management platform.

In addition, when business processes are defined up front, training and change management is easier, as employees can see how CRM aligns with their roles and responsibilities, making it easier for them to adopt and use the system consistently. Conversely, a lack of understanding of these processes can result in poor user adoption, one of the most common reasons for CRM implementation failures.

Data integrity is another important concern. With clearly defined business processes, guidelines can be established for data entry and maintenance. This ensures that data within the CRM remains consistent, accurate and useful. Otherwise, companies run the risk of having a system full of unreliable data, leading to uninformed or even detrimental decisions.

In addition, a well-structured business process provides clear benchmarks against which CRM effectiveness can be measured. It provides companies with a standard for assessing whether the CRM is meeting its objectives or needs adjustments. In the long run, this preparatory step also contributes to scalability. As the company grows and evolves, the CRM must also adapt. A thorough understanding of business processes allows the company to modify and scale the CRM solution according to its changing needs.

In essence, while a CRM system offers solid tools and capabilities, without a solid foundation provided by well-defined business processes, its potential is very limited.

 >>Read more: Process Improvement<<

6 key processes that a CRM should automate

 Attraction Process: This is the initial phase where potential customers learn about a company's products or services. Automation in this area can involve targeted marketing campaigns, social media integrations or even predictive analytics that help companies identify potential customers.

• Segmentation and targeting: CRMs allow companies to segment their customer base and target them with personalized marketing campaigns. This ensures a higher ROI by reaching the right audience with the right message.
• Personalization: by analyzing customer data, CRMs help create personalized content that appeals more to potential customers, thus attracting them more effectively.

 Conversion Process: After attracting a lead, the next step is to convert them into a paying customer. Automated CRM capabilities can streamline this process by tracking a lead's interactions, providing sales teams with valuable information, or even automating certain communications to guide a lead through the sales funnel.

• Lead management: A CRM provides tools to manage and track leads from the initial point of contact through conversion. By automating lead nurturing campaigns, CRMs can improve conversion rates.
• Informed decisions: sales teams equipped with detailed customer data can better tailor their proposition, addressing specific needs or pain points, ultimately leading to higher conversions.

 Retention Process: Keeping existing customers is as important as acquiring new ones. CRM systems can automate retention strategies by analyzing purchase histories, setting reminders for follow-ups and triggering personalized offers or content aimed at keeping the customer engaged.

• Customer history: CRMs track customer interactions, preferences and transaction history. This ensures that companies can effectively address issues and concerns, reducing the chances of losing a customer.
• Automated follow-ups: with CRM tools, companies can set up reminders or automated communications to ensure that customers feel valued, improving retention.

 Loyalty Process: Building customer loyalty is vital to achieving repeat business and can often generate increased revenue. CRMs can automate loyalty programs, track reward points and offer targeted promotions based on customer buying behavior and preferences.

• Rewards management: Many CRMs offer loyalty program management features, ensuring that customers are recognized and rewarded for their loyalty.
• Feedback: by analyzing comments and addressing them in real time, companies can ensure that customers feel heard, increasing their loyalty.

 Service Process: Exceptional customer service can differentiate a company from its competitors. CRM automation tools can help by creating and tracking service tickets, giving customer service representatives a comprehensive view of a customer's history or even using chatbots for immediate query resolution.

• Centralized inquiry management: CRM systems centralize customer inquiries, ensuring timely and consistent responses.
• Knowledge Base: Many CRMs are integrated or include a knowledge base, allowing customers to self-help or service teams to quickly address issues.

 Referral Process: Word of mouth and customer referrals are among the most effective forms of marketing. Automated CRM systems can encourage this by offering referral bonuses, tracking referral sources, and managing affiliate or partner programs.

• Referral programs: CRMs often have built-in tools to manage and promote referral programs, ensuring that customers are incentivized to generate new business.
• Testimonials and reviews: by following up with satisfied customers, companies can request testimonials or reviews, enhancing their reputation and trustworthiness.

20 recommendations when implementing a CRM syste

• First define buyer persona and segments.
• Understand your target audience by creating detailed buyer personas. This provides clarity on the needs, pain points and preferences of your potential customers.
• Use data analytics and market research to divide your audience into segments for targeted sales and marketing efforts.
• Define your customers' customer journey.
• Map every touch point a customer has with your company, from awareness to purchase and beyond.
• Identify potential areas of friction in the customer journey and opportunities to improve their experience.
• Define business processes first before implementing software.
• Document existing workflows and processes. This will help you identify redundancies, bottlenecks and areas for improvement.
• Make sure your CRM solution is adaptable enough to accommodate unique or changing business processes.
• Implement in phases, no "Big Bang" project is easy to execute.
• Implement CRM in phases, focusing on key functions or departments first.
• Gather feedback at each phase and make adjustments as needed before moving on to the next.
• Integrate with existing systems.
• Make sure your CRM system can seamlessly integrate with other tools and systems in use, such as marketing automation tools, ERP systems or e-commerce platforms.
• Prioritize user training.
• Invest time in training your staff to use CRM effectively. This will lead to better adoption rates and return on investment.
• Provide ongoing learning opportunities, including workshops, webinars and updated training materials.
  Ensure data quality.
• Periodically clean and update your CRM data to avoid duplication, inaccuracies and outdated information.
• Opt for a customizable CRM. 
• Choose a CRM that offers flexibility in terms of customization to meet your specific business needs.
• Set clear goals.
• Define what the success of your CRM implementation looks like. Whether improving the potential customer conversion rates, improving the customer service or optimizing sales processes, have clear objectives help to measure the ROI.
• Prioritize security.
• Make sure your CRM system follow the best practices in security and compliance data, especially if you handle confidential customer information.
• Embrace mobile accessibility. 
• Opt for a CRM that offers mobile access to attend to sales representatives or staff on the move.
• Automate when necessary.
• Use the CRM to automate repetitive tasks such as data entry, tracking or scoring potential customers.
• Periodically review and update.
• Periodically review CRM effectiveness and make adjustments based on feedback and changing business needs.
• Encourage collaboration.
• Use features that allow different departments to collaborate, ensuring that everyone has a holistic view of the customer.
• Listen to user feedback.
• Actively solicit feedback from users to understand their pain points, needs and suggestions for improvement.
• Budget appropriately.
• Be sure to budget not only for CRM software but also for training, support, customization and future upgrades.
• Dedicate a CRM champion.
• Designate a dedicated person or team who can spearhead the implementation, manage the system and be the go-to resource for all things CRM.
• Consider scalability.
• Opt for a CRM that can adapt to your business needs, ensuring that it remains useful as your company grows.
• Incorporate analytics. 
• Leverage CRM analytics capabilities to gain insight into sales trends, customer behavior and other key metrics.
• Stay current with CRM trends. 
• Stay on top of evolving CRM technologies and best practices to ensure your system remains current and competitive.

Implementing a CRM system with a structured approach, taking into account these recommendations, can greatly improve its effectiveness and adoption within the organization.

 Further recommended reading:

• Sales Prospect Management in a CRM

• Benefits of using a CRM in your business: A boost for success