Customer Relationship Management: The Key to Growth. White Paper. Caltech IT Ltd.

Transcription

1 Customer Relationship Management: The Key to Growth White Paper Caltech IT Ltd

2 CONTENTS Introduction The Marketplace CRM: The Foundations of Success Three to Thrive Acquire Profitable Customers Get More from your Marketing Spend Increase Sales Team Effectiveness Retain and Maximise Existing Customers Knowledge the Key to Effective Customer Relations Gain Efficiencies Improve Business Processes Help Employees to Excel Simplify IT Assets Conclusion

3 Introduction This White Paper sets out the role of customer relationship management (CRM) technology in supporting organisations to thrive in spite of current adverse economic conditions. The Marketplace Although economic conditions are challenging, the opportunity for growth remains. Successful organisations will fight the temptation to batten down the hatches and simply hope for stability. Instead, they will develop new strategies which strive for growth and competitive advantage, while taking account of the economic conditions. This is when the value of customer relationship management (CRM) solutions can be truly experienced, and is a proven way to shore up your business when times are tough, and build lasting growth that sees beyond an economic downturn. Of course, any investment must give demonstrable benefit, with an almost immediate and significant payback. That s why implementation of any CRM solution must be carefully thought through and the support of experienced professionals can pay dividends in the long run. CRM: The Foundations of Success CRM technology, when placed at the heart of an organisation, can have an almost immediate impact on the bottom line, helping organisations to win profitable customers and to better serve existing customers. At Caltech, we help our customers reap maximum benefit from their CRM investment by ensuring the solution helps them thrive in three ways:

4 Three to Thrive 1. acquire profitable customers direct marketing and sales investment appropriately to win the most profitable customers 2. retain and maximise existing customers ensure consistent interactions and service levels to maximise revenue opportunities and keep customers for the long-term 3. gain efficiencies improve operational performance by using CRM to automate routine tasks, establish best practice processes and evaluate the most effective sales and marketing channels. 1. Acquire Profitable Customers Stork Cooperheat, a specialist provider of heat equipment and services, used CRM to consolidate customer data and respond to customers quickly, doubling the department s global sales. 1.1 Get more from your marketing spend When times are tough, it s tempting to cut back on marketing spend. However, those that stay focused on their strategic goals resist this temptation and instead press for a higher return on marketing investment. This means marketing professionals need to find ways of generating new revenue opportunities in the fastest and most cost-effective way and this, critically, is dependent upon the availability of accurate and timely information. A well implemented CRM application will bring together multiple sources of information to support decision-making, allowing marketing campaigns to be targeted most effectively. CRM, when implemented and used effectively, enables marketing teams to make quality decisions about: Prospects from initial identification through to segmentation and evaluation, the CRM tool can help to focus resources where they are likely to have most effect. Effective prospecting means marketing and sales resources are directed appropriately, and that revenue forecasts are accurately developed

5 Campaign management good, up-to-date information about customers and prospects enables marketeers to develop tailored communication programmes which are likely to have more effect that a one size fits all approach. In addition, a unified information source means marketing teams can monitor and adjust their approach as market conditions or customer status changes Evaluation CRM allows marketing teams to track lead generation from each activity, so organisations can direct resources appropriately through an understanding of what channels are most effective Make all interactions count the CRM tool should act as a single information source for all interactions with prospective or existing customers. This means the results of sales or service interactions, as well as marketing activities such as mailings, telesales, events or web-based campaigns, can be merged on the CRM solution, providing a complete picture of an organisation s interactions. 1.2 Increase Sales Team Effectiveness A sales force is a valuable commodity possibly, one of an organisation s most costly resources. With this in mind, it s imperative that sales people spend their time selling, and less time chasing fruitless leads or jumping through administrative hurdles. The CRM tool should act as a sales force s compass. It should help the organisation understand where it stands today, and point in the direction it needs to take. Used to its full potential, the CRM tool should be an integral part of the sales team at the start of the sales cycle it should help qualify leads, allowing resources to be directed appropriately. Automatic triggers can be built into the system to ensure the desired contact programme is fulfilled, and subsequent win-loss data can be collated and analysed, allowing organisations to continually hone their strategy for optimum success. 2. Retain and Maximise Existing Customers Betech 100pt, now the UK s premier trade stockist of quality motion control products, used CRM to build strong relationships with their trade partners which made Betech more effective and drove their business in an alternative, profitable, direction. It s commonly known that it s significantly cheaper to retain existing customers than to acquire new ones. So it makes sense to focus resources which help to build customer loyalty, increasing spend and longevity.

6 A good CRM system means: detailed customer profiles can be built information about every interaction and purchase by each customer is held in a central repository. This reduces the risk of confusion or misunderstanding when managing customers, helping to improve customer satisfaction and provision of consistent service levels customer spend can be analysed this allows appropriate resources to be used in managing the customer marketing and sales activity is joined up campaigns can be managed more effectively as all teams are using a single source of information. 2.1 Knowledge the key to effective customer service A great customer experience must be balanced with the need to control cost. An effective CRM tool can help make service improvements whilst reducing costs associated with managing customers, both by making agents more effective, and by automating data entry processes. Automated data entry processes give benefit to both customers and organisations. For customers, they allow data to be gathered which enables routing to the most appropriate service adviser, reducing frustration and heightening the opportunity for the query to be resolved with just one call. For advisers, the automatic generation of service cases, complete with pre-populated standard fields means advisers have the necessary detail available to handle the query most effectively and can save valuable time. And because all information about the customer including historic data is held in one place, the adviser can more quickly handle the query as they have access to contextual information. The nature of the CRM system means any escalations can be seamlessly transferred to a supervisor who has access to a full and complete record.

7 3. Gain Efficiencies Caltech took time to understand our business and our process mapping. They got a real feel for what we wanted to get from CRM. The NHS Information Centre. Hays Travel, the UK s largest independently owned travel agent, benefitted from CRM which helped them improve staff efficiency, communication and quality of the customers experience. When budget is reined in and capital expenditure more difficult to justify, businesses that remain committed to growth look to alternative ways of achieving their strategic goals. Often part of the solution lies in an honest review of operational practice to seek ways to do more with existing resources. This usually means a review of processes to ensure they are supporting the organisation s goals and being implemented in the most effective way. 3.1 Processes Improvement All businesses operate with a series of processes, often built around the most basic functions of the organisation and almost always repetitive tasks. These processes are vital to an organisation s success they are what drive consistent service levels, fast decision-making and best practice. However, whether designed or simply the product of the business s evolution, there is usually much advantage in ensuring processes are working effectively and that employees are involved in only tasks that cannot be automated. It is important that managers continually analyse the processes that accomplish the required results and understand which series of events were less successful. CRM technology can be used to automate many of these every day processes, thereby reducing the operational costs involved. Workflows can be built to ensure faster and more effective decision making, and a smoother management of the customer or prospect. For example, the CRM tool can be used to implement the desired sales and marketing approach to ensure appropriate action is taken on each opportunity before the prospect moves to the next stage in the sales cycle. This means sales and marketing resource is used to best effect, and the conversion rate is maximised. Successful processes are key to all successful organisations. CRM reporting makes it easy to identify the most effective processes, and to ensure they are established across the organisation.

8 3.2 Help Employees to Excel In an age where information is all-important, CRM tools can play an important role in ensuring employees are able to work effectively, adding maximum value to the business. Customers want to be helped quickly, and by the first person they speak to. They want quick solutions and correct answers. CRM means employees have the right information in the right place at the right time, empowering them to be effective and provide high quality service to customers. Of course, this means the CRM needs to be intuitive, easy to use and complimentary to other systems in use across the business. CRM can highlight VIP customers and highlight whether the customer has any service cases open. It gives easy access to historic information - who has been dealing with the case and what action has been taken to date. As well as providing access to information, the CRM tool should be feature-rich, allowing sales and marketing teams to undertake tasks which achieve revenue. This means developing marketing campaigns and sales follow-up with accuracy. They must have confidence that the system will automatically suppress those who have opted out of particular communication types. 3.3 Simplifying IT Assets As organisations grow, their IT infrastructure tends to grow too. Soon, a number of disparate systems are in use, often with overlapping and conflicting data. It can be a time-consuming and costly exercise to unravel the discrepancies, and produce a less than ideal experience for the customer. In addition, it can be more complex to maintain a number of systems, and add to the training costs too. Providing one unified system with a single presentation format, or user interface, means employees can access all the necessary information in one place, without the need to switch from one application to another. This makes it easier for them to make good decisions, and reduces the risk of wasted time and effort. A single source of knowledge means all employees are singing from the same hymn sheet and have a full and complete view of the customer.

9 A good CRM system will continue to evolve with an organisation, comprising accessible configuration tools to enable companies to further tailor the user interface. It should also allow companies to further develop their capabilities, allowing other applications to be added as necessary to support processes such as recruitment, supplier management and facilities management. As well as a centralised CRM solution it is critical that all systems which involve customer transactions are integrated accounting software is a good example. This supports the end-to-end customer experience. Conclusion In uncertain times, it s all too tempting to focus on gaining efficiencies from inside the company, saving money rather than making it. And, while it may be more uncomfortable to invest in existing assets in a downturned economy, this, coupled with a drive to gain operational efficiencies, is often an ideal time to gain competitive advantage. To succeed in a challenging economy, companies must keep focused on their strategy and find ways to achieve more with less. Tools which help companies maximise revenue opportunities and reduce operational costs will help strengthen the organisation and position it well for a secure future. CRM is a powerful tool which, if fully harnessed, can play a vital role in sales, marketing and service provision. However, to produce the required impact, it must be implemented with care. Correctly integrated with other IT applications, and aligned with business processes, a CRM tool can be immensely powerful, helping an organisation to gain better market positioning beyond an economic downturn. Working with experts at Caltech, reduces the risk of wasted time, effort and money and means you can reap the full benefit of a CRM system from the outset. You just ask for something and it s done. Caltech s ideas and influence to use the system effectively really work for GG Glass. GG Glass Independent Glass and Glazing Company

10 About Caltech Caltech has a proven track record in designing and implementing CRM solutions across a range of industries. Working with Caltech reduces the risk of wasted time, effort and money and means you can reap the full benefit of a CRM system from the outset. Established in 1999 by Phil Callaghan, it is now one of the UKs leading suppliers and implementers of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software. Based near Leads, it works with clients to manage their customer contact strategies, operational processes and daily business functions in order to maintain audience loyalty, increase awareness and ultimately drive sales by recommending, implementing, integrating and developing a variety of cutting edge database packages. Caltech is able to tailor every system to the specific needs of its clients whether it is an SME or large blue chip organisation and regardless of its IT capability. Customer service is at the very heart of everything that Caltech does and is committed to meeting and exceeding expectations in the most effective way possible, leaving a real sense of confidence. Long term and successful integration is when CRM works best so Caltech, unlike many of its competitors, is not just a supplier the team works on an ongoing basis with every client to develop specific systems so they work hand in hand with existing software, from accounts systems to telephony packages, ensuring optimum results every time. Hays have benefited from improved efficiency, communication and quality Carole Hodgson, Hays Travel The introduction of Goldmine and QuoteWerks has played a major part in the doubling of my department s global sales since the introduction of the two systems. Nigel Bleackley, Stork Cooperheat You just ask for something and it s done. Caltech have given us an exceptional system, their ideas and influence to use the system effectively, really work for GG Glass. The transformation was achieved when we took on GoldMine, making us leaner and meaner. It was revolutionary. Chris Benson, Managing Director Betech 100pt. The Microsoft Dynamics CRM Event Manager Accelerator is exceptional. We use this tool for managing our many conferences, delegate badges and lists. The Information Centre NHS