If you ask any business owner what they need/what in order to make their business grow, run more efficiently, and ultimately make more money, the most likely answer would be “more time.” Time is something that we all get the same amount of each day. However, when used inefficiently, time can be our worst nightmare.
The ironic thing is, what actually makes a business grow (more sales) only happens through garnering quality leads. Now, this is a time-consuming process because even after you’ve vetted potential customers and made sure they’re the types of leads you’d want to work with, you still need to nurture them into trusting you and wanting to do business with you.
Seeing that this is a time-consuming, tedious task it can be easy for businesses and owners to let this slip by the wayside. But, even reaching out just one time isn’t enough. Just think about it, would you buy something from a stranger on the street? Probably not, so you need to build trust in order for them to eventually close.
How can you overcome this time-consuming, tedious, drawn-out process in order to grow all while saving you more time? By utilizing a Customer Relationship Manager or CRM for short. A CRM streamlines client communication and outreach. It does so by way of automation, tracking/monitoring, and by being an all-in-one customer service hub, saving you valuable time while simultaneously improving your lead outreach, sales cycle, and ultimately driving more revenue.
Automation
Automating a task(s)/process is the action of setting up a system that does the task for you after setting it up. As we like to say, it’s when you “set & forget”. When it comes to client outreach, you can do just that.
How many times have you had a great lead come in, or be referred to you, and they WANTED to do business with you all they needed was a little ‘buttering up’. But, you dropped the ball and didn’t reach out or you did but didn’t continue through for whatever reason (one single outreach is usually never adequate!). Now, that lead went to a competitor who answered some questions as soon as he asked them.
On top of it all, you realized you weren’t even seeing that he was reaching out to you because your inbox is cluttered with unread emails. It’s painful, right? Knowing that you had the lead and all that was needed was a couple follow up questions answered to close him, it’s tough.
A CRM enables a business/owner to set up processes/flows that are custom to their business and industry via a series of triggers and sequences that once they’re set, you only need to maintain them.
For example, say you were running a specific campaign around an annual, limited availability, boot camp. Having a CRM would allow you to create triggers/sequences that are specific to that campaign only. And you’d be able to sort the leads by that campaign, allowing you to see which leads are coming from where which leads us to our second point of how a CRM can save you time.
Tracking/Monitoring
Being able to automate tasks, specifically, outreach sequences is great and invaluable to a business owner. But what good would automation be you didn’t know how well it was working or if it was even working at all? Enter the CRM.
Not only does a CRM enable you to automate tasks, outreach, and lead generation/nurturing, but it allows you to see how all of those aspects are doing. Having a CRM allows you to create custom workflows that are specific to the automated sequences/triggers. A workflow is the sales cycle or funnels that “funnel” leads down into becoming a customer.
When you have custom workflows set up for each sequence you have (or if you have just one) you can see where leads are falling off, where they need more push to get back on track, or you can even see why the quality leads you’re targeting aren’t coming through.
From this, you’re able to tweak your process and outreach efforts. For example, if you’re noticing leads are falling off at a certain point, you can then go in and change up the strategy for that specific trigger.
Instead of having to keep tabs on each individual lead, making sure you’re in contact with them enough, which can leave you in chaos and where you can leave a lot of money on the table, a CRM allows you to look at the whole process from above to see what is working and what isn’t. This way you’re not spending too much time on someone who never had the intent of buying and can focus on someone who wants to sign-up for your club right now.
All-In-One Client Communications/Streamlining Outreach
How frustrating is it when you have to toggle between browsers, video chat apps, your phone, email, etc., just to nurture leads? Doing it manually, as we stated, is a time-consuming process and one that isn’t scalable. You need something that scales.
Well, a CRM is an all-in-one client communication tool that encompasses everything mentioned above into one piece of software. You’re able to call, text, email, video call (depending on the CRM), in one tab. On top of automation and being able to track/monitor leads and the lead process, CRM’s pack everything under one house so that you can do it all.
You save time by switching between fewer tabs, not losing important information on a lead/client, being able to call/text right from your desktop which leaves you less likely to get distracted by your phone, and by being able to track all of it under one, full-service solution.
CRM’s Save You Time, Make You More $
Overall, a CRM can help you save countless hours on lead generation/customer service which can be better spent somewhere else. By automating your processes, you’re setting-up once and forgetting about it. After setting it up, you just need to maintain it in case it needs optimizing. And, you can see which nurture process is converting, needs more work, or isn’t worth the time anymore.
This prompts you to spend more time on the leads that actually matter/are more likely to buy from you. Lastly, instead of having a variety of different tools and resources/having to do so manually, CRM’s are an all in one client communication tool that enables you to have all of your lead generation/customer service efforts under one roof, keeping things simple and efficient.
