Why is a CRM system important? 3 crucial arguments

Every entrepreneur discovers at a certain moment the importance of good Customer Relationship Management, or CRM. With a CRM system you maintain customer contact, you record important matters in that customer contact and you build a stable future for your company. Yet there are many starters who are initially reluctant to use a CRM system. Because does such a CRM system not only cost time and money, without you actually getting anything in return?

Prepared for growth

Everyone wants to grow, but not everyone takes it fully into account.

That initial shudder is not entirely illogical. Starters have few customers yet. Customer contact is more or less the same as networking: easily accessible, on a personal level and based on trust. However, every company wants to grow. As soon as you notice that you need a systematic approach to customer contact, you are actually too late. Many poker players who have been pocked and jagged will therefore advise you to start with from the beginning CRM system. This way you are prepared for the growth you want to experience.

It is not just about the growth in your number of customers, but also that of your workforce. As long as you have a handful of staff members, or maybe run a one-man business, your processes and communication lines can be overseen. But as soon as your company grows and you have a sales team, it is very important that all your employees work in the same way and apply the same processes. With a good CRM system you capture these kinds of things and you ensure that everyone within your company works uniformly and therefore efficiently. That obviously saves a lot of time in solving problems.

Fast service is good one service

A third, big advantage of working with a CRM system is the benefits that such a system brings to you in terms of customer service. With most CRM systems you can clearly log your customer contact and you therefore have quick insight into what you have agreed with each individual customer, when that was and with which employee that happened. This allows you to solve problems or answer questions at lightning speed. If you have to plow through a multitude of files or archive boxes for every customer question or complaint, that does not only mean extra waiting time for the customer; you also just seem unprofessional.

Also something for my company?

Who are your customers? As a company grows, the further the customer gets.

Many entrepreneurs wonder whether the use of a CRM system fits their industry or company. To answer that question, try to imagine where your company will be in a few years' time. What goals and ambitions do you have? How many customers and employees do you need to achieve that?

The truth is that a CRM system is really only a luxury for small one-man businesses. The point at which such a system becomes useful (or even vital) has been reached earlier than you think. And you will thank yourself regularly if you have already implemented a system at an early stage, during the start-up period, instead of at the last minute. Before you know it, it will be at the expense of your customer contact - and most starting entrepreneurs cannot to afford.

CRM is also subject to change. The most important CRM trends of 2020 are voice, AI, mobile and social.