What is CRM? | Advantages and Disadvantages of CRM?

Posted by vishal aandr on November 28th, 2019

 CRM stands for “Customer Relationship Management” and refers to all strategies, techniques, tools, and technologies used by enterprises for developing, retaining and acquiring customers. This software ensures that every step of the interaction with consumers goes smoothly and efficiently in order to increase the overall profits.

The software gathers customer data from multiple channels. Hence, CRM stores detailed information on overall purchase history, personal info, and even purchasing behavior patterns.

Advantages of CRM :

• Integrates Everything in One Place

 For customer relationship management to be effective, there is a need for centralization to occur. The data collected in an organization needs to be easily accessible by those who need it. Instead of going through different data point, the CRM allows a person to be on the same page as other people. In turn, this makes it possible for employees within a company to be more efficient and productive since they easily focus on meeting the prospects’ and customers’ needs. If your business is not certain about CRM software’s benefit, you can schedule your demo to get a first-hand experience of how the program works.

•  Everything you need is in one place

 The management of customer relationships must be centralized to be effective. The data that is collected must be available to all people who need it. With a CRM solution, everyone can be automatically on the same page, since everyone has access to the same information. This fact allows workers to be more productive since they can focus better on meeting the needs of current and potential customers.

• Simplified Marketing and Targeting

 CRM makes a wide range of data available to business owners and their department heads. This information allows them to target specific consumers with marketing that is based on their buying behaviors. The ability to target so precisely ensures that customers get the products and services they want and need in a timely fashion. The data can also help companies determine which types of offers customers respond best to. Equipping your sales team with these details can help them creatively and strategically pitch new product offers to customers, which can increase sales.

• Scalability Aspect

The survival of an organization is based on the appreciation of the value proposition from its growing customer database. As the number of customers for a particular business increases, it becomes daunting for the company to meet their needs on an individual level since every interaction as a particular time investment to be made. The CRM program is a scalable solution that goes with any budget and will only grow if the business grows. That way, it becomes possible to meet the needs of every person in an effective manner.

• CRM is a solution that is capable of scalability

If a company wants to survive, it must have a growing database of customers who appreciate the value proposition offered to them. As the number of customers grows, it becomes more difficult to meet specific needs on a personal level because each interaction has a particular time investment that must be made. This software is a scalable solution that adapts to almost any budget and will only grow as the company grows so that all needs can be met effectively.

 Disadvantages of CRM :

• Record Loss

 Some Customer Relationship Software utilizes remote Internet Connections to keep customers’ data. The downside of this kind of CRM is that the organization has no control of customers’ details, and in case there is an outage in the CRM system, it will be next to impossible for the business to retrieve the relevant details. If the organization chooses a small Customer Relationship Management program that is unstable, it may imply thousands of dollars in lost income for the business.

• Eliminate the human element from the equation of your company

 Processes are automated when the CRM software is installed, which also means that the potential customers lose part of the human element that the commercial task sometimes requires. There is a difference between being assisted by a real person when making a phone call than by an automated customer service system. Sometimes it is good to make tasks more automatic, but it is also good to have a little personalized help to avoid losing the value of the human element.

• Overhead

 If a business chooses a local Customer Relationship Management software, there will be overhead costs linked to it. If the application is proprietary, the organization will need to pay for professionals such as system administrator, software developers, and maintenance personnel to ensure the efficient running of the software. Keeping backups for the data also adds to the expenses of operating a personalized CRM system.

• Employees must go through a training phase with the new system

 The installation of a new CRM solution can be very exciting. The idea of automating many processes and streamlining data can be very appealing. But then the implementation process arrives, and everything changes. Although these systems do not require an expert, the staff can take time to get used to it and learn how to use the new software.

• Training

 If it’s a small business, the issues of training aren’t so much pronounced. Nonetheless, large companies will be required to roll out training sessions for the workers. For CRM of larger scale, this will mean appointing professionals to conduct the training. On many occasions, training deprives the company of the time required for enhancing productivity, so this is quite a disadvantage for new CRM applications. Additionally, CRM training is usually different for the staff and managers because a good number of these applications have specialized features and functions for executives and managers. What’s more, these additional features also require training. It should be known that the training session can be short (take a few hours) or even longer, taking several days.