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Make no mistake about it, CRM software, like ACT!, HubSpot, Salesforce, and ZoHo, will make its biggest impact on your sales team. Your sales representatives will have to change their daily routines to incorporate the software.

And that's not a bad thing. Instead of relying on memory to prepare for a client meeting, sales representatives will be able to refer to the data collected by CRM software. So instead of thinking "I think he likes to buy X product during this time of year," they'll know that a specific client places an exact order on the third Friday of every month.

A recent Small Business Trends article talks about the impact CRM software makes on sales teams. According to the article, the software makes sales representatives more effective at closing sales:

"With CRM, your sales team will be effective at attracting prospects, closing sales, generating qualified referrals and managing existing customer relationships. Your business will grow in revenue by utilizing a CRM application that helps you track sales activity, lead generation and customer status — capitalizing on the data management power CRM delivers."

Now, we should also mention that this is only the case if the CRM software is implemented correctly. If it's not, then sales representatives won't make it a habit to refer back to the data. The software will be there, but no one will use it to its full advantage.

If you implement CRM software correctly, however, your sales representatives will be more informed and better equipped than ever. Once your sales increase, you can start to focus on the other uses of CRM software, like its role in a marketing campaign.

To talk more about CRM software, or anything else, please contact us. Thanks.

I recently had the pleasure of conducting a webinar for the Painting and Decorating Contractors of America and they had some fantastic questions about CRM.  I thought would benefit everyone so I decided to add them here...

What is a typical implementation timeline, and what are the biggest challenges?

To keep it simple, every implementation follows these 4 phases:

Planning/Design, Development, Installation, and Training

The time from project start to finish varies on the system complexity and client culture.  A typical CRM implementation project averages about 30 – 60 days.

The two biggest challenges are executive “buy-in” and user adoption.

For a low cost system for a Microsoft company, could Outlook work?

Although it is a great e-mail tool and personal manager, Outlook typically is not considered a “CRM tool”.

Can the CRM programs gather information from other programs, ex. quickbooks

Yes.  Most systems are “extensible” and offer a programming method to interface or import/export data from other computer systems.  The top systems also offer “add-on” programs that provide common functionality at an affordable price. 

How long would you estimate it would take to be up and going for say a $2M/yr company?

A typical CRM implementation project averages about 30 – 60 days.

How do you determine , by your standards, what is a large business compared to a small business? I have used ACT Before, what would you think the advantage is in going to a large business CRM system, such as, Salesforce.com?

Our initial questions aren’t about company size but focus on CRM goals & objectives.  For instance, if a large organization only wants a centralized database to manage marketing and sales basics an ACT! system may be a suitable solution.  However, if a small organization wants full workflow automation, a service calendar, and a customer service ticket system they may need to consider a more powerful CRM system like Microsoft Dynamics CRM or Salesforce.com.

Is making phone calls from phone book a viable place to start?

Every organization has to start somewhere but a more progressive approach would be to purchase and import leads into an entry level system so you can track the sales process.

No sales structure...how do we set up a realistic sales plan with a slim budget

One of my favorite sayings is, “Nothing happens until somebody sells something!”.  It’s true and marketing and sales fuel all businesses.  Find someone to help document your sales process.  Then you can work on documenting the key variables as a “suspect” moves through your selling cycle to become a “lead”, “prospect”, and finally “customer”.  Once you have information you can work to streamline and improve the process.  Of course, a CRM system can help with this.

Our biggest concern is as you stated about the BMW is, ""Buyers remorse""!  Any quick answer for helping relieve this feeling? It usually occurs 1-3 days after we finish the project.

Yes, following up.  Ideally, a friendly human may call to “check-in” and alleviate any concerns the customer may have.  If this isn’t possible it may be nice to follow-up through correspondence (e-mail or “snail mail”) so the client feels connected and nurtured.  This technique is highly effective.

What one point would you recommend we as salespeople, use to build our relationship with our client?

Communication!  Try to remember, customers buy when they’re ready to buy – not when you’re ready to sell to them.  The key to increasing sales is to be on your customers mind when they’re ready to buy and make it easy for them to reach out to you.  Personal communication is great so phone calls are best; however, that isn’t always possible.  As a substitute e-mail communication that provides compelling, useful content is the best way to continue to nurture the relationship.

I am new to sales and will be attending a Trade Show soon. Do you have any specific tips for that arena?

Leads, leads, leads!  The goal of attending a trade show is to collect as many leads as possible.  I’ve attended a lot of trade shows over the years and have seen many clever ideas to attract prospects to their booths.  Giveaways, magic acts, tattoo artists, entertainment, contests, etc, etc.  Of course the success of your trade show attendance will be what you do with those leads after the show.  (I’ve dropped my business card into many fish bowls only to never hear from the organization again).  Make sure the leads are entered into a CRM system so they can be followed-up with directly by a sales person or entered into an automated “trade show follow-up” e-mail campaign.

What do you consider a good closing ratio?

One that maximizes your revenue.  Funny answer, huh?  You may think a high closing ratio (90%) would always be desirable but the truth is you may be leaving money on the table if your closing ratio is too high.  Progressive organizations measure their closing ratios over time to gauge if they are increasing or declining and by other metrics (salesperson, geography, lead source, etc) so they can determine if their business strategies are aligned with the market and competition.

Thanks again to the Painting and Decorating Contractors of America for the opportunity to discuss CRM with them!

Steve Stroz

Effective marketing is crucial to your business. That’s why it is essential that you use CRM or Customer Relationship Management software efficiently for helping to automate marketing to new customers as well as tracking current client encounters.

As customers contact your organization, the CRM software keeps accurate records of each encounter including details of the conversation and what, if any problems, were solved. These problem-solving aspects can even be used in your marketing campaign to show prospective customers how you can help them with their own cases.

CRM software, such as ACT! 2013, Microsoft Dynamics CRM, or Salesforce.com, can also store customers’ past purchases, preferences, and well as demographic data. By keeping this data updated, sales teams will not have to search for information when needed before a call or meeting.

An example how CRM can streamline a business is by using the software to track technical support on a product offered by your company. The CRM software tracks how many technical support calls over a period of time. This information can be used to come up with other ways to cut these calls. For example, you could add a knowledge base to your website with answers to these common technical issues which would decrease time spent on redundant calls.

Other effective uses for CRM software include tracking past performance, identifying sales metrics, using updated customer information to up-sell products, and provide detailed reporting which can be used to analyze sales trends.

Gold Coast Advisors are experts in the planning and implementation of CRM and other applications that help your business succeed and grow. Contact us for more information on how CRM software can help your business.

The sales process for your business needs to consist of predefined activities, performance aids and exit criteria.  The successful integration of a sales process improvement solution will need to mitigate concerns your sales force may have. There is an excellent article posted on the Sales Force Benchmark website explaining how to mitigate resistance to change.

"Changing the sales process touches every aspect of the life of the sales rep, so resistance is a natural and expected part of the implementation process.”

One of our strategies during an ACT! 2013 implementation is to include a "pilot phase".  Top performers in your business can be the pilot testers for your new system and process. Involvement with the new process can be perceived as a sign of prestige for these workers. Recognition of the efforts put forth by these individuals needs to be shared with the rest of your organization.

We set clear guidelines for your sales force and make sure to announce stories of success to promote the effectiveness of the ACT! 2013 system. Regular progress updates need to be made that reassures the remainder of your sales force that positive results can be obtained.

Solicit input from your sales reps to incorporate into the new sales process improvement solution. This allows employees to feel involved in the process and that suggestions are welcome. Make sure that the employees are being acknowledged for any suggestions that are used for continuing improvements.

The success of your new ACT! 2013 system needs to be communicated throughout your organization. This includes the gains and productivity goals that are being enjoyed by your top performers. 

If you have any questions about ACT! 2013 implementations or sales process improvement, then contact us for more information.

I think the hardest thing about “blogging” is writing the first entry.  I have no doubt that in time there will be hundreds of posts about ACT! upgrade projects, e-mail marketing tips, creating custom ACT! reports, and client success stories - but where do I start?

After a few weeks (OK, maybe months) the light bulb went off!  I need to start by thanking our clients.  It seems sort of obvious but without them nothing happens.  I’m living the American dream but without our clients I have nothing.

I realize this is a mutual feeling.  We solve serious problems for our clients that result in saving/generating a lot of money for their organizations but I am still humbled and proud that we’re achieving my original vision for Gold Coast Advisors: If our clients come first – good things will follow.  The ultimate business karma.

In 2008 and 2009 Gold Coast Advisors won the Sage Software President’s Circle for Customer Loyalty.  In plain English, when our clients were surveyed “Would you recommend Gold Coast Advisors to a friend or colleague?” they ranked us #1 of over 2,000 firms.  (You can read more here:  http://tinyurl.com/263r42u)

I couldn’t even begin to express my gratitude but for now I’ll just start by saying:  Thank You!

Steve Stroz
President of Gold Coast Advisors