Customer Relationship Management (crm)

By Author: davison charlie
Total Articles: 9
Comment this article

Customers are the lifelines of any business. The relation between a company and its customers is very crucial and of paramount importance. The act of managing the relationship that customers share with the company is termed as ‘Customer Relationship Management’ or simply ‘CRM’. CRM includes business strategies and technology that serve for identifying, grappling and retaining existing or potential customers. In simple terms it is the process of analyzing the customers details collected while processing transactions or conducting interactions in order to understand the needs and behavior of customers and strengthen the relationship.

The in-depth analysis of the customers paints a clearer picture of them and allows the business to segment them. Not all customers are same; some are more valuable than others. So, classifying them in various groups helps the company to efficiently perform their marketing, production and service functions as per the customers’ relative value.

CRM leads to an effective management while serving the customers. Below are some of the key points as to how CRM can help a company grow-

1. ...
... CRM directly helps the company in growing the sales revenue and thus draws a steep rise in profitability graph.

2. Effective CRM by the virtue of quality customer service leads to customer satisfaction, which in turn leads to brand loyalty.

3. It improves the efficiency of sales and technical department.

4. It offers an easy access to the customers.

5. It helps in managing the customer life cycle very well.
A company (which I shall not name) in the field of Retail, multiplied its profit in several folds, in a very small span of time by the virtue of a CRM software called Sage CRM. When the software was introduced the employees were totally unaware about it but later they were given the best sage training course so that they can learn how to use the software and ultimately the company flew with vibrant colors.

Recently, a survey was conducted in which more than 10 thousand professionals were interviewed. The survey brought out that around fifty percent of the professionals used a CRM project of low budget. Clearly, that indicates that CRM solution don’t cost much to the companies. In fact looking at its effectiveness it becomes so valuable that the price seems to be too low. License fee for an open source CRM solution falls below 50$ per month. However the investment in a CRM solution is not much of money but of time. The time that needs to be invested in maintaining a CRM solution sums up to e much higher than the money invested.

The real challenge of using a CRM solution is reluctance of customers in giving his/her personal details. Poor communication, lack of knowledge and many other loopholes in the customer relationship chain may also account for a downfall of the effectiveness of the CRM software. Technology can also lead to the failure of the solution. For example if Sage CRM is adapted in a company but the computers are not efficient enough, or the employees don’t know much about and they are not even provided any sage course for learning, then the software alone won’t be able to help the company.

About Author:-
I am a teacher by professional and a writer by passion. I mentor students pursuing Sage IAB courses, and hence have a decent knowledge around Accounting and bookkeeping. To produce good quality write ups I write accounting issues, best sage certification course , job prospects in accounting etc.
Tags:- sage elearning qualification, Sage 50 Accounts Plus