When you start your company, it’s always a good idea to minimize costs. After all, you want to make this business a success, and you don’t want to start by wasting money. Your customer base is probably small, so you might think that you don’t need Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software just yet. However, if you have a growth mindset, it’s a good idea to use a CRM solution from the start.
Here are some reasons why startups should use CRM solutions:
Sales
CRM software comes with features that help you create an effective sales funnel. You can monitor the progress of your sales team through the CRM dashboard. CRM solutions have features like landing pages, workflows and autoresponders to automate your marketing efforts. Even if you have one or two people in the sales team, you can reach a larger audience with marketing automation.
Data Analytics
Your databases might not be as large as enterprise-level databases, but that doesn’t mean you should manage your data on a spreadsheet. CRM solutions come with data analytics capabilities, helping you visualize the data quickly and easily. It can provide insights that you’ll never get through staring at a spreadsheet.
Transparency
Even with a handful of employees, it’s difficult to keep track of who is responsible for what. A CRM dashboard gives you a glimpse of how your sales and marketing channels are working. Everyone in your company can use the dashboard to be aware of what is going on in terms of marketing, sales and operations. The transparency of information will help you avoid dumb errors and wasting time on things that are not important (or true).
Collaboration
When you work with employees in multiple locations, a CRM solution will help you keep information centralized. The collaboration process will be seamless when your employees have a better idea about the customers and can easily share that information.
Customer Service
A CRM solution will improve your customer service. You can track interactions and personalize them. You can maintain a history of your conversations with customers, which can serve as a reference point for each interaction.
Risk Mitigation
When you have a new startup, employee turnover is always a risk. If an employee leaves with the Rolodex of customer information, you have to start from scratch (do small businesses still use Rolodexes? Yes!). CRM software ensures that you always have the necessary information in a well-maintained system. It will help decrease your risks.
Future Growth
Startups often experience bursts of growth (hopefully!). During these times, you’ll be thankful that you are using CRM software. CRM software can easily scale. You can just buy more licenses when you need to expand your capabilities, and/or turn on more advanced features. Also, you don’t have to worry about infrastructure issues like new servers or databases. Your CRM is always ready for growth.
Want to experience a flexible CRM where you can start small and grow big? Sign up for a free trial of AllClients.
