Basic Features of CRM Software

The term ‘CRM Software’ has become quite popular since the past few years. Although it has been hyped to quite an extent, the question remains – do you really require it? – and what exactly is this CRM software? Well, this article attempts to demystify what CRM software is all about by giving you some of its basic features.

So, What Exactly is CRM Software?

CRM software, or Customer Relationship Management software, is a business management tool which has been designed to help businesses organize all the information associated with their clients – from the marketing, to the first lead, to the point of sale as well as any ongoing support or follow up. It can be used to create a total profile of the customer, which can then be accessed by the other members of the organization, and allows the team of the organization to check out each others schedules, and also to network more effectively via the application.

Why Should You Use CRM Software in Your Business?

Well, take this simple scenario. Suppose one of your existent customers or a potential customer emails a question to you, which you give a reply to. And then, several days afterwards, the customer responds back with a short reply, e.g. ‘All right’, with the rest of the thread not there. Obviously the chances are very high that you will have no clue what the customer is saying ‘all right’ to.

The issues regarding customer relationships also get increasingly complex when more than one person deals with a customer. It is very important for the person who is communicating with a customer to be completely familiar with the individual as well as their requirements, or, failing that, at the very least have all the information available.

In the high-tech world that we live in today, there is an increasing propensity to put people into preconceived boxes, which can affect customer support. A response or explanation that works for Customer X may not be as well received by Customer Y.

The ability of following up with prospective customers is of equal importance. For instance, perhaps you have been replying to the questions put to you by a prospective customer over several weeks, and then they suddenly may stop communicating.

It is quite likely that you will soon forget all about this individual and they too would probably have forgotten all about you. It is quite easy to figure out that if this kind of scenario occurs frequently, it results in wasting a lot money and time.

The CRM software solution will enable you to keep track of such things quite easily. Or, it can also help you to keep tabs on your sales force.

The Types of Customer Relationship Management Software

As is usual with ecommerce, CRM software applications are available in a wide variety, which range in cost from being completely free to thousands of dollars, according to the complexity of the application.

However, in general, they are available in two categories: locally hosted and remotely hosted.

• Locally Hosted: The complete software is set up on your server
• Remotely Hosted: The service can be accessed from the server of the CRM company

Here are some of the advantages as well as the disadvantages of the two:-

CRM Services that are Remotely Hosted

Advantages: The responsibility of the smooth running of the software is on the CRM provider, plus, the application is secure. This is particularly important since you will have large amounts of confidential information stored in the CRM software. The provider is also responsible for resolving any problems that may occur in the software, as well as the upgrading. Hence that can save you a lot of money, which you would have had to pay to developers used for troubleshooting.

Since CRM software is extremely complex and it is an expensive task for a single company to create a CRM application from scratch, the benefit of using a remotely hosted CRM service is that you are using the ‘buying power’ of thousands of users. Hence, the new features that will be added periodically will not cost you a fortune and are usually provided free.

Disadvantages: it is important to choose a reputed company because there are chances of the CRM service disappearing, along with all your data and records. This is also of vital importance because you do not want anybody to misuse your data. Good CRM service providers allow you to export and backup your data.

CRM Software that is Locally Hosted

Advantages: It allows you complete control over the CRM software as well as the ability to customize it exactly as you want.

Disadvantages: You will require technical support for setup as well as for upgrading, and you will probably have to pay for the application’s ongoing support. You will also have to be responsible for security, which can be quite problematic, especially since many applications roll out security patches frequently, which have to be installed very quickly. With the growth of your business, your needs from the CRM package will also grow, and the addition of those extra features will be fairly expensive.

Some of the Basic Features of a Good Customer Relationship Manager Software are:

• The automation of calls
• A multi-user environment
• At least 10 MB space
• Hourly backup of data, plus, off-site backups done each night
• Encryption of data
• Shared communications and calendar
• Management of contact as well as lead
• Automation of the sales force
• Email marketing and reporting
• Ability to customize the knowledge base
• A wide variety of reports
• Sharing of documents
• Tracking of tasks
• Tracking of support
• The ability to import data from other applications like Outlook, Goldmine, and Act!