CRM and Data – Keeping your CRM plans on track

According to Gartner Group, over US$75 billion has been spent on CRM and data over the last decade.  Enabling a CRM strategy needs a lot of time, focus and effort as well as some investment.

When organisations set out to implement a CRM solution, there are expectations around the outcome in terms of benefits, return on investment and analysis of data.

The benefits of CRM are so wide that it would seem clear that any organisation would benefit from a CRM solution to fully understand their customers, have a 360 degree view of them and be able to add value to them – engaging them and growing your business.

Unfortunately after spending the time and money many organisations don’t see that return on investment, or the systems do not meet expectations.

Gartner’s research shows that over 50% of CRM projects are considered failures.  Many of those failures can be down to a poor quality of data which contributes to CRM failure.

To achieve the best results from CRM and the required 360 degree view of the customer,  data needs to be regarded from the outset.  If data is missing or incorrect then marketing in a targeted way will be hindered.

Before you embark on your CRM implementation ensure you have looked at your data.  If you are already using CRM, these 5 steps will still ensure that your data is delivering.  There are 5 key elements to help you achieve your goals with CRM and a 360 degree view of your customer:

5 to Thrive

  1. Take a snap shot of your data and check it – ensure names, emails are present, telephone numbers are correct, voids are completed and profiling details are captured – such as the market you want to target, the job role you will want to target.  Whatever your marketing plans ensure that your data has the capability to deliver.
  2. Pull together a team to go through the data to ensure that everyone knows what the issues are from the data check.  Review the issues and get the business involved in cleaning the data and getting more from it.
  3. Look at why the data is not correct – and try to stop it happening going forward.  Often poor data capture is due to business processes and the human element of populating records.   Work with the business – explain what’s in it for them if they keep the data.
  4. Make improvements before the data is inserted into the CRM system.
  5. Reflect and check – ensure that the data is being managed well going forward, continue to take a snap shot of the data.  Run queries, check emails and compliance.

Managing CRM and data is no easy feat, but working with experts such as Caltech CRM will really help you to achieve your goals, saving valuable time and money.

For a meeting, call us on 01924 507 280 or email George@caltech.co.uk.

www.caltech.co.uk

Trust us to make Dynamics 365 a success for you

Contact us