CRM is more than the management of customer relationships
Despite CRM, your customer data is still maintained in Excel lists or Microsoft Outlook? This is not an isolated case in many SMEs. Although CRM systems are installed, much of the potential remains unused. The reasons are manifold:
- Employees do not recognise the benefit and resist using the application
- The functions of the CRM systems are not sufficiently trained
- Internal interfaces are missing
- Strategy and goals for the management of customer engagement is not made clearly formulated
The costly consequences are often not visible to management. Too much time is lost for duplicate data maintenance, too much information is not consistently recorded, too much information is not centrally available but is guarded by marketing, sales, development and service like a personal treasure. In the digital future, inadequate alignment of corporate activities with customer needs will become an existential risk for many SMEs.