Feb 16, 2016
This is the second article on the potential problems of using Excel as a CRM and explores the power that a CRM system can give you over the use of a spreadsheet. If you missed our first article then you can view it here. In this article, we look into further possible limitations of an Excel CRM system.
Are you mistakenly calling customers when they have already been contacted? Are you struggling to know if a client has to be contacted? Are you struggling to track ALL of your customer’s interaction? Are you struggling to track your customer’s issues? Are you struggling to relate to who contacted the customer before?
Ask yourself those questions and if the answer is yes then a CRM could really benefit your business. CRM systems allow you to add the activity that has been made between you and your customers allowing you to easily see what has been said when it was said, who said it and all other communication that has been made with that client.
Spending too long on things that shouldn’t be taking that long can be a pain for your business. Often things like reports and entering company data can take too long.
With a CRM system, there is the possibility that it could be going and finding the information about the company or contact for you, leaving you with more time to spend on the more important things. It also has an address look up the system and allows you to easily create reports on the things you want.
When using spreadsheets it can be hard to get everyone on the same wavelength. It can also be hard to explain the way you work to new members of staff. You want all of your employees to use the spreadsheets in the same way otherwise, it can lead to incorrect data entry.
Having a CRM system in place could help you with all of that allowing you to easily show new members of staff how to use the system, with the ability to sign them up with their own user account. Most of the time using spreadsheets means you don’t have the tools in place to help manage and create growth within your business.
If that is a worry for you excel data can often be imported into CRM’s quickly and easily.
If your problem is that you don’t want to pay for a CRM while your business is starting out then it’s worth knowing that many CRMs offer a free plan. Then, as your business expands you will be ready to unlock the full features and upgrade – without the hassle of having to move your data. You will spend the time finding that perfect crm for you at the start of your business venture so you can just upgrade your CRM easily as your business starts to grow.
If you’ve read both articles then why not put our claims to the test? If a free plan is what you are looking for try RealTimeCRM which offers a free account for up to two users and will be perfect for a starting up a company. Have a try and see that using a CRM is so much easier and convenient for you as a business.