RSMUS.comI recently ran across a situation where utilizing a CRM helped to make a company look foolish. I was getting my car serviced the other day and while sitting in the waiting room, I got a call from that same repair shop letting me know that I was coming up on needing an oil change. I told the gentlemen on the phone that I was already at the shop getting the car serviced and was getting an oil change as we speak. He said ‘Great, thank you for your loyalty.’ I was puzzled that I would get such a call but quickly came to the conclusion that they must not have a CRM system.
When I went to the counter, I took the opportunity to talk to them about it and how CRM could help them. I was shocked where the person at the counter told me that he was using a CRM system and was excited enough to show me the screens that he was using.
So what went wrong? As I tend to blog on, the data is their CRM system but not being utilized well. This seems like a situation where someone was given a list of calls to make and went down the list to make the call. This task was done in a systematic fashion, clicking on the calls to be made, making the call, and completing them. We need to do more.
When talking to potential customers in discovery meetings, we talk about how the value of CRM is to show a customer in a holistic way. If a person’s job is just to go down and complete the step, a critical piece of good customer service has been missed. The person making the calls should be taking the time to go into the contact’s record to take a peek as to what is going on. This is not only good customer service, but it is a good way to upsell as well. This also allows for a more personal touch point.
The moral of the story is that the information in the system should be good enough to allow us to have an intimate conversation with a customer. We need to use the data provided to facilitate this kind of interaction. Users should be encouraged to review all the CRM information prior to taking any action. Mindless tasks will result in mindless contacts. This does not benefit anyone.
Training of how a CRM system is used would have helped this organization. McGladrey has office throughout the United States and can offer in-person and on-line training on Microsoft Dynamics CRM. We can also help develop processes that can streamline workflow. Contact our professionals for more information. We can be reached by phone at 855.437.7202 or by email at crm@mcgladrey.com.
By: Bob Kanzler – Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner in New Jersery
Bob Kanzler
Principal of RSM's Dynamics 365 CE focused on our east coast clients and non profits.