Member Article

5 Hidden gold mines in your CRM!

5 tips and tricks to improve sales performance with CRM!

CRM can be complex software, but the things it enables – if implemented well – are simple. Basic business drivers like increasing turnover, driving profit, and improving sales performance.Here’s the thing: there are probably some quick wins hidden in your data RIGHT NOW. Check out these five and see if you agree.

See where your old leads went

Let’s say your 7,500 name CRM database has 3,750 names you haven’t mailed in three years. Perhaps the email is missing or you had a bounceback. They’re still worth chasing.

A short project – perhaps well suited to new member of the Sales team – would be to see where those 3,750 people are now. It’s likely some smart searching of LinkedIn can reveal where 90% of them went. What are their new companies? Have they taken a new senior role? How are you connected to them? All these are reasons to contact them anew… and sales opportunities in the making.

Look to social media for relevant reasons to contact

Is there a trade show coming up, or your customers’ main sectors are experiencing turbulence? Pin down those stories as they pop up across social media – then contact your customers to talk them over.

They’ll be pleasantly surprised at how switched-on you are to their sector. Especially if you’re in a position to offer sales support at their busiest time of the year…

Do a whip-round for new Connections…

If you haven’t cleaned your database for a while (slapped wrist!) there’s another reason to do so: your own new starters will have networks and connections across the social sphere who may provide a useful “in”.

Does James from Accounts have an old boss he still meets for drinks… in your biggest sales vertical? How about Laura from Finance, whose friend works for the bank you’re mining for leads? A basic part of Sales is networking; use your CRM network to improve sales performance.

…then make use of your customers’ networks

Take this a step further by digging into your customers’ address books. The people they follow on Twitter, the pages they ‘Like’, their blogrolls, alerts and connections – in many cases this information is open, and the right CRM setup can trawl social media to collect them.

What’s the value of a Case Study written about someone your prospect knows? A retweet about YOU from someone they already follow? Small, smart actions like these build the biggest sales equity anyone can have these days: reputational trust. All of which can markedly improve sales performance.

If in doubt, phone a friend!

Asking for help – a referral to a new prospect, or a written recommendation – is far more likely to deliver if you do your homework first.

Your CRM system is a mine of data on who’s done what. Who clicked on which newsletters; who went to an event; what they did after your phone call. Use it. If you know Mr Schmidt switched from Salesforce to Microsoft Dynamics CRM after visiting three events where you spoke, call him to ask about his experiences. Then ask if he knows anyone in the same position! You’ll be going in with the right introduction.

Let’s sum up:

1. Look at your “lost contacts” as “moved-on” contacts.. and track them down
2. Use both internal and external networks to build reputation and trust
3. Always, always have a REASON to call a contact beyond the next sales push

For more insight on the hidden gems of CRM systems, you can download this eguide: ’The Ultimate Guide to Increasing Sales Performance’. Simply copy and paste this link http://bit.ly/CRMeguide onto your browser.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Rick Lyle .