Member Article

Why no one thinks CRM is for them

Uncover which managers and employees are struggling to make the most of their company’s CRM investment according to this latest survey.

Tough Sell?

Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised to discover that Sales is the department who uses CRM the most. When asked:

“On average, how many hours a day do you spend working on your CRM system?“

It was Sales who came out in pole position:

• Sales Managers 4.76 hours on average
• Sales Assistants 4.55 hours on average

vs.

• Marketing Managers 3.21 hours on average
• Marketing Assistants 4.4 hours on average

A Sting in the Stat?

But Sales Managers are also most dissatisfied with how many hours per day they spend doing tasks that they feel their CRM could automate for them – with a whopping - 4 hours being wasted in their opinion. In other words, most of the time Sales spends working on its CRM platform is regarded as a drain on its valuable time.

Assistance Needed for Assistants?

The survey also reveals that assistants are struggling with their CRM’s workload. When asked:

“Do you feel you could accomplish your job more efficiently with a better understanding of the CRM system and what it can do for you?“

It was assistants who were clambering for more, ahem, assistance than managers:

• Admin Assistant 62.5% vs. Admin Manager 43.9%
• Sales Assistant 53.13% vs. Sales Manager 44.74%
• Operations Assistant 62.5% vs. Operations Manager 50%

Two Exceptions that Prove the Rule?

The two management roles that you would expect to have the clearest and fullest understanding of CRM, well, don’t, especially when compared to their assistants:

• Marketing Managers 63.16% vs. Marketing Assistants 50%
• IT Managers 60.61% vs. IT Assistants 54.55%

Perhaps then it’s time for the student who uses CRM to become the mentor?

Grim and Grimmer?

The news gets grimmer for management. When asked:

“Do you feel the person/people designing the CRM understood your role and what was important to you?“

It was two of the most critical management roles who scored the highest dissatisfaction with a ‘No’ response:

• Marketing Manager - 57.89%
• Sales Manager - 68.42%

Bin It?

And again, it was management who felt that their CRM product had been so badly implemented that it would be better to replace it entirely want to junk their CRM platform and start over:

• 9% of IT Managers
• 10% of Marketing Managers
• 14% of Managing Directors

The Lesson?

Management clearly believes there are very real issues with optimisation and CRM understanding.

The Solution

Ask your CRM provider to train anyone who uses CRM and is found to be struggling – and to ensure that the company’s CRM platform is fully optimised. Alternatively, employ a CRM consultant to do the heavy-lifting for you. Your call.

Takeaways:

• Ensure that your staff understand how to use your CRM system
• Ensure that your CRM system is fully optimised for your needs
• An incorrectly implemented CRM system will lead to staff and management dissatisfaction

CRM systems are being actively embraced by businesses, to learn which ones are utilising it most effectively to grow successfully read the report: What people really think about CRM. Copy and paste the link http://bit.ly/whatpeoplereallythinkaboutcrm into your browser for further insight about CRM.

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