CRM - Customer Relationship Management

A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system is typically a web-based application that helps you aggregate, organise and manage your customer data more effectively. As well as storing all your key customer data (names, roles, company details, contact details etc.), they can also help track all your interactions with your customers via email, phone calls and meetings, and manage the scheduling of future interactions. In this way, the lifecycle of a customer, from initial contact to the completion of a sale, can be managed and tracked efficiently.  

A CRM will also ensure your valuable customer data is kept up to date and provide reports and insight that help you ensure that no one falls through the cracks - a common problem with a more manual, spreadsheet-based approach to customer management. These interactions can also be targeted and automated, reducing your workload and increasing efficiency. 

• Improved customer service
• An increase in sales
• Targetted and automated interaction with your customers
• Higher productivity and efficiency via streamlined communication
• A more consistent view of your customer data across your team
• Improved customer retention
• Better sales forecasting
• Better insight via dashboards and reports

You have a number of options when it comes to selecting a CRM:

• Use an off-the-shelf product such as Zoho or Hubspot and move all your customer data into it, using it as a standalone system
• Go with an off-the-shelf product again, but integrate it with your site’s content management system to enable the two systems to share data seamlessly
• Have a bespoke CRM built that meets your exact requirements 

While the upfront cost of having a bespoke CRM built can seem prohibitive compared to a monthly subscription, having the flexibility to define your exact requirements and then build on the features as and when you need them can result in a more streamlined system that meets your requirements exactly. You’re also not left waiting for a vendor to add a feature you need, and not paying for features you’ll never use. 

We’ve built CRM systems for customers across many sectors, as well as developing and managing integration with CRMs from many third-party vendors.