10 Best Practices For Implementing a Saas CRM

Implementing a CRM calls for organization-wide changes and involves every employee.

And, as every change brings with it a lot of challenges, the CRM implementation scenario is no exception.

Overcome the judicious mission of successfully deploying CRM following the SaaS CRM implementation practices.

Read About the Best Practices for CRM Implementation

1. Evaluate the Business Requirements

The steps outlined below will assist you in analyzing CRM requirements.

Hold brainstorming workshops to identify business objectives that will be accomplished by CRM adoption.
Make documentation of the goals and the procedures that will be undertaken to attain them. This clarifies the overall aim of implementing the CRM.
Request a free CRM trial to understand how well the CRM resonates with the demands of the business.

2. Learn what to look for in a CRM

You can set your CRM expectations based on the business requirements. Check for CRM capabilities that will assist you in meeting your business objectives.

Some of the primary aspects to look for in a CRM are:

Data Security

Since data security cannot be compromised, inspect the vendor’s website for essential data security certifications.

Mobile or Cross-Platform Support

This is one of the key features of a CRM system.

Remote access aids user groups, such as field service agents or sales representatives who must carry out their obligations while on the field or at a client site.

Third-party Integration

Check to see if the CRM you’re intending to implement permits integrations with other software. Such effective integrations provide value to your CRM at a lower cost. As some CRM can also integrate with Google workspace and you can use it as Google workspace CRM.

Platform Customization

Since each business is unique, learn about how adaptable the CRM can be in assisting yours.

So, make certain that your CRM provides customized features on reporting, workflow definition, lead stages, operation process, escalation, and so on.

Supports Data Migration

Verify whether the CRM allows data migration and integration with existing databases. Data import capabilities that allow for the unification of disparate data are a must-have.

Post-implementation Support

Ensure that the vendor offers assistance post-implementation.

Demand for a dedicated Account Manager, pieces of training for staff, and round-the-clock support to address any troubles can help you better the CRM experience.

3. Sign a Solid Agreement

A contract outlining each parties’ expectations with explicit descriptions of SLAs including all parts of the operations, such as penalties, exception clauses, as well as cost overheads is appropriate.
A non-disclosure agreement (NDA) included in the contract, ensures that the company’s data is protected from the vendor when the contract is terminated.

This mandates all sensitive information be returned to the company.

To avoid pitfalls, conduct a comprehensive study of the contract before signing.

4. Formulate Change Management Plans

Mindfully, plan and prepare for the organizational changes that are to be made following implementation.

Ensure the transformation in employee mindset that must occur after CRM adoption.
Decide how and when employees will be trained.
Make strategies for existing data migration.
Plan for the CRM’s integration and configuration to existing systems.
Don’t forget about testing and go-live plans.
Prepare key metrics and business goals to be tracked after CRM adoption.

5. Pick the CRM that Suits your Business

A CRM can adorn different roles where it helps realize different functions such as

Operation– handling daily tasks and processes, including effective communication.
Analytics– collecting, storing, and analyzing data.
Collaboration– bringing together diverse teams and departments inside a business.

Consider the CRM’s price in addition to its functionality. As a word of advice, Cloud-based SaaS CRMs are very cost-effective because you only pay for the services that you use.

Before making a purchase, compare the performance, pricing, features, and installation time of various providers.

6. Ensure the Leaders Buy-In

When leaders set the example, the rest will follow. As a result, ensure that top management accepts CRM from the start and promotes its relevance throughout the organization.

Journal of Customer Behaviour, Volume 3, Number 1, 1 March 2004, pp. 5-26(22) identifies, the lack of senior management commitment to CRM as one of the chief barriers to user satisfaction with CRM.

7. Appoint a Dedicated Manager

An in-house manager who is devoted to overseeing the CRM deployment from the start is beneficial. The manager also serves as the organization’s point of contact for the CRM vendor.

Form a CRM test-drive team to ensure that there are no bottlenecks to getting the CRM up and running.

8. Endorse your CRM

Sell your CRM throughout your organization to encourage user adoption, just like you would your business.
Fun methods of raising awareness, such as a launch party, webinars, and training, can help make a positive impact.
Vendor training is quite effective in getting users started with CRMs.

9. Keep an Eye on Performance

Track the progress of the CRM during implementation and make it a routine practice so you can determine the success rate of the CRM operation.

Collect user feedback to boost user experience and adoption.

10. Set up User Guidelines for Data Synchronization

CRM usage instructions on data entry are crucial, as any well-designed CRM is only worth the data that it keeps.

With poor data feeds, the Reporting and Analytics arm of the CRM pulls out an equivalent report that can only be relied on to the extent of its data integrity.
Not only that, incorrect data has an impact on the sales pipeline, marketing activities, customer segmentation, and the CRM’s backbone functionality- successful customer service.
So frame standard data entry conventions to eliminate data ambiguities and discrepancies in due course.
Remove or merge duplicate data from your database to declutter it. Delete old data that no longer serves you.

Image: CRM statistics

Why do you need SaaS CRM?

“92% of businesses claim that CRM played an important role in achieving their income goals.”

Software as a Service, or SaaS is a software delivery approach that enables customers to access the software through third-party providers via online sign-up.

The vendors host and administer the servers and databases, removing the need for businesses to invest in high-cost infrastructure.

The cloud-based SaaS CRMs are available over the internet and are simple to use via the sign-up procedure.

Here are some value-added features that make it necessary for businesses large, and small to think the CRM way.

1. Automate Data Entry

When highly competitive businesses owe their success to impactful decisions derived purely through uncompromising data-driven insights; how do you think they do it?

Efficient data management mechanisms as promoted by CRM software solutions are the driver of superior, up-to-date, and functional data.
Just when we repeatedly say, a CRM is and will be only as good as the data it stores; automatic data entry helps to streamline the data entry process.
Auto-log of data entry eliminates the inclusion of erroneous data.
The use of cookies eliminates the need for repeated entry as well.

2. Uniformity in Accessible Data

The data accessed by various teams within the organization is consistent in that it is housed in a centralized database.
Since cloud-based databases facilitate integration with existing databases, CRM solutions support the elimination of duplicate records.
CRMs allow you to access past data without limiting the volume of data you can pull out at once.
When you have consistent data at your disposal, it is not a concern if the Point-of-Contact changes; the next-in-line representative still provides a high quality of service.

3. Security for your Data

Cloud-based SaaS CRMs, such as Kapture, provide enterprise-grade data protection.

At the primary level, regulate data access privileges, as well as restrict downloads and snapshots.
On the upper end, Kapture’s CRM adheres rigorously to ISO27001 guidelines and provides encryption-based data security by industry and compliance standards.

4. Automate Repetitive and Routine Operations

CRMs give you the customization privilege to automate business workflows and processes at your convenience. So, the automation of repeated processes saves you a good deal of business hours, effort, and money.
Automate the ticket assignment process, for instance, such that customer calls or messages are automatically logged as a ticket. You can also auto-assign tickets to a certain service representative.
Set SLAs around tickets using pre-defined SLA conditions that you decide upon.
CRM gives you the liberty to define escalation hierarchy just as you require.
In essence, the CRM gives you complete control of process automation and data management solely in the ways that you require.

5. Makes Frequent Communication a Cakewalk

Sending innumerable emails and messages to your customer, most of which contain nearly identical responses to popular questions is time-consuming.
It would not be an overstatement to say that CRMs make it easy to set up, send, and track emails in a snap.
You can create message templates for several types of email content, such as welcome, thank you, introductory, and promotional emails. Set up templates for unhappy customers or other responses you need to send out.

6. Say Goodbye to Multiple Calling Platforms

Isn’t it convenient to never have to switch screens to make calls or reply to messages streaming in from different platforms?

Software solutions such as Kapture link easily with Cloud-Telephony and eCommerce platforms, allowing communication to take place within a unified system.
The calls are logged as tickets, and the details of the calls are available in your mailbox.
The CRM includes capabilities such as call-back, call recording, inserting notes during calls, and call forwarding, to name a few.

7. Automatic and Versatile Report Generation

With just a few clicks, you can access extensive and comprehensive reports.
There is no need to gather data and feed it in manually to create your monthly sales or agent performance reports.
The data is neatly organized and ready for reporting at any moment in the centralized database.
Create reports in the manner you like, using the fields you want to be reported on. Share the reports with the board of directors in the format they demand.
The reporting dashboard is entirely yours with CRM solutions such as Kapture!

8. Gain Insights from the Analytics

The Analytics function, powered by Artificial Intelligence, assists you in making data-driven decisions that propel your business boldly ahead in competitive market games.

Identifying the gaps and unfavorable trends that are dragging you down, as well as enhancing the transparency of your business decisions, can all be done quickly and easily.

9. Gives you control over your Business Deals

CRMs steer sales growth. It fosters each sales opportunity and assists you in building multiple sales funnels. You can track the status of prospects and view sales funnels right from your browser.

The Sales team is kept up to date on the status of ongoing sales stages, allowing for prompt lead conversions.

Image: Kapture’s Customizable Sales Pipeline

10. Cross-Device Support

A solid mobile CRM, such as the one offered by Kapture, makes the entire Customer Relationship Management Process available on mobile devices with no glitches.

Remote access allows field service or sales agents to perform activities, finalize deals, update data, and more while on the go (and even when offline!).

Image: Kapture’s Mobile App Highlights

11. Assists in the Implementation of Marketing and Sales Initiatives

Customer segmentation, which comes under the umbrella of Data Management, is a key technique that segments customers.
The classification is based on selected criteria such as job profile, purchasing trend, age, gender, location, or any demographics that benefit a business decision.
CRM extensively analyses data to discover potential customers and aids in the improvement of the lead conversion ratio.
With the neatly segmented customer data, plan the perfect marketing campaign content targeting each customer segment.
Send them out through bulk emails (way above the email limits offered by common email services!) from the same CRM where you are logged in to manage your daily tasks.

12. Offers Smart Integrations

The impact of social media on aspects such as brand perception, acceptability, and referrals is enormous.

When the integration makes Social Media handling effortless, be certain that you have a partner to step up your social media game.

CRMs such as Kapture provide intelligent integrations to popular social media and major eCommerce sites, making you forget there ever were separate systems.

CRM transcends from mere technology to a business strategy when it efficiently drives ROI and controls numerous facets of your organization.

Request a free Kapture demo to learn how CRM integrates technology, processes, people, and statistics while keeping customers at the center of the organization.

About the Author
	Seema C Mohan
	Seema C Mohan is passionate about all things XaaS and loves to write value-added content. She has been in Business Process Management in the past and has published technology articles in journals.