How CRM impacts team productivity

Among the challenges businesses face in today’s digital marketing landscape, team cohesion and productivity are primary ones. In turn, technologies emerge to address this challenge, with automation of all types now seeking to enhance team productivity in new, innovative ways. As a spearhead of automation, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software does so too, with notable success in the relocation industry. Thus, today we will explore how moving company CRM impacts team productivity, and how you may benefit from it.

CRM software types and their relation to productivity

Initially, let us note that different types of CRM impact team productivity in different ways depending on their functions. In brief, we may consolidate these into the following.

Operational CRM

This type’s focus on marketing and sales automation increases productivity by automating repetitive tasks. In turn, more streamlined workflows allow for better time management and resource allocation.

Analytical CRM

This type’s focus on analytics and forecasting yields deeper actionable insights to inform teams’ decisions. With more accurate data in hand, teams waste less time and effort on suboptimal endeavors.

Collaborative CRM

Finally, this type’s specialization in communication channels enables different teams to collaborate more efficiently. In turn, this allows for better coordination and enhanced productivity.

How CRM impacts team productivity

Specific types aside, all CRM solutions can impact team productivity in various ways. To support this argument we may initially cite recent findings that outline CRM’s productivity benefits in 3 key areas:

• Sales – 29%
• Sales productivity – 34%
• Forecast accuracy – 42%

Then, we may explore different ways in which it does so. In no particular order of significance, some notable ones are the following.

#1: A solid database breaks down data silos

As a core feature of all CRM solutions, a customer database by itself offers tremendous benefits to team productivity. It offers accurate, up-to-date information on each customer, from their contact information to their lead status.

It thus enables such practices as lead scoring, which bridge the communication gap between marketing and sales teams.  Moreover, it records each customer’s interaction history, allowing for better customer service based on past inquiries. Finally, and perhaps most importantly in this context, it breaks down data silos. A consolidated database accessible by all teams ensures that no team is working in isolation and that all teams have a clear overview of operations at all times.

#2: Automation streamlines workflows

Next, as we briefly highlighted for Operational CRM, automation yields demonstrable benefits as regards time management and productivity. It does so through such utilities as the following.

Automatic data entry

By automating data entry, CRM frees employees to devote their time to more productive tasks. At the same time, it minimizes the risk of human error, producing more accurate data.

Lead analysis

As moving leads software, CRM typically offers lead analysis, segmentation, and scoring functions. In doing so, it streamlines marketing, enables better outreach personalization, and informs sales reps of optimal contact and follow-up times.

Reports

Finally, automated reports allow for swifter access to relevant data by all relevant employees. This too ensures better-informed, more accurate decisions that best make use of teams’ time and efforts.

#3: Email automation expands productive hours

A crucial benefit on its own, email automation specifically expands productive hours beyond regular working hours. Understandably, this benefit incurs many others, such as the following.

• More accurate outreach timing based on lead status. Outreach timing is a crucial factor toward efficiency, which email automation helps enhance without creative input.
• Reduced timezone challenges. Should your business face timezone challenges, email automation ensures they’re minimized.
• Reduced staff costs. Finally, email automation eases the strain on your marketing teams, increasing productivity without the need for additional hires.

As email automation is also a typical CRM feature, it also constitutes a notable way in which CRM impacts team productivity.

#4: Channel consolidation enhances communication

Another benefit of CRM lies in channel consolidation. While deeper options in this regard typically reside in Collaborative CRM, many solutions offer integration options with similar external tools.

This function also notably enhances team productivity by enabling smoother internal communications through a unified interface. Many CRM solutions also offer automatic notifications, improving response times to critical communications or incoming inquiries. Finally, social media channel integrations also offer to enhance social media management, allowing teams to perform more efficiently.

#5: Interaction records improve customer service

Moreover, as highlighted above, CRM provides interaction records that can visibly benefit customer service quality.

This can manifest in different ways, like using past inquiries to inform responses or using records to provide accurate information. In addition, it can help assign appropriate agents to individual requests, providing customers with a better overall experience. Finally, customer service insights can also help acquire additional information to further inform marketing and sales outreach.

#6 Improved reporting ensures performance transparency

Another way in which CRM impacts team productivity is through improved reporting. Through timely, accurate reports, managers can better evaluate individual employees’ performance and react accordingly.

Suboptimal CRM adoption, for example, may warrant more training to ensure successful onboarding. Conversely, consistent excellence may deserve due recognition. This kind of performance transparency also encourages teams to try their best, knowing they may be held accountable for consistent underperformance or rewarded for consistent efficiency.

#7 Integrations allow for easier team adoption

Finally, having mentioned CRM adoption, CRM continues to face challenges as regards adoption rates. Nomalys quantifies end-user adoption rates at 26%, and similar research identifies CRM implementation problems as directly related to this figure.

In this regard, integration options open up possibilities for a smoother CRM implementation. By synergizing with existing workflow assets, it allows users to engage in a more familiar work environment as they grow accustomed to CRM’s. In turn, it is this feature that allows teams to adopt it more easily and reap its benefits.

Conclusion

To summarize, CRM impacts team productivity through an array of functionalities. Its database allows for better collaboration and breaks down silos, while automation streamlines email campaigns and workflows. Channel consolidation enhances productivity further, while interaction records inform both marketing and customer service. Finally, detailed reports improve management and performance transparency, while integrations address adoption rates. These and other CRM functionalities help establish it as an invaluable asset to any business, with notable benefits.