Across the United States, sales managers are trying to figure out how to close more deals with fewer resources. Lavish corporate expense accounts are suddenly passe. You can't fly on the company jet anymore, especially if you're taking any federal bailout money. And you'd better not let anybody see you trying to entertain your clients at a company sponsored sporting event.
In this environment, smart sales managers have decided to get even smarter by deploying CRM systems. Yes, even those sales managers who have resisted CRM software implementations for the past few years have rethought their positions. The monthly seat license fee for a hosted CRM application is a fraction of what it used to cost to foot the bill for a three-martini lunch with a customer.
For IT managers and other implementation leaders, this sudden embrace of CRM applications comes at a cost. The pressure's on to deliver solid improvements in sales and service metrics, just on a shorter time table than typical installations. In-house users still require training, and still present the kind of resistance that CRM developers hope to overcome.
New CRM software modules have been designed with today's power users in mind. Chat systems that integrate with public websites can be used to manage more incoming communications at once than current call centers can handle. Stronger e-mail tools can filter inbound messages into quality leads and follow-ups. And task lists tied more tightly into customer time tables help sales professionals understand who to call, when, and why.
The market's only getting tighter, and it's up to company leaders to get behind CRM software -- not just look to it as the Hail Mary pass that can preserve this quarter's profit margin.
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