A CRM strategy is a business plan that aims to increase revenue and profits (by improving customer acquisition and retention), reduce costs, and improve customer relationships.
When we talk about CRM we are referring, at the same time, to two distinct concepts that, at the same time, are closely related: a type of software and the individual strategies that the company implements to increase customer satisfaction and the management of relationships with them.
An effective CRM strategy , in the era we live in, has assumed crucial importance for any organization that wants to keep up with the times.
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Let’s see in detail what it is and how to create a winning and profitable CRM strategy.
What is a CRM Strategy?
The advantages of a CRM strategy
Types of CRM Strategies
How to Set Up a CRM Strategy in 4 Steps
CRM Strategy Examples
What is a CRM Strategy?
A CRM strategy is a set of organizational techniques and actions that increase sales, improve customer loyalty , strengthen the customer center and allow you to positively influence customer relationships.
It aims, among other things, to:
create a personalized experience for each lead and customer
unify interactions between business teams
automate manual tasks, with huge savings in resources.
Businesses use these CRM systems to store contact information. Create personalized email campaigns, forecast future sales. Offer personalized product recommendations, guide customer service. Interactions, visualize the complete product lifecycle, etc.
Read also ” CRM Marketing: How to Boost Your Strategy ”
CRM strategy, to be clear, is at the crossroads between. A company’s commercial concerns and marketing issues. This involves defining well-structured processes. So that the actions of all company departments (sales, marketing, support, etc.) converge towards a single objective: the so-called customer journey .
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) stands for customer relationship management , and is based, first and foremost, on active listening , to precisely define customer needs, address their objections and know how to respond to them, offer them a tailor-made offer and a pleasant customer experience that will help build customer loyalty.
Another very important element for the effectiveness of the CRM strategy is a multi-channel approach to reach customers through different methods (email, website, social media, telephone, etc.).
Keep in mind that to best manage this strategy you need to choose the right CRM software for your business .
The advantages of a CRM strategy Winning CRM Strategy in 4 Steps
A CRM strategy , as we have seen, consists of implementing specific actions to qualify contacts, generate new ones and increase the number of sales. These actions define and punctuate the ways in which the company acquires, maintains and retains its customers. If implemented correctly, the CRM strategy produces indisputable advantages , including:
Qualification and segmentation of potential customers.
Gathering relevant information about potential and actual customers.
Ability to focus on leads to encourage conversion.
Defining a clear and effective customer journey.
Projecting a better image of your brand.
Increase sales and customer loyalty.
However, a CRM strategy, to be fully effective, requires the use of resources, both financial and human, and must be launched at the right time . It is more advantageous, for example, to configure your CRM strategy in a period of change or when there is not too much frenetic activity in the company, so that all teams are focused on integrating the various processes within their fields of action.
If you want to know what advantages can be brought by adopting a CRM software to support your strategy, we recommend our dedicated article.
Types of CRM Strategies
Using an adequate CRM strategy allows companies to move in the right direction to optimize their offers and improve their sales data in a more concrete way.
There are three main types of strategies: operational CRM, analytical CRM, and collaborative CRM.
Operational CRM
The operational CRM strategy , effective in managing customer communications, is the most common . It is used in many sectors, especially in companies that produce consumer goods or in banking and financial companies.
This type of CRM strategy allows you to automate the sales process , from lead generation to closing, as well as manage the company’s sales force :
scheduling follow-up reminders to contact prospects at agreed-upon intervals;
tracking a contact and updating their status based on their behavior;
creating reports on sales team performance.
The support of an operational CRM platform also allows you to automate some of the marketing activities at different stages of the customer funnel, such as:
the automatic addition and identification of new subscribers to the company newsletter;
launching a welcome email campaign as soon as a new prospect enters the system;
identifying existing leads in your CRM software for a subsequent marketing campaign.
An essential tool for outbound marketing efforts and telemarketing is the mobile database. Along with demographic information like location, age, and gender, it usually contains contact information like phone numbers. Sustaining the europe cell phone number list precision and timeliness of mobile data is crucial for marketing campaigns to be effective and for regulatory compliance. With the help of our extensive Brazil mobile database, companies may use mobile marketing to connect with their target market.
Analytical CRM
Analytical CRM is about the b2b email list powder analysis phase of the data collected during the relationship with the customer: it is a key step in the development of a aqb directory sales and marketing strategy, as well as a good knowledge of customers.
Evaluates customer data and provides detailed business information to improve the business. The purpose of this CRM strategy is essentially to make more accurate decisions based on clear data.
Collaborative CRM
A collaborative CRM strategy allows a company to share customer information across teams (sales, marketing, and customer service). Its goal is to improve customer experience and loyalty.
A collaborative CRM system consists of two important parts: Winning CRM Strategy in 4 Steps
Interaction Management : Allows you to record and analyze every customer interaction with your business. Interaction tracking helps identify issues that an individual customer or group of customers may be experiencing.
Channel Management : Allows you to save the preferred communication method for each of your customers. Some customers prefer SMS, others prefer phone calls, and still others prefer email.
Discover HubSpot CRM in our article!
How to Set Up a CRM Strategy in 4 Steps
Let’s now look in detail at the steps to create an effective CRM strategy.
1. Define a global corporate vision
This first step is essential to ensure the success of the CRM strategy. It is necessary to lay the foundations by starting by asking yourself specific questions:
What are the company’s strengths and weaknesses?
What are the market opportunities and threats?
Who is the ideal customer?
2. Set clear goals that everyone can share
Once you have identified the path you want to take, it is essential to set yourself the objectives to achieve , in particular for:
determine a marketing plan and consequent actions,
verify that the CRM strategy is working,
motivate all stakeholders to achieve them,
check the ROI.
Goals must always be SMART, that is, specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound.
Furthermore, they must be shared and accepted by all stakeholders of the CRM strategy, to ensure that all efforts are made in the right direction and in the right way and to maximize the chances of achieving them.
3. Review or determine processes and methods
It is essential to review internal business processes to direct them towards customer satisfaction. This may involve creating a 360° customer profile and personalizing communication with the customer to better identify their preferences and provide the best support at every stage of the sale:
pre-sales : needs analysis, information gathering, prospect research
sales : automation of activities (contacts, reminders, development of commercial proposals, etc.)
customer relationship management : personalized relationship for each customer to offer a personalized and satisfying path, with the aim of building customer loyalty,
after-sales : online assistance and support help to solve customer problems more quickly to provide them with a complete and quality service (always with the aim of loyalty).
4. Adopt a multi-channel approach
The growing number of new sales and communication channels has changed the customer experience. Companies face increased competition and, therefore, have a harder time retaining their customers.
A multichannel strategy allows you to multiply the points of contact with prospects and customers, via email, website, text messages, social networks, etc.
Email remains the most used channel by companies: 91% of advertisers use it almost systematically, whether it is a promotional or informational email, or a newsletter.
CRM Strategy Examples
To conclude and give greater concreteness to the concepts expressed so far, here are some practical examples of CRM strategies :
High-value and relevant content
Content marketing is one of the most important tools on which to base your CRM strategy . The proliferation of media and communication channels has favored the emergence of high added value content marketing, driven by the absolute personalization of content. The link between CRM and content marketing is, therefore, increasingly close.
A CRM tool, in fact, offers the possibility of accessing many applications for the collection, analysis and qualification of customer information, taking into account the media and channels on which prospects and future customers evolve.
To be effective , content marketing must meet certain rules that CRM allows you to follow. These rules begin with the creation of buyer personas (imaginary subjects that represent the user) and allow you to accompany the prospect through the conversion phases to guide him in his choices.
Rewarding customer loyalty
Rewarding your most engaged customers is a key step in your loyalty strategy.
The loyalty program is a marketing tool based on a reward system and whose goal is to transform occasional customers into regular customers, or even brand ambassadors. The principle of loyalty has remained unchanged since its inception in France in the mid-1950s, but has benefited from a real revival thanks to the transformations that the world of commerce is experiencing.
Now, faced with an ever-increasing offer, consumers are decidedly volatile and do not hesitate to compare prices, gather information, consult opinions before deciding to buy. To prevent them from switching to the competition, a company has every interest in implementing means to retain them. The loyalty program is, therefore, an excellent way to retain customers and to pamper them.
Customer Management Automation
Offering an automation service to your customers improves the customer experience across platforms. The CRM solution allows the company to collect relevant data related to a particular profile of the potential customer.
By referring to this data, the company is able to automatically offer customized solutions in line with the needs of the prospect. The different offers thus proposed can come from various media belonging to the company or brand. This also increases the visibility of the company through the various digital channels.
The potential customer can be notified via email, SMS or message from the platform application. He will be updated on new products and offers that could meet his needs. Service automation also allows a company to propose questionnaires or surveys in order to collect data related to the improvement of its services and offers.
