The pace of change in the market is accelerating, with new technologies and trends constantly emerging. And it can be difficult to keep up, as we are bombarded with hopeful forecasts from CRM software vendors for marketing strategies, promising exponential growth in short periods of 20% per year or long-term projections about where things are going, especially when it comes to what will happen in 10 years.
In a competitive landscape, delivering a great product is no longer enough. Increasingly, the companies that are ahead in the market are those that offer differentiated customer experiences and a fantastic product. At its core, a CRM system is designed to do one thing : manage your relationships with your customers and future leads to provide consistent and personalized experiences.
In general terms, CRM is about gathering information on customers and potential leads in a central application and guiding the sales team through the sales funnel. But it also does more than that. A good CRM helps manage customer interactions in a way that will increase customer loyalty and generate profits that will boost your revenue.
To help you gain all the marketing insights and trends for CRM in your business, here's an article with the key information you need to know about this topic.
What is the future of CRM from the marketing perspective?
1. Top-notch customer experience
Today, more than ever, business revolves around the customer , making customer experience a vital differentiator for a brand.
Moreover, this is on the list of top five priorities for 65% of MarTech companies over the next three years, according to a joint survey by Forbes and Salesforce.
Therefore, the goal of your business should be to provide a better customer service experience . Not just to attract new potential customers , but to increase customer loyalty and avoid revenue loss.
2. Adoption of Artificial Intelligence - AI
Artificial Intelligence (AI) or machine learning is exceeding expectations, according to research by Salesforce. The 2020 State of Marketing report indicated that the number of marketing professionals who will use AI could jump from 29% in 2018 to 84% in 2022.
Integrating AI into CRM helps us better understand our customers: what they buy, how often, how much, their support needs, and much more. This will help us create a better and more personalized experience for our customers.
3. Data reliability
More than ever, data is coming from more sources and in different forms. Salesforce research predicts that marketers used an average of 12 data sources in 2021 and also found that the average number of data management tools used in 2020 doubled compared to 2018.
Furthermore, almost 80% of marketing professionals state that using data can lead to greater customer engagement through data reliability. Considering the many flows that fuel CRM efforts , data management and datasets will be fundamental in the current climate and will require solutions with robust resources to meet these needs.
4. Self-service CRM
From a business perspective, CRM is beginning to evolve, and this means less support for sales calls, fewer support requests, and teams focused on business strategy and growth, such as MarTech companies , for example. Increasingly, customers want to find what they need without the help of a real person.
This means that companies are investing more in portals and self-service systems that offer customers the tools they need to do things like view and pay outstanding invoices, find product documentation, and register support issues.
To support self-service , it's important that the CRM system is tightly coupled, meaning it's part of the ERP system integrated with the back office. This level of self-service requires that data from various functional areas be available to the CRM.
5. Ethics and safety above profit
Currently, ethics and data security have become key factors, to the point of being even more important than a company's profit. The LGPD - General Data Protection Law - is already in full swing. Marketing professionals are forced to consider not only what they 'can' do, but, mainly, what they 'should' do.
The most prepared businesses have already begun to focus on the changes and are concentrating on security-related aspects due to the significant potential risks and possible fines. One of the remaining gray areas of the LGPD (Brazilian General Data Protection Law) concerns legitimate interest , or a company's right to communicate without consent. We hope that this right will not be overused, and that companies will choose to have a transparent, consensual relationship with their customers.
6. Integrations with the help of a MarTech
Today, the usability and integration of new technologies can be aided by MarTech companies , which are driving many changes and evolutions, especially in CRM. Therefore, combining both strategies can be very positive for your business, providing high-level marketing automation .
What are the benefits of using CRM in Marketing?
CRM tools help process customer data and empower organizations to build better relationships with suppliers and customers. Below are some benefits of using CRM in marketing :
Consolidation of customer data
CRM software centralizes customer data in a single location so everyone has access to the data. The manager can also control access to data. The information that a CRM can collect and store is:
- Contact information: This includes the customer's email address, phone numbers, postal addresses, websites, and social media accounts.
- Communication history: CRM can help track customer interactions on websites/ads and through emails, calls, online chats, and support tickets.
- Account Management: CRM can track the lead's journey to becoming a customer, including purchase records and how customers found your business through UTMs.
Development of sales performance
CRM has become an integral part of digital sales processes. Companies have reported increased team productivity and customer retention rates using this software.
- Optimization of sales strategies: CRM can help you optimize your sales processes. You can identify bottlenecks in your business and propose appropriate solutions. You can also monitor campaigns using CRM and optimize them in real time.
- Predict sales accurately: CRM can help sales managers understand their team's performance. This understanding will allow them to set realistic goals and obtain better sales forecasts for the future.
- Team training faster: CRM systems come with a standardized operating mode. Therefore, new hires can learn the system effortlessly and start making an impact right from the start.
- Offer a better customer experience: CRM can help you understand where a potential customer is in your sales pipeline. Rushing a deal can damage the customer relationship. CRM indicates to salespeople when the buyer is interested and when they can proceed.
Focus on leads and potential customers
CRM collects, stores, and organizes customer information based on a consumer's interactions with the brand. This information is collected ethically and with the customer's consent.
The customer also shares data when making a purchase or during a support call. This data includes contact information, behavioral information, customer needs and challenges.
By having access to all this information, the marketing team can map the profile of leads who could become customers. In addition, they can collaborate on creating content targeted to potential clients.
CRM makes sales interactions a more personalized experience for the customer and can also help businesses anticipate a customer's needs before contacting the brand.
Self-sufficient sales funnel
Throughout the structuring of the Sales Funnel, we consider how to control the flow of visitors, leads, and opportunities, recording activities, contacts, and planning activities. This is where sales funnel management tools come into play.
CRM plays a crucial role in helping to organize and control the sales process : automatically recording your interactions with contacts, reminding you and your team to follow up, and centralizing all information in one place.
In addition, it allows your company to create standardized sales stages and facilitates the automated management of day-to-day activities and the monitoring of your team's performance.
Security in data mining
Data mining is the process of analyzing large amounts of data to discover patterns, trends, and associations.
It has become an important technique in business for understanding customer behavior , making strategic decisions, and developing new products or services. It is a great ally of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
In addition to helping make your business more profitable, data mining can help companies improve their internal processes, making them more efficient and reducing costs. The data mining process involves analyzing data from a data warehouse or databases such as CRM.
Is your marketing utilizing the full potential of CRM?
The number of customers is increasing and you are also hiring more people on your team. There are more customer interactions, more conversations, more social media posts. People are sharing information through emails and chats, and the spreadsheet is growing in size. It's normal to be overwhelmed.
With CRM, everything is tracked, different employees can collaborate and share up-to-date customer data. So, if you are interested in a CRM model, talk to us.
