What happens if you do not respond to a prospect and customer in a timely manner? The prospect and customer may look to someone else to meet their need. What happens if you do not tailor your communication to their need? Same thing. They will go to someone who tailors communication according to their needs.
Most small businesses use a CRM for this very reason. They want to manage and nurture both prospects and customers to sell faster, provide relevant and timely communication, and retain loyalty.
However, choosing the right CRM or switching to a CRM that meets your small business needs can be overwhelming. We believe there are four important features every small business must-have in a CRM. Therefore, we are a preferred X2CRM partner. X2CRM is an open-source CRM with enterprise functionality and features for customer engagement.
Let’s look at the four CRM features for small business
- Configure to your business goals
There are many CRMs that are set up for you to use right “out of the box.” For someone who wants to hit the floor running, this sounds appealing. However, “out of the box” means there is zero configuration, so a business ends up trying to make it work. When you try to make something work, compromise is usually involved. In business, compromise can be costly.
X2CRM does not compromise. Before you hit the floor running with X2CRM, we take the time to configure the CRM to your top business goals. This includes implementing only the modules that you need, adding custom fields, and building workflows. A good CRM, like X2CRM, is also flexible so you can build out the implementation with new features as your business grows. When your CRM is configured to your business goals, the CRM becomes a long-term asset that helps you build revenue.
Ask yourself, “am I compromising to make my business processes work with the CRM?” If you answered “yes”, we would love to talk to you and schedule an X2CRM demo.
- Automate processes
So much of our workday can be tied up with repetitive tasks (which need to be done). This can cause Follow Up Fatigue and even burnout. A good CRM has the tools to help you automate tasks. Automation is a foundation of X2CRM. With X2CRM’s automation features, you can sell more with less effort. With automation, you can create and track the following in X2CRM:
- Renewals and reminders
- Email drip campaigns
- Internal task assignments
- The sequence of follow up messages
Automation frees you up to what matters most whether it is business development or managing operations.
- Segment your customers to nurture relationships
In business, we know that customers relate and remain loyal when we personalize our communication and messages. This is difficult and time-consuming when we try to do this manually. It creates Follow Up Fatigue and affects growth.
X2CRM, like other good CRMs, gives you the ability to create segments based on your criteria, so you can send and automate personalized messages. For example, if you wanted to reach homeowners in single-family homes with children, you can create a segment for that demographic and use visuals and messages that relate. The ability to segment is so important, because if you cannot personalize, you may lose prospects and customers.
- Create custom modules
Every industry is a little different. You may run a business in an industry that relies on service tickets for support. Or, you may be in an industry where you generate quotes. Whatever you need to do, X2CRM has an array of custom modules that integrate with your CRM implementation. If one of the custom modules still does not quite meet your need, a custom module for your need can be built
Conclusion
You should not have to compromise your business goals and needs with a CRM. The CRM is working for you and not the other way around. If you need a CRM (or have a CRM that does not have all 4 important features), contact us to schedule a demo of X2CRM. As a small business, you cannot afford Follow Up Fatigue, you need to be able to sell more with less effort.
