Get ready for part two of ‘Does Your CRM Need a Reset?’! In the first post, I identified businesses that are in your database that need to be reclassified. If the data isn’t setup right, the salespeople will not find value in the CRM.
Read Part 1: Crashing the Data
They will not use it because the data is bad. But when the data is regularly updated, you’re going to get better results from your sales team. Data is king. It’s up to you to keep it updated. Don’t assume the sales rep is updating their stuff. They generally, especially if they’re on the way out the door, won’t give you any data.
It’s important that someone in the organization owns the data. I usually recommend someone that’s in accounting to go through this process every quarter. Now, the first thing we talked about was making sure that the data is right in the system in terms of how you classify that information. But there’s more to the story…
What information should you be collecting and what should happen after you collect that information?
See, a lot of people ask their team to fill out the CRM reports that nobody looks at. Well, that’s quite rude. The data has value and gives you steps to follow. There’s things you can do in our system, with CallProof, to automate the process.
Ask yourself this question:
Am I asking my team to enter a bunch of stuff that doesn’t matter?
Listen, keep it simple, stupid. Don’t waste your sales people’s time by asking them to collect tons of irrelevant data. Reevaluate what information provides the most value.
If I’m calling on to a prospect, I may ask that prospect, “Who are you currently using to supply this need?” with a dropdown menu with all your competitors in town so they can select it. Why does this matter? Well, businesses go out of business, and if you knew that Joey’s Electric is going out of business you could capture some of their customers.
When your reps are visiting prospects, are they going through the steps that would warrant a sale down the road, such as connecting with them on LinkedIn, sending them a follow up email? And do you have a standard for a follow up email? Do you have a standard for a LinkedIn request that is all encompassing for all the organization so everyone is doing the same thing?
Consistency is key.
If you educate your sales team on the right steps and follow a program, you’re going to win and be successful. But if the sales rep doesn’t have expectations or isn’t taught the right way, the sales rep will make it up on their own.
And I promise you, most times you’re not going to be happy with the result. That’s why resetting your CRM is resetting the mindset of your salespeople, too.
I see it all the time. I get people set up for their CRM. We have a beautifully onboarded process and we get them through the system. They start making success and wins, but they are not retooling. They’re not looking at the day, they’re not engaged with the data. But the opportunities that you have in your CRM is in the data.
Use it wisely. Spread that love among the organization. With marketing, how does marketing use your CRM to get more business? Marketing folks need to be inside your CRM reading information. What words are being said in the field about your competitors products, your own products? How can your marketing help leverage what is happening in the sales field?
