As a business you need to take three key steps when preparing to implement CRM. This includes businesses that are new to CRM as well as those who are considering changes to their current investment in CRM. The three key steps to ensure satisfaction from your CRM implementation are:

Define Your Goals

This doesn't mean taking the time to prepare hundreds of pages of requirements. It simply means getting together with your team and identifying the reason you want to implement the changes. These will be important goals that drive the details of the CRM implementation. It is critical that your team identifies and commits to the goals before you begin making progress on implementing any CRM initiative. Tips for defining CRM goals:

• Identify what the goal relates to, e.g. Sales, Marketing, Customer Service or a combination of the three.
• Make sure the goals are expressed in business terms and are not a set of technical requirements.
• It's fine to have lofty goals but be careful to include some specific measurable goals so you can assess the benefits later.

Don't get taken in by promises

The CRM industry is a US$150 Billion dollar industry with a large number of vendors making an even larger number of promises. Don't be taken in by the promises of a technical solution that seems to fix the immediate problems. It may not include features that will allow your business to grow with the tool. Often customers find out when it's too late that their solution's pricing, features or integration capabilities are not what they expected.

In addition to evaluating each tool you need to choose your implementation partner carefully. Look for an implementation partner that has a deep understanding or their technology and is willing to work with you to understand your goals and specific business practices to ensure success.

Plan your user adoption strategies

User adoption is a key area for CRM implementation failure, after all the final outcome of the new process and solution will be driven by the people that use it every day. The product you select should be easy for people to use however you must also be creative about programs outside the technology to help drive user adoption. The key points to consider for driving user adoption are:

• Look for CRM tools that integrate closely with applications that your staff use every day to remove the "just another tool" syndrome.
• Identify power user champions within your organisation and involve them closely with the project to gain their buy in.
• Link incentives to use of the new tools.

As you implement strategies to improve your customer relationship management your success or otherwise will be reflected largely by the your upfront planning. This doesn't mean your management team must make large detailed plans in order to succeed, rather it highlights the importance of planning in three key areas, business planning (identifying your goals), technology choice, and your user adoption strategy.

For more information about preparing to implement CRM please contact one our consultants using any of the methods on the Syple Contacts page.